A division of recruitment agency Kelly Group, the Professional Assignment Group (PAG), is establishing a new service offering in South Africa that will assist companies in need of professional services on a short-term basis.

Kelly Group has a company in California, called M2, which is an interim management company that provides companies with professional consultants working on a short-term basis. These consultants are self-employed and are hired by companies as contractors to fill important positions at a moment's notice.

PAG MD Lawrence Wordon says that this business practice is a "well accepted norm" in the US corporate market.

Wordon explains that there is a great need for highly qualified professionals to fill the position of, example, a CFO or CEO on short-term notice, as the South African skills shortage and brain drain are "very real and we feel it particularly in the financial, technical and management areas, leaving companies in the lurch for the proper replacement".

He notes that it is not risky for companies to employ professionals of this calibre on a short-term basis, as they are "well experienced", and are "ready to hit the road running", alleviating the problem of the position being unfilled by a new permanent staff member for a long period of time.

"It takes a long time to fill a top position, such as the position of a CFO. Companies need to have someone taking care of important issues that form part of that important position, and cannot take the risk of having such a position unattended to for months. Therefore, we will assist in filling the gap between when the staff member resigns from his job, and when the new permanent staff member starts," he says.

Wordon adds that the professional consultants they provide to companies are equipped with years of experience on troubleshooting and fixing problems as it is their specialisation to "fill gaps". "They are able to operate strategically and operationally".

"In parallel, we are able to help the company do a proper assessment for the long term to find the right replacement.

"It is important to have someone in the leadership position. The part-time consultant will also stay on the job during a handover period and will training the new permanent staff member on the necessary duties specifically related to the company," he says.

PAG's part-time professional consultants should preferably have experience of ten years or more in managerial and on a professional level.