I work for a "small" institute of the US government which is maybe five steps below a top level US agency (e.g., US department of agriculture, commence, defense, . ). Our director is leaving at the end of the year and staff are now fighting over the merits and drawbacks of appointing an acting director over an interim. What is the difference between the two?
asked Nov 20, 2019 at 17:21 425 2 2 gold badges 5 5 silver badges 13 13 bronze badges"acting director" is usually someone who is working out of title, such as an assistant director who is taking on the duties of a director until a director is found.
an "interim director" is someone who is working in title, but temporarily until a replacement is found.
Usually an interim director is a director from another department who is filling both roles. I.E. Director of finance, interim director of IT.
Sometimes, a department may have a director move to another department while an assistent director becomes acting director.
So, as in the above example, Bob is the director of finance, but the IT department is a mess, and the director was fired. Bob had been in IT in the past, and can serve as interim director of IT. Bob has his assitant director Alice, fill his role while they look for someone to fill the IT spot.
So, you have Alice, as acting director of Finance, Bob as director of Finance, interim director of IT.
The difference between "Interim" and "Acting" is that someone who is "Interim" already has a similar title/qualifications and an "Acting" director is someone who doesn't have the title/qualifications, but is ACTING in that role as if they did.
"Acting" be it "Acting manager" or "Acting director", can be used to get experience in a role before a promotion. Example, after six months as "Acting Director of Finance", Alice is promoted to Director of finance, and is no longer "Acting Director"
Also, (thank you Damila) an "Acting" director may not have the pay of a director, while an "interim" director likely will.