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Interim CHRO · Fractional Head of HR

Not consulting.
Leadership.

Interim CHRO for restructuring and transformation under German co-determination.
Restructuring, investor transitions, leadership vacancies: I take responsibility from day one – firm at the works council table, dependable towards CFO and shareholders. And I leave behind structures that work without me.

Regions DACH
Available Now
Engagement Remote · on-site
Get in touch
Beatrice Metzler, Interim CHRO

Three situations.
One answer.

Companies call me when the situation is serious – and there is no time for a long search.

01

Restructuring without HR leadership

Downsizing or reorganisation is imminent, and the HR lead is missing or overwhelmed.

I take over steering, works council proceedings and execution – from day one.

02

Bridging a leadership gap

Your CHRO or Head of HR is leaving – but the decisions will not wait.

I secure daily operations and sensitive decisions – and hand over cleanly to the successor.

03

Building & modernising HR

Processes, systems, digital HR files, governance.

I build structures that keep running without me.

Deliver, not
just plan.

— The first 3 days
3days

Orientation

Situation picture, risks, decision routes – and a 30/60/90 plan on the table.

— The first 30 days
30days

Understand & stabilise

Immediate action where needed – no intervention where the picture is still unclear. First visible progress.

— The first 3 months
3months

Deliver & hand over

Decisions made, structures in place, results standing – documented and transferable.

Every mandate starts with the Situation Report: five days at a fixed fee – then both sides decide on continuation. Steering runs on decision papers, a decision log and a fixed rhythm, not on slides. And at the end, one rule holds: No mandate without a handover.

Impact
in numbers.

15+years of HR leadership, transformation and organisational psychology
40+reorganisation and OD projects steered – negotiated with works councils
100+hires owned, around 30 key roles filled at director level and above
450+employees supported HR-side – regulated, listed environment (DE/US)
120employees in overall C-level responsibility as a member of the executive management
500+organisations advised from the inside – executive teams, HR and works councils

From my
leadership practice.

Three examples – anonymised. Details and references gladly shared in conversation.

Example 01

Workforce governance & restructuring

Biotech · DE/US
~1,200-employee environment
Co-determination

Steered 40+ reorganisation projects, established monthly CFO steering, documented decisions audit-proof.

What remained

A governance blueprint and a steering rhythm that CFO and management rely on.

Example 02

HR operating model: build-up & scaling

IT/Consulting · PE environment
DE/CH
~120 employees

Professionalised People & Culture from scratch within twelve months, 20+ key hires, negotiated works agreements.

What remained

A recruiting system, policies and core cycles – the team runs them independently.

Example 03

Reorg steering & leadership stabilisation

Multi-site
Strong co-determination
Reorganisation

Weekly steering group across HR, Finance, Legal and Communications; a clear decision architecture; a manager toolkit for difficult conversations.

What remained

Consistent decisions and stable execution – under pressure, too.

Detailed project profile ("Project-relevant experience & results") available on request.

Both sides
of the table.

Beatrice Metzler

Diplom-Psychologin (equivalent to an MSc in industrial and organisational psychology) and C-level HR executive – most recently Chief People & Culture Officer and member of the executive management. Stations: a listed biotech (DE/US), IT/consulting in a private-equity environment (DE/CH), and before that organisational consulting at scale.

I know works councils from both sides of the table – as an advisor to more than 500 organisations, and as the employer's negotiator in reorganisations.

What drives me: the gap between what an organisation promises and what it does.

I come to close it – and I say what is necessary, even when it is uncomfortable.

Diplom-Psychologin (I/O Psychology), University of Tübingen · German · English Stuttgart · working across DACH · available now

Let's
talk.

In a first conversation we clarify three things: what the situation really is, whether I am the right person – and what an entry would look like.