Director, UK and CEMEA, M&A Strategy

Director, UK and CEMEA M&A Strategy

Location:London

Job Description:

The Director, UK and CEMEA M&A Strategy, will be responsible for developing the M&A strategy and maintaining the M&A pipeline for LexisNexis’ CEMEA and UK business units. The Director will report to the EVP Global Strategy and collaborate closely with the Global Strategy, Global Business Development, and UK and CEMEA leadership teams to drive the development and execution of each business unit’s M&A strategy.

Accountabilities:

Specific responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

Define the M&A growth strategy for the UK and CEMEA business units

• Work closely with CEMEA and UK Strategy, Product, and Segment leaders to identify priority areas for growth
• Maintain a pulse of key market developments and trends by conducting customer and competitive research, attending industry conferences, and monitoring industry news
• Assess opportunities by conducting quantitative and qualitative analysis
• Summarize analysis and recommendations in executive-level presentations and papers

Develop and maintain the UK and CEMEA M&A pipelines

• Conduct regular horizon scans of companies within target sectors
• Gather information on companies via desk research and internal and external interviews
• Evaluate companies in pipeline to identify top priority targets
• Support UK and CEMEA leadership teams in nurturing relationships with top priority targets

Lead the development of internal transaction approval documents and presentations

• Synthesize findings to define strategic rationale for acquisition and outline key risks
• Manage 3rd party consultants supporting commercial due diligence

Qualifications:

• MBA or equivalent education and experience
• 8 years prior experience, including 4 years experience in a top-tier strategic consulting firm plus additional experience in an M&A advisory firm or corporate development function
• Quantitative modeling in MS Excel
• Advanced MS PowerPoint skills
• Advanced skills writing reports in MS Word

Competencies:

Preferred competencies include:

Essential

• Drive for results - Can be counted on to exceed goals successfully while steadfastly pushes self and others for results
• Dealing with ambiguity - Can effectively cope with change and can decide and act without having the total picture while comfortably handling risk and uncertainty
• Functional/Technical Skills - Has the functional and technical knowledge and skills to do the job at a high level of accomplishment
• Problem Solving - Uses rigorous logic and methods to solve difficult problems with effective solutions, probes all fruitful sources for answers and has the ability to see hidden problems
• Organizational Agility - Knowledgeable about how organizations work and knows how to get things done both through formal or informal channels and the informal network
• Integrity and Trust - Is seen as a direct, truthful individual who can present the unvarnished truth in an appropriate and helpful manner

Exceptional

• Strategic Agility - Sees ahead clearly and can anticipate future consequences and trends accurately

• Perspective - Looks toward the broadest possible view of an issue/challenge and has broad-ranging personal and business interests and pursuits
• Learning on the fly - Learns quickly when facing new problems, is open to change and experiments and will try anything to find solutions
• Technical Learning - Picks up on technical things quickly and is strong at learning new industry, company, product or technical knowledge

Other competencies preferable but not essential:

• Priority Setting - Spends time on what’s important and has the ability to quickly zero in on the critical few and puts the trivial many aside
• Planning - Accurately scopes out length and difficulty of tasks and projects, sets objectives and goals, and breaks down work into the process steps
• Comfortable around Higher Management - Can present to more senior managers without undue tension and nervousness, understands how senior managers think and work, and can determine the best way to get things done with them by talking their language and responding to their needs
• Customer Focus – Dedicated to meeting the expectations and requirements of internal and external customers. Gains first hand customer information and uses it to define and craft strategy and operational improvements.
• Interpersonal Savvy - Relates well to all kinds of people, up, down and sideways, inside and outside the organization and can build constructive and effective rapport

LexisNexis, a division of RELX Group, is an equal opportunity employer: qualified applicants are considered for and treated during employment without regard to race, color, creed, religion, sex, national origin, citizenship status, disability status, protected veteran status, age, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information, or any other characteristic protected by law. If a qualified individual with a disability or disabled veteran needs a reasonable accommodation to use or access our online system, that individual should please contact accommodations@relx.com or if you are based in the US you may also contact us on 1.855.833.5120.

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