Head of M&A & Corporate Development
C&D Talent Advisory - Academy
Remote
About The Company
Our Client is an AI-native recruitment platform transforming how companies hire top talent. By combining proprietary AI infrastructure with a network of expert talent partners, they deliver dramatically faster and better hiring outcomes than traditional agencies.
Their platform reaches over 13,000 candidates weekly and leverages a proprietary database of nearly one billion candidate profiles to help ambitious startups and scaleups build world-class teams.
Their results speak for themselves:
- 3–4x faster hiring compared to industry averages
- 5–10x higher fill rates than traditional agencies
- 6x revenue growth last year while maintaining strong profitability
Backed by leading investors including Notion Capital, Frontline Ventures, and prominent operators from Workday, eBay, Monzo, HubSpot, McKinsey, and Hg Capital, they're entering next phase of growth.
- Location: United Kingdom (Remote)
- Employment Type: Full-time
- Seniority Level: Senior Level
- Work Authorization: Valid Work-Permit for UK
The Opportunity
As Head of M&A & Corporate Development, you will architect and execute the strategy from the ground up.
This is not a role for someone who wants institutional infrastructure. We are looking for an entrepreneurial operator who knows how to source deals, structure financing, navigate complexity, and close transactions with limited resources.
For the right candidate, this role offers a clear path to becoming the company's future CFO.
What You'll Do
Deal Origination & Pipeline Development;
- Build and manage a proprietary acquisition pipeline across Europe
- Conduct owner outreach and relationship building with SME targets
- Develop long-term relationships with founders and business owners
- Identify high-potential acquisition opportunities
M&A Execution;
- Lead transactions from origination through closing
- Structure LOIs, negotiate commercial terms, and manage exclusivity
- Coordinate legal, financial, and operational due diligence
- Manage advisors, data rooms, and transaction workstreams
Financing & Structuring;
- Work directly with lenders and financing partners
- Structure debt, mezzanine, vendor financing, and earnout packages
- Support capital raising activities where needed
- Optimize transaction economics and risk allocation
Integration & Portfolio Growth;
- Support post-acquisition integration efforts
- Help acquired businesses leverage company's AI infrastructure
- Establish scalable playbooks for future acquisitions
- Drive portfolio value creation initiatives
Who We're Looking For
We're seeking an entrepreneurial M&A leader with a proven ability to execute transactions in resource-constrained environments.
You likely bring:
- End-to-end SME M&A execution experience
- Deal origination and owner outreach expertise
- Hands-on experience with acquisition financing
- Strong legal and financial due diligence capabilities
- The ability to operate independently without large institutional support
Particularly attractive backgrounds include
- Corporate Development or M&A in high-growth companies
- Entrepreneurship or founder experience
- Professional services or recruitment industry M&A
- Roll-up or buy-and-build strategies
- Private equity or lower middle-market transactions
Nice to Have
- Earnout structuring experience
- Professional services M&A background
- Experience scaling acquisition engines
- Exposure to AI or technology-enabled services businesses
- Track record progressing toward CFO or finance leadership roles
What We Offer
- Competitive base salary
- Significant equity participation designed for meaningful ownership
- Remote-first work model
- Direct access to founders and investors
- Opportunity to build a category-defining company from the ground up
- Explicit fast track to CFO as the platform scales
Join us at the exact moment we transition from proving the model to scaling it and help build the defining AI-powered roll-up in the global recruitment industry...