How did you get into M&A?

My first integrations were in the steel industry in 1999 for British Steel, supporting the $100 million acquisition of a French steel mill, and then a subsequent merger with Hoogovens to create Corus Group plc. Working in France was a great experience, seeing how two businesses doing the same thing in the same area of the world could work in completely different ways.

What do you enjoy about M&A?

I love working across cultures and timezones, and particularly look for distressed situations where I can have the most impact. M&A is a great way to fundamentally transform a business in a very short period of time: in a recent project I took over as Managing Director of a distressed pharmaceutical data business. After building a small leadership team we took the company from loss-making to 25% EBITDA, doubling revenue, completing an acquisition and achieving an exit for the shareholders at well above their target valuation.

What are you doing now?

Most of my time is helping a global advertising firm move from a network of 100’s of agencies, bought over the last couple of decades, into a single integrated business. I’m also coaching and supporting a start-up bringing AI technology into fundamental engineering sectors (cement, steel, glass) to remove gigatonnes of carbon-equivalent emissions.

Each year I also help the Royal Academy of Engineering run an engineering leadership award scheme, after benefiting myself when an undergraduate. In my spare time I’m a coach for Shelford Rugby Club with the Under 12’s boy’s team, and Under 15’s girl’s team.

Where are you based?

Home is a small village outside Cambridge in the UK. Work for the last few years has been a mixture of London & New York, roughly a 50/50 split.

How did you get into M&A?

I started a post merger integration consulting business after 10 years in executive search in the UK and Australia. At the time in executive search it was remarkably easy to extract senior people from investment banks and other financial services organisations when their employer was acquiring / being acquired. The degree of uncertainty about the future led to a willingness to talk about other opportunities. That uncertainty was based mostly on so called ’soft’ issues such as culture, ways of working, relationships and very rarely on money and organisational design. This insight was the starting point for Integrum and from a standing start, we were able to build a successful business focused on people, culture and post merger integration specific programme management.

What do you enjoy about M&A?

M&A is the steepest and most insightful way to learn about a business…how it works, what’s the culture, what are its strengths and weaknesses. I’m by nature someone with a lot of curiosity and I find the experience exciting and interesting. It’s also a wonderful way to build deep and personal relationships with key stakeholders. In the deal, they and I are going through a new and challenging experience and that generates trust and a willingness to work closely.

What are you doing now?

Right now I’m working on a transformation for a near-shore delivery centre (which has grown exponentially and is suffering as a consequence) and on a small acquisition in sub Saharan Africa in the home solar systems market. I’ve just rolled off a two year regulatory change programme for one of the UK’s large life insurance companies which arose as a consequence of their largest acquisition to date.

Where are you based?

I live on the East coast of Scotland just outside Edinburgh….but as my family will tell you, I’m on the road frequently, having spent 2 and a half years commuting to London and New York!

HOW DID YOU GET INTO M&A?

Totally by accident, which beautifully exemplifies the notion that so many parameters can change in business life, and that one needs to prepare for every eventuality.  After completing my MBA, I worked in my family’s business, thinking I would manage and grow it for the rest of my life.  But eight years in that job, that company was acquired by Guinness plc, and me with it, whilst that group was acquiring its in-country distributors across Europe. Consequently, I have first-hand experience of the business transformation that goes with M&A integrations.  Five years later, I was the only “acquired” Managing Director to still be in the group : the others had failed and I had done something differently.  I was then asked to replicate that “something different” in other European countries.

WHAT DO YOU ENJOY ABOUT M&A?

I love the diversity of the situations one has to resolve.  Above all, managing international integrations is a delight because my cross-cultural background and international up-bringing enables me to perceive the difference between what people say and what they mean, and appreciate the variance in the way they will tackle issues, reach consensus and make decisions.  Whereas one would expect these differences to impact global integrations, they have also played a very major role in pan-European integrations.  My family roots are English, Swiss-German and Greek, and I have worked in 15 countries, resided lived in six over two continents.  This is an area in which I am well placed to provide insights, avoid roadblocks and create value.  

WHAT ARE YOU DOING NOW?

I am driving the integration of a German technology company acquired by a French business active in the “smart home” space.  Both sell similar products across Europe, with slightly different target customer groups.  They aspire to becoming a key European player.  Once you scratch beneath the surface, there are major issues to converge towards compatibility of both companies’ products, and the softer but more complex challenge of getting German and French teams of people understanding each other’s ways of working and evolving towards a common ground for the future. 

In my spare time, I’m trying to repair the damage that 40 years of focus on the work I love have caused to 15 years of previous assiduous piano studies.  It will take time and effort to get back from “Chop-Sticks” to Rachmaninov preludes, but time and effort are not the point : all that matters is the goal and the satisfaction of reaching it.

WHERE ARE YOU BASED?

Home is split between Morges in Switzerland, initially a small medieval town on the shores of Lake Geneva which is gradually becoming part of the outer areas of Lausanne, and central London.  Morges gives me space, fresh air, and the natural beauty and views over Mont-Blanc which are good for the soul.  London remains my favourite city, which gives me all the buzz, effervescence and cultural stimulus which keeps me on my toes.  Life is made of contrasts: that’s what makes it exciting.

My first M&A that comprise both due diligence and integration was in Life Insurance. The deal gave the UK-based insurer a 12-year ‘bancassurance’ partnership with a leading Asia Pacific bank through its 400+ branches in Singapore, Indonesia and Thailand. Practically it involved being locked up in a physical data room trawling through files and files of documents during the office hours followed by daily client updates and synthesis of the insights obtained end of each day. The integration was an eye-opener, especially when sitting in a room with stakeholders holding the same titles in their respective organisations which used to be competitors and observing the varied responses to the acquisition.

What do you enjoy about M&A?

The adrenalin during the due diligence process and the sense of urgency during integration. M&A is multi-faceted, complex, and full of twists and turns. It is an accelerated opportunity to learn about the industry, gain insights into the organisations, their strategies and culture. It is also an “Express Pass” to the brains of the leaders and key stakeholders. You get the tone from the top, the voice from the ground and all the noise in between. Most of all, it is an invaluable chance to build lasting relationships with my clients, many of whom are friends today.

What are you doing now?

I am currently supporting the regional post-M&A integration of a global transaction in the insurance broking space. It is a challenging yet exciting programme spanning 12 jurisdictions in Asia where the acquired organisation was integrated into 3 distinct sister companies. As a combined entity, it is one of the top insurance brokers globally.

Where are you based?

Home is the sunny island Singapore with two months a year spent on a quiet island named Stord on the coast of Norway.

HOW DID YOU GET INTO M&A?

My first integration was helping a diversified Asian conglomerate acquire downstream assets in the oil and gas industry, which coincidentally or by fate, was my first employer out of university. Coming from a business and technology transformation background paired with project management discipline, I thoroughly enjoyed the multi-faceted aspects of integrating people, culture, processes and running post-merger integration programs.

WHAT DO YOU ENJOY ABOUT M&A?

I love the fact that the work I do alongside my key stakeholders will help transform and drive the new combined business. It is also a great way to learn and build in-depth knowledge of the industry and the business we are working with. I have also met and learned from some of the brightest people during these complex engagements.

WHAT ARE YOU DOING NOW?

I am currently working at a global financial and retail technology company running the global banking sales support practice as well as managing sales and business operations for APAC, Middle East, Central and Eastern Europe. I also get called very often to run pre and post-merger integrations, strategy transformation and change programs across Eurasia.

WHERE ARE YOU BASED?

Home is in sunny Singapore most of the year, but also call Manila, Jakarta and Penang home.

How did you get into M&A?

While living and working in Hong Kong my employer Balfour Beatty acquired a 50% share in a local business… this was my first experience of M&A and I was hooked! When I returned to the UK for an MBA at Henley Business School I wrote my dissertation on Key Success Factors for M&A in the Construction Industry. PwC gave a lecture on M&A as part of the course and I was delighted to hear that they had a niche team of specialists, many with industry experience, focussed exclusively on M&A transactions working across the deal lifecycle. So, on finishing my MBA I joined the team. For 5 years I worked for corporates & private equity across a multitude of sectors on many global deals.

What do you enjoy about M&A?

There is a real energy and buzz around M&A transactions and I thrive on working in this type of environment where the stakes are high. I love working in particular on value creation opportunities and bringing teams together to review different ways of working and delivering synergy plans.

It is a great to work with new colleagues, build lasting relationships and travel the world. For ten years I worked between my home and Majorca in Spain for several major travel and tourism clients. I was very fortunate to work on such a magnificent island and it remains a very special place for my family and myself.

What are you doing now?

I am working as an Interim M&A Integration Director in the logistics industry. It is a global transaction and the business is now a top-10 player in their respective sector.

Where are you based?

I live in a quaint market town in Surrey, England. It is very conveniently located for the airports at Gatwick & Heathrow and just a 30 minute train journey into central London. The office at the end of my garden is a real joy to work in and reduces commuting to a 50m stroll, although the views and climate are a little different to Palma de Mallorca.