M&A Manager – Lacon House, WC1X 8NL

Overview

M&A Manager – Lacon House, WC1X 8NL

Arriva is a leading European passenger transport partner, operating in 11 countries across the UK and Europe.  The company employs around 35,000 people, delivering more than 1.5 billion passenger journeys connecting people and communities safely, reliably and sustainably.

We have strong roots dating back to 1938, an ambitious growth and sustainability agenda, and a continuously developing relationship with I Squared Capital – a global infrastructure investment fund manager – who acquired Arriva in 2024.

We are looking for an M&A Manager to join our Business Development Team on a full-time permanenet basis. This role will be based from our London office.

The main purpose of the role will be to grow Arriva’s market position in existing markets and deliver expansion into new modes, services and markets, through acquisitions. The focus of the role will be predominantly European.

The role holder will be reporting to the M&A Director, Abel Martín, within Group M&A.

This role provides a stellar opportunity to  enter the Arriva Group as a project leader for

inorganic growth opportunities, at a pivotal time in Arriva’s development journey.

Direct Responsibilities:

Origination

•  Leverage industry insights and knowledge of political landscapes to identify opportunities for Arriva to exploit.

•  Stay abreast of industry research, competitor developments & news. Ongoing coverage of

potential targets.

•  Build and maintain strong networks internally and externally, with industry contacts, public authorities, advisors, and decision makers to originate and source opportunities.

M&A Project Execution

•  Management and coordination of all aspects of M&A projects, at different

stages in  the process, including liaison with  relevant  stakeholders during the  internal approval process.

•  Perform and coordinate financial, commercial and operational analyses throughout all stages of a project up to completion or termination, plus post–close reviews for completed deals.

•  Evaluation of financial information of target companies, in comparison to industry and

competitors.

•  Ensuring M&A processes comply with Corporate Governance guidelines.

•  Coordinate Due  Diligence  processes,  prepare  Business  Plans,  ensure  robust  valuation analysis.

•  Representation of the company in discussions and negotiations with target companies and client bodies – including vendors, potential partners and stakeholders.

Financial Modelling

•   Drawing up, overseeing the construction, maintenance and review of detailed financial models to form company valuations and analyse historical and projected financial information to deliver Non–Binding–Offers and to support Due Diligence throughout the M&A process.

•  Extract the main conclusions and assumptions of a financial model in support of decision– making process.

•  Prepare decision papers for the Arriva Management Board and Arriva TopCo Board which

includes shareholder representation.

•  Produce ad–hoc financial reviews and sensitivity analyses.

•  Liaise with Project Managers of the Business Units e.g. to train them on Financial Modelling tasks.

M&A/Business Development team support and management

•  Running multiple M&A projects in parallel and articulate rationale, outcome of financial analyses and Due Diligence outcomes in internal review processes.

•  Day–to–day supervision and management of the internal and external project team.

•  Working closely with other Arriva departments such as Group HR, IT, Legal etc. on initiatives when required.

•  Support on global strategy recommendations and structural and operational decisions.

•  Help standardize models, analyses and deal processes, e.g. by defining/utilising industry specific KPI´s, in order to guarantee a quick delivery of results.

Coordination with Business Units / Country Leadership Teams

•  Communicating with Business Units / Country Leadership Teams where required on project decisions and provision of M&A Centre of Excellence support.

•  Regular review of M&A pipeline making sure that various stakeholders remain informed and that sufficient resources are staffed and overall growth goals are met.

Knowledge, skills & experience:

We expect the following skills and capabilities, for the individual who would fulfil this role:

•    Strategic–mindset: resourceful and able to generate new thinking and ideas; proven success in articulating the strategic and financial rationale for a deal at senior levels.

•   M&A experience across a variety of deal types and sizes: evidence of identifying new

business opportunities, including acquisitions, evaluating them and bringing them to a successful conclusion; ability to work across a variety of deal types and sizes – e.g. both large corporate transactions, as well as acquiring local family–owned businesses.

•   Ability to deliver results through others: evidence of experience on projects, where

the ability to engage with business unit stakeholders and deliver results through dialogue and collaboration is essential.

•    Strong project management skills: a proven record of leading (parts of) complex projects; proven success in formulating plans that focus on both value creation and execution, with clear priorities and effective solutions.

•   Exceptional interpersonal skills: down–to-earth and able to communicate with and

influence a wide range of internal and external stakeholders.

•  Strong financial modelling expertise including financial  applications and  database management tools. CFA, CPA, ACCA or ACA certification would be a pro.

•  Ability to prepare detailed and reliable analysis with limited underlying information. Ability to build effective relationships with a variety of stakeholders at all levels (from C-level to working level).

•  Adaptive and professional communication and presentation.

•  Ability to influence across a multi–functional team in a varied and geographically dispersed business.

•  Ability to work under limited supervision. Strong reporting skills.

•  Global mindset and a willingness to learn and pool resources. Emphasis on team building and prepared to challenge.

•  Report writing with clarity and accuracy. Strong analytical skills.

•  Fluent English language skills as well as proficiency in at least another European language.

•  Willingness to travel and to spend time away from home.

 

IMPORTANT: Before applying for this role, please make sure you have the right to work in the country where the role is based. Unless it clearly stipulates within in the job advert above that the hiring company is looking to or able to sponsor applicants it is deemed that the hiring employer will only consider applications from those able to comply with and work in the country where the role is based.