Associate Director - (SSG) Strategy and Execution - EY Parthenon in London

The opportunity sits in the Product and Technology competency of the SSG team. As an Associate Director in our team, you’ll advise clients across software and tech-enabled services sectors, supporting in developing and executing strategies for transactions, using your knowledge and enthusiasm to apply your technical skills across the M&A transaction lifecycle; ranging from diligence to technology strategy assignments including pre-deal diligence, portfolio review and post deal value creation engagements.

Your key responsibilities:

• Manage teams that engage with clients on a variety of topics, ranging from diligence to strategy assignments.
• Diligence: Provide market-leading product and technology diligence of companies in the Software Economy, enabling investors to understand a software company's capabilities and ability to execute against its corporate strategy, while also identifying risks and opportunities.
• Integrated diligence: Combine product and technology diligence with guiding commercial due diligence capabilities to provide clients with a cohesive view of their target investment from both a market and an operational perspective.
• Strategy: Assess a company’s software development organisation for capacity, talent, and process, and provide actionable recommendations to improve productivity, timeliness, predictability, quality, and overall alignment with the corporate strategy.
• Study clients' technology roadmaps and potential alternatives to help companies identify and build a suitable technology strategy and architecture roadmap.
• Examine a company’s product roadmap and provide recommendations for improvement based on market research, team capabilities, development cost and risk, and technology underpinnings.

Skills and attributes for success:

• Contribute to pre-deal, post-deal, value creation engagements with clients across all sectors including private equity across the UK and EU.
• Manage an engagement’s successful execution and lead junior team members.
• Lead discussions to develop hypotheses, insights, and key findings critical to the engagement.
• Execute qualitative and quantitative reviews to support the formulation and validation of strategic recommendations.
• Conduct in-depth interviews with key organisational stakeholders, industry experts and customers.
• Perform secondary research using a variety of sources.
• Analyse business plans and pro-forma financial models to help identify key assumptions and drivers.
• Contribute to people initiatives; mentoring, coaching, recruiting, retaining and training staff.

Desirable knowledge and experience:

• A bachelor’s degree (or equivalent) with outstanding academic performance.
• Prior experience as team lead or senior engineer within a software company, or the software function of a more traditional company.
• Track record of applying structured methodologies and industry standards for Product Management, UI/UX design principles, Software Architecture, Software Development Life Cycle methods.
• Prior experience in a transactions context, ideally performing technology due diligence and/or strategic value creation assignments.
• Detail-oriented and good at sifting through datasets quickly to identify patterns and develop insights.
• Ability to make detailed assessments of industry, products, markets, competitors and customers to identify risks and opportunities.
• Flexibility with working locations, as we occasionally perform work onsite in the UK, EU and globally.

Ideal candidate characteristics:

• Charismatic and effective leader of diverse teams.
• Strong and articulate communicator.
• Trusted business consultant to our clients with deep knowledge of technology trends.
• Proven project management and stakeholder management experience.
• Committed to seeking out new ways to make a difference.

About EY Parthenon:

EY-Parthenon teams work with clients to navigate complexity by helping them to reimagine their eco-systems, reshape their portfolios and reinvent themselves for a better future. With global connectivity and scale, EY-Parthenon teams focus on Strategy Realized — helping CEOs design and deliver strategies to better manage challenges while maximizing opportunities as they look to transform their businesses.

What working at EY offers:

• Competitive remuneration package where you’ll be rewarded for your individual and team performance.
• Comprehensive Total Rewards package includes support for flexible working and career development.
• Continuous learning: You’ll develop the mindset and skills to navigate whatever comes next.
• Success as defined by you: We’ll provide the tools and flexibility, so you can make a meaningful impact, your way.
• Diverse and inclusive culture: You’ll be embraced for who you are and empowered to use your voice to help others find theirs.

Please note: Prior to finalizing your application, you will be asked to provide personal information across several dimensions of diversity and inclusiveness. The information you provide is kept entirely confidential and will not be used to evaluate your candidacy.