Corporate Development Director

• Director – Global Corporate Development
• Location: New York (Hybrid)
• Office: 2 days/week with team in office; more as projects require
• Travel: Occasional, < 25%

ABOUT THE TEAM

The Global Corporate Development (GCD) team sits within Wolters Kluwer's Global Strategy group, which reports to the CEO and Chair of the Executive Board, giving the team a direct line of sight to Group‑level capital allocation and portfolio strategy. The team is a driving force behind the company's inorganic growth strategy, partnering with divisional general managers and senior executives across all five of Wolters Kluwer's global divisions to source, assess, structure, and execute transactions.

The culture is collaborative, low‑ego and high‑performing, with a track record of developing talent and promoting from within.

Over the last two years, the GCD team has executed nearly US$2 billion in transactions in both the US and Europe. Deal sizes typically range from US$ ~5M to 500M, creating a dynamic environment where team members can take the lead on smaller transactions while directly contributing to larger, more complex deals. This role provides exceptional visibility to senior leadership within a highly acquisitive organization. Recent acquisitions include Finca Group carve‑out from Isabel Group, RASi, and Libra.ai.

ABOUT THE ROLE

The Director, Global Corporate Development is expected to lead transactions with limited oversight a senior individual contributor and deal leader within the GCD team, reporting to the VP Americas, Corporate Development. This role is comparable in scope and responsibility to a senior ‘Vice President’ or junior ‘Director’ level role in investment banking, with direct accountability for leading transactions end‑to‑end and shaping investment/deal recommendations.

In this position, you will own the execution of selected M&A transactions — from initial deal intake through diligence, valuation, board memo prep, negotiation, and execution. You will serve as a point of contact for internal stakeholders and external counterparties on active deals, and you will be accountable for recommendations presented to the VP and SVP of Corporate Development.

While the role is US‑based and focused on the Americas, Directors are expected to contribute selectively to transactions in EMEA and other regions as required. The US-based team is lead by VP Americas, one Director (this opportunity), one Associate Director and one Senior Analyst.

RESPONSIBILITIES

• Enterprise Understanding & Strategic Connectivity — Build deep fluency across Wolters Kluwer’s operating businesses and strategic priorities, and develop meaningful professional relationships across the Global Strategy group to drive alignment and effective collaboration on transactions.
• Deal Leadership & Execution — Lead assigned acquisition and divestiture processes end‑to‑end, with accountability for transaction strategy, timelines, and outcomes.
• Stakeholder & Relationship development — Meaningfully engage divisional leadership, bankers, PE sponsors, and industry contacts to advance opportunities aligned with strategic priorities. Build and maintain trusted relationships with divisional GMs, SVPs, and functional leaders. Act as the day‑to‑day lead with target management teams, PE funds, and transaction advisors on selected deals.
• Investment Thesis & Decision Framing — Develop investment theses; frame key value drivers, risks, and trade‑offs; prepare and present recommendations to senior executives.
• Financial & Operating Model Oversight — Direct the development and review of valuation and operating models (DCF, comps, accretion/dilution, multiple‑case operating scenarios); challenge assumptions and ensure analytical rigor rather than acting as the primary model builder. Note, Directors are in a player-coach role, and will take on valuation and operating model development on occasion.
• Project Management & Governance — Lead complex, cross‑functional deal processes; set workplans, manage dependencies, and resolve issues across internal teams and external advisors under compressed timelines.
• Due Diligence Leadership — Oversee financial, commercial, technical, and operational diligence; synthesize findings into clear implications for valuation, structure, and deal risk; serve as escalation point for key issues.
• Divestiture & Portfolio Actions — Lead divestiture processes including carve‑out planning, self‑diligence, and coordination with internal and external stakeholders.
• Team Development — Mentor and review work of members; raise analytical and execution standards across the group through coaching and feedback.

QUALIFICATIONS FOR SUCCESS

• Experience: 9–12  years of experience across investment banking, private equity, or corporate development, with a strong record of leading M&A transactions.
• Software M&A Expertise: Significant experience across Software, AI, and SaaS M&A, with a deep understanding revenue models for subscription and usage‑based businesses. Familiarity with negotiating key commercial deal points (e.g., valuation, price adjustments, restrictive covenants, reps and warranties) and reviewing disclosures against due diligence findings.
• Education: Bachelor’s degree in Business, Finance, Economics, Mathematics, or a related field; MBA strongly preferred.
• Transaction Leadership: Must have demonstrated experience leading transactions end‑to‑end, including negotiation of valuation and commercial elements in definitive documentation, and leading development of investment memos (or equivalent).
• Financial Judgment: Ability to assess financial models critically and focus on key drivers, while ensuring mechanics are correct. Solid understanding of financial statements.
• Executive Presence: Proven ability to influence and advise senior executives; comfort operating in ambiguous, high‑stakes decision environments.
• Communication: Exceptional written and verbal skills; able to synthesize complex information into concise executive materials. Ability to synthesize complex diligence findings into clear, decision‑ready narratives
• Organization: A preference for structure and standardization and an ability to project manage on compressed timelines.
• Intellectual Curiosity: Genuine interest in diverse businesses, emerging industries, and applied AI.
• Work Style: Proactive self-starter with strong ownership, attention to detail, urgency, and situational adaptability.
• AI Fluency Preferred: Hands-on experience using and building M&A-related workflows using ChatGPT, Claude, Copilot, or similar platforms.
• Technical Skills: Advanced Excel (valuation and driver-based models), PowerPoint (executive-ready presentations) and Word capabilities. Proficient using research platforms (CapitalIQ, PitchBook) and managing data rooms.
• Our Interview Practices
• To maintain a fair and genuine hiring process, we kindly ask that all candidates participate in interviews without the assistance of AI tools or external prompts. Our interview process is designed to assess your individual skills, experiences, and communication style. We value authenticity and want to ensure we’re getting to know you—not a digital assistant. To help maintain this integrity, we ask to remove virtual backgrounds and include in-person interviews in our hiring process. Please note that use of AI-generated responses or third-party support during interviews will be grounds for disqualification from the recruitment process.
• Applicants may be required to appear onsite at a Wolters Kluwer office as part of the recruitment process.

Additional Information :

Wolters Kluwer offers a wide variety of competitive benefits and programs to help meet your needs and balance your work and personal life, including but not limited to: Medical, Dental, & Vision Plans, 401(k), FSA/HSA, Commuter Benefits, Tuition Assistance Plan, Vacation and Sick Time, and Paid Parental Leave. Full details of our benefits are available upon request.