| Location | Chicago, IL |
Huron is redefining what a global consulting organization can be. Advancing new ideas every day to build even stronger clients, individuals and communities. We're helping our clients find new ways to drive growth, enhance business performance and sustain leadership in the markets they serve. And, we're developing strategies and implementing solutions that enable the transformative change they need to own their future.
As a member of the Huron corporate team, you'll help to evolve our business model to stay ahead of market forces, industry trends and client needs. Our accounting, finance, human resources, IT, legal, marketing and facilities management professionals work collaboratively to support Huron's collective strategies and enable real transformation to produce sustainable business results.
Join our team and create your future.
The Corporate Development Leader, reporting to the CFO, is responsible for driving the company's inorganic global growth strategy through acquisitions and strategic partnerships. This individual serves as a strategic partner to business segment leaders and is accountable for the majority of the M&A lifecycle-from target identification through transaction execution and pre-integration planning - ensuring disciplined capital deployment and long-term value creation.
This role combines strategic vision, M&A execution leadership, and financial expertise to ensure that capital deployment, acquisition integration, and performance management initiatives generate measurable enterprise value in support of the company's strategy. The Corporate Development Leader partners closely with executive leadership, global business unit leaders, and our corporate functions (e.g., legal, accounting and finance, HR, etc.) to accelerate sustainable, profitable growth.
Key Responsibilities
Strategic Partnership with Business Leaders
Partner closely with industry and capability leadership to define acquisition priorities aligned with the enterprise and business's growth strategies
Translate strategic objectives into actionable M&A roadmaps and target profiles
Serve as a trusted advisor to senior leadership on inorganic growth opportunities
Sourcing & Opportunity Development
Build and maintain a robust pipeline of acquisition targets through proactive sourcing, market mapping, and relationship development
Cultivate relationships with founders, investment banks, and industry advisors
Conduct market intelligence and competitive analysis to identify strategic opportunities
Deal Evaluation & Due Diligence
Lead comprehensive due diligence across all workstreams (e.g., financial, commercial, operational, IT, legal, etc.)
Quarterback cross-functional teams through deal evaluation processes
Identify key risks, synergies, and value drivers to inform investment decisions
Transaction Execution & Negotiation
Lead structuring, negotiation, and execution of transactions in partnership with Legal
Develop term sheets and negotiate term sheets, purchase agreements, and transaction documentation in partnership with Legal
Manage internal governance processes, including business leader, executive and board approvals
Financial Modeling & Investment Committee Process
Oversee development of financial models, valuation analyses, and return frameworks
Prepare and present clear, executive-ready investment recommendations
Evaluate return on invested capital (ROIC) and long-term value creation metrics
Drive transaction review processes and enable capital allocation decisions
Pre-Integration Planning & Value Realization
Partner with business and corporate teams to develop pre-close integration strategies and Day 1 plans
Define synergy targets and operating model alignment
Monitor and support post-close value realization and integration success
Continuous Improvement & Capability Building
Build and refine repeatable M&A playbooks, tools, and governance frameworks
Institutionalize best practices across sourcing, diligence, execution, and integration
Drive continuous improvement of corporate development processes and pipeline management
Identify AI, automation and process improvement opportunities to enhance scalability
Required Skills
Strategic thinker with strong commercial judgment
Exceptional analytical and problem-solving capabilities
Strong negotiation and stakeholder management skills
Ability to operate effectively in a fast-paced, high-volume deal environment
Collaborative leadership style with a focus on execution and outcomes
Core Qualifications
12-15+ years of experience in corporate development, investment banking, private equity, or strategy
Proven track record of leading end-to-end, cross-border M&A transactions
Deep expertise in financial modeling, valuation, and deal structuring
Strong executive presence with the ability to influence senior leadership
Experience operating within a highly acquisitive, matrixed organization
Demonstrated ability to lead cross-functional teams across multiple concurrent transactions
Position Level
Corporate Vice President
Country
United States of America