AI Native, Director, Corporate Development

ConsumerAffairs

12h

About The Position

We are looking for a Director of Corporate Development who can help deploy our meaningful cash flow into high ROI opportunities. Reporting to the Chief Operating Officer, the Director of Corporate Development is responsible for leading ConsumerAffairs' corporate development function. This role identifies, evaluates, diligences, negotiates, and supports the execution and integration of acquisitions, strategic investments, and other growth opportunities that align with the company's long-term strategy. ConsumerAffairs is an AI-forward company and this individual is expected to leverage AI throughout the corporate development lifecycle. AI should be foundational to how work is performed—from sourcing acquisition targets and analyzing markets to accelerating due diligence, synthesizing complex information, and improving investment decision-making. The Director will continuously evaluate and implement emerging AI tools and workflows to build a scalable, data-driven corporate development function. This role partners closely with the COO and collaborates across Legal, Product, Engineering, and Operations to assess strategic opportunities, manage transactions, and support successful post-acquisition integration. The ideal candidate combines strong business judgment, financial acumen, and project management skills with the ability to influence stakeholders and drive cross-functional execution.

Requirements

7+ years of experience in Corporate Development, Investment Banking, Private Equity, Venture Capital, Corporate Strategy, or Management Consulting. Search Fund experience will be considered.
Demonstrated experience leading mergers, acquisitions, strategic investments, or complex strategic initiatives.
Strong financial modeling, valuation, and analytical capabilities.
Experience leading cross-functional due diligence efforts.
Excellent executive communication and presentation skills.
Ability to influence leaders across multiple disciplines.
Proven experience building AI-assisted research, analysis, or workflow automations.
Expert user of modern AI platforms such as ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini, Perplexity, and agentic workflows.
Strong understanding of business operations, strategy, and organizational dynamics.
Excellent leadership, communication, and interpersonal skills.
Ability to manage multiple projects and navigate complex challenges.
Strong analytical and problem-solving abilities.
High level of discretion and the ability to handle confidential information.
Stands up for decisions, takes responsibility for results, and shares both good and bad outcomes transparently.
Demonstrates a relentless focus on results with a commitment to deliver;
Takes decisive action, and confidently changes course if unsuccessful.

Nice To Haves

Experience in SaaS, marketplaces, fintech, consumer technology, or consumer services companies.
MBA, CFA, CPA, or equivalent advanced business education.
Experience integrating acquired companies.
Strong network within venture capital, private equity, investment banking, or founder ecosystems

Responsibilities

Build systems to continuously identify acquisition, partnership, and investment opportunities, utilizing AI tools.
Monitor emerging startups, competitors, funding activity, hiring trends, and market signals
Build relationships with founders, investment firms, investment bankers, and brokers.
Evaluate acquisition opportunities through financial, operational, technological, and strategic lenses.
Develop investment theses supported by internal operations and market intelligence.
Build financial models, valuation analyses, and scenario planning.
Present recommendations to executive leadership.
Lead comprehensive commercial, financial, legal, product, technology, and operational diligence.
Use AI agents and automation to synthesize large volumes of information into actionable insights.
Identify customer, revenue, technical, cybersecurity, and organizational risks.
Coordinate cross-functional diligence across Product, Engineering, Finance, Legal, Security, HR, and Operations.
Manage transactions from initial outreach through closing.
Coordinate internal and external stakeholders including legal, accounting, tax, and consulting partners.
Support negotiations, LOIs, purchase agreements, and transaction structures.
Drive project management across multiple stakeholders and workstreams.
Partner with business leaders to develop post-acquisition integration plans.
Identify operational synergies and AI automation opportunities.
Measure acquisition performance against strategic objectives.
Ensure successful Day One execution and long-term value realization