Corporate Development Associate (M&A)

Wold Architects & Engineers, A dynamic architectural and engineering firm in downtown Minneapolis seeks a highly motivated, analytically rigorous, and execution-oriented Corporate Development Associate – M&A to help lead the company’s inorganic growth strategy. This high-visibility role supports, and increasingly leads, all phases of the mergers and acquisitions lifecycle and works closely with executive leadership, our private equity partner, and cross-functional teams.

This position is ideal for an experienced M&A professional with 3-4 years of relevant experience and a strong transaction background who is ready to take on greater deal ownership, manage complex analyses, and play a meaningful role in shaping enterprise-level growth strategy within a lean, high-performing corporate development team.

Responsibilities Include:

Deal Sourcing & Pipeline Management

• Contribute to the day-to-day management of the M&A pipeline, including assisting with sourcing new acquisition targets, tracking deal progression, maintaining CRM/deal management systems, and preparing pipeline review materials for senior leadership.
 • Develop comprehensive acquisition target profiles and screening memoranda, including financial overviews, strategic rationale, competitive positioning, and cultural fit assessments.
 • Support and contribute to outreach efforts to prospective acquisition targets, owners, founders, and intermediaries, including drafting introductory communications and coordinating exploratory conversations.
 • Build and maintain relationships with investment banks, industry advisors, and M&A intermediaries to expand the proprietary deal funnel.
 • Monitor market trends, competitor activity, and industry developments to identify emerging acquisition opportunities and inform pipeline prioritization.

Financial Analysis & Valuation

• Lead the development and maintenance of financial models and valuation analyses.
 • Build and own detailed deal models covering earnouts (cliff, linear, tiered), rollover equity, net working capital adjustments, and closing statement mechanics.

• Prepare sensitivity, scenario, and return analyses to evaluate risk profiles and investment outcomes across various deal structures.
 • Analyze Quality of Earnings (QoE) reports and translate findings into actionable deal-level financial implications, including normalized EBITDA adjustments, working capital peg construction, and identification of debt-like items.
 • Support funds flow analysis, escrow structures, and tax-related considerations (asset vs. stock transactions, Section 338(h)(10), F‑reorganizations) in coordination with legal and accounting advisors.

Due Diligence & Deal Execution

• Support financial, legal, tax, HR, IT, insurance, and operational diligence workstreams from pre‑LOI through closing.
 • Manage diligence checklists, information requests, timelines, and third-party advisor coordination.
 • Organize and oversee virtual data rooms, including document flow, access controls, and version management.
 • Support LOI drafting, purchase agreement review and negotiation, indemnification analysis, representation & warranty insurance (RWI) processes, and closing mechanics.
 • Prepare management presentation materials, site visit agendas, and executive stakeholder briefing documents.
 • Track open diligence items, risk flags, and deal-critical issues, providing regular updates to senior leadership and investment committees.

Market Research & Strategic Analysis

• Conduct in-depth industry, market, and competitive landscape research across target verticals and geographies.
 • Benchmark valuation multiples, revenue profiles, margin structures, and operational KPIs across comparable companies and recent transactions.
 • Prepare investment committee memoranda, board presentations, PE sponsor updates, and executive-level briefing materials.
 • Maintain competitive intelligence on acquirer strategies, platform‑and‑add‑on models, and consolidation trends within target sectors.

Post‑Acquisition Integration Support

• Contribute to integration planning efforts, including Day 1 readiness and 30/60/90‑day integration roadmaps and functional workstream coordination across HR, Finance, IT, Legal, and Operations.
 • Support post‑close tracking of earnouts, synergy realization, KPIs, and lender covenant compliance and KPIs.
 • Help build and refine internal M&A playbooks, process templates, and best practices to create a scalable, repeatable corporate development function.

Opportunities for Growth:

• Significant deal ownership and direct exposure to executive leadership and our private equity partner
 • Hands-on experience across the full M&A lifecycle
 • Opportunity to shape and scale a growing acquisition platform
 • Advancement potential within corporate development and the corporate side of the business 
 • Professional growth through complex transactions, mentorship, and industry exposure through professional development conversations every 6 months discussing growth opportunities

Skills / Education:

Required

• Bachelor’s degree in finance, Accounting, Economics, Business Administration, or related field
 • 3–4 years of experience in investment banking, private equity, corporate development, M&A advisory, or transaction services

• Demonstrated interest in corporate development
 • Exceptional analytical, financial modeling, and problem-solving skills 
 
 • Exceptional written and verbal communication skills with the ability to produce executive-level deliverables (investment memos, board materials, IC presentations)
 • Strong organizational skills and ability to manage multiple active deals in a fast-paced environment
 • Proficiency in Microsoft Excel, PowerPoint, and Word and familiarity with data room platforms

Preferred

• Experience with middle-market M&A transactions ($2M–$100M revenue targets)
 • Exposure to PE-backed platforms and buy-and-build strategies
 • Strong understanding of deal structures including earnouts, rollover equity, NWC mechanisms, indemnification, escrow, RWI and tax structuring (S-corp), asset/stock elections, F-reorg)
 • Familiarity with QoE reports, GAAP vs. cash-basis differences, WIP/POC accounting and normalized EBITDA analysis
 • Experience with CRM or deal management tools (Dealroom, Salesforce, Affinity)
 • MBA, CFA, or CPA a plus

Benefits Offered:

• Competitive base salary with performance-based bonus opportunities
 • Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision coverage
 • 401(k) with 6% company match
 • PTO frontloaded for immediate use
 • Hybrid or flexible work scheduling (role-dependent)
 • Paid parental leave and paid volunteer time
 • FSA and HSA options
 • Short-term and long-term disability insurance
 • Life insurance and dependent care assistance
 • Professional development and certification reimbursement
 • Frequent employee events and collaborative firm culture

Wold offers a competitive wage and comprehensive benefits package.

 Wold is an Affirmative Action / Equal Employment Opportunity Employer.