Why did you choose accountancy after graduating?

I graduated from Imperial College London with a degree in biology and management in the midst of the 2008 financial crisis. I thought that an accountancy firm and getting the ACA would be a strong grounding for the future, giving me time while the world settled down. I applied to the Big Four and accepted an offer in corporate tax from Deloitte. 

I found the ACA to be a great qualification – it gave me a strong foundation to understand how businesses operate. I actually didn’t find it too disruptive work-wise, as we were out at college for up to 10 weeks at a time for study and revision, and then straight into exams. It was extremely time pressured, but at least we weren’t working right up to our exams.

How did your career develop after you qualified?

When I qualified, I moved into M&A tax, where my work was mainly tax due diligence, structuring and funds flows for large US and European private equity houses. After several years’ experience, I knew I didn’t want to specialise in tax, but wanted to stay in M&A. I had the opportunity to join Deloitte’s travel, hospitality and leisure (THL) M&A team in 2014, where I worked as a lead adviser for mid-market private equity and large corporates.

I also did two internal secondments, which were a great chance to broaden my experience and exposure internally. One was for the head of financial advisory and the other was providing M&A input into the development and then leading the roll out of a departmental tech platform.

Why did you move to Mazars?

I joined Deloitte’s industrials team when I returned from maternity leave early in 2021 as the THL team had disbanded following the retirement of the partner in charge. A former Deloitte colleague – Paul Joyce, who left in 2017 to set up Mazars’ London M&A team – asked me to join him. Returning to consumer was really appealing, with the added bonus of knowing who I would be working with. 

I joined in November 2021 and went into the director promotion process immediately after joining. Getting the buy-in of the other partners was daunting at first, but having that challenge pushed me out of my comfort zone and the team was hugely supportive. 

What is your role now?

At Mazars, we have a strategic market dedicated to advising privately-owned businesses (POB), so primarily my work is deal execution on owner-managed sell-side mandates. I am the M&A representative of our London POB client team houses and work across a variety of sectors, although consumer is my focus. 

Internally, I’m head of risk and compliance for M&A – an important role given the increasingly complex regulatory environment. 

I also have a key role in the operation of the team nationally, driving training and development, standardising processes and best-practice.

Which deals stand out?

We advised the shareholders of Location One, a TV and film location service and equipment hire business, on its disposal to Facilities by ADF at the end of 2022. Different stakeholder personalities combined with intense negotiations on the earn-out mechanism added complexity to the deal, which I led on.

At Deloitte, notable deals for me included advising Rolls-Royce on its disposal of Bergen Engines to Langley Holdings and advising KKR on its acquisition of Travelopia from TUI.

And your future plans?

I have a three-year-old, so that and working full-time in M&A keeps me pretty busy. I want to be great mum and role model. My current focus is to continue to add value to my clients. 

M&A will never be a strict 9-5 job, but a work-life balance is possible – if at times a bit unpredictable. You can have a successful career and a life outside of work and demonstrating this is key to building solid and sustainable teams – and for attracting more women to the industry. 

Partnership is definitely on my mind, but there are some things I want to do before that push.