M&A Senior Officer

M&A Senior Officer

Does the perspective of setting up the M&A capacity of a Pan-African school operator excite you? Are you looking forward to travelling to all the countries of Africa? Do you want to be part of an adventure to build the largest build-up of private schools on the continent? Then, you may be interested in the following. 

Enko Education seeks a Senior M&A Officer to execute school acquisitions at high intensity and contribute to setting up our entire M&A process and capacity. We seek a result-driven pathmaker with exceptional analytical and collaboration skills to transform African education, one acquisition at a time. This is a unique opportunity to shape the future of learning in Africa in a fast-growing and mission-driven organisation. 

About the role

Responsibilities

Our strategy is to welcome African schools into our family of schools, transforming them into the African International School of Choice (our model of school) and fulfilling our mission of increasing access to top universities for learners of the continent. More specifically, we now aim to consolidate the fragmented market of K12 schools on the continent, by acquiring schools that have the potential to become African International Schools. In that context, you will oversee the end-to-end execution of our acquisitions from contributing to setting up the winning term sheets to closing the transaction. 

Illustration of tasks

• Origination:
  • Support origination effort;
  • Support the term sheet;
• Execution:
  • Develop winning acquisition offers - from term sheet to closing;
  • Lead all due diligence efforts to fine-tune the analysis (technical, legal, financial, fiscal, commercial);
  • Drive the legal drafting process;
  • Secure key success factors (project financing, growth projects…);
  • Ensure a smooth transition to integration and operation teams;
• Socialise and create momentum:
  • Build and document the acquisition case to support decision-making;
  • Build momentum and ensure all deadlines are met to execute promptly;
  • Support the setup of our M&A capacity;

You will work closely with the CEO, Head of Expansion and Group CFO. You will engage with our Strategic Committee, reporting to our Board. Upon success, your scope will increase as we build our capacity.

Ideal candidate

We are looking for a seasoned professional with a proven track record in executing deals in Africa. Previous experience (4 years+) in investment or transaction services is a strong asset. Bilingual English and French is a strong plus.  As an ideal candidate ♀♂, you demonstrate:

• Analytical mindset: you identify immediately the potential, challenges, and risks of a given opportunity, you are details oriented, you can identify inconsistencies and leave no stone unturned;
• Startup mindset: you combine agility and a hands-on attitude: you can adapt,  connect topics, and move from strategic boardroom topics to down-to-earth concrete challenges. You are flexible and versatile to switch priorities when need be; you are a doer able to execute yourself;
• Investment technicalities: you demonstrate practical knowledge of accounting, finance and valuation methodology, you quickly build models, you write crisp notes, and define adequate term sheets; you can read and challenge legal documents;
• An exploratory mindset: you have the humility to be in a constant learning mode - whether to understand the reality of a given school or to look for best practices that exist in other fields;
• Interpersonal skills: you have excellent communication (including in writing) and negotiation skills, with the agility to interact with stakeholders at all levels;
• Africa fit: you share our excitement to offer a top-notch education to the African middle class, to travel and build relationships in our countries of operations. 

Contract, location and timing

• Contract: full-time; 
• Location: Flexible in Africa (South Africa preferred) - frequent trips;
• Timing: Q2 2024;
• All applicants must be legally able to work in our countries with the correct visa/status/work permit.

Enko Education is an equal opportunities employer, dedicated to inclusivity, a diverse workforce and valuing difference.

Enko Education schools are committed to child safeguarding and promoting the welfare of students and young people and expect all staff, volunteers, and other third parties to share this commitment. Safer recruitment practices and pre-employment checks will be undertaken.

What’s next

1. A case study to test your analytical & financial modeling skills;

2. A fit interview with Milena to get to know you better, give you visibility on the job, and confirm the reciprocal match;

3. A skill interview with Xavier to discuss your hard and soft skills;

4. A final career interview with Eric to review your education and past experiences;

5. Welcome to Enko!

Working at Enko - some reasons to join us

• The ultimately meaningful mission with a direct impact on the most important challenge faced by the continent;
• A unique ambition for scale;
• An exceptional perspective to learn and develop professionally in a fast-growing company;
• A strong and value-driven team, combining high competency and heart at the right place; 
• A challenging environment driving personal growth;
• A true autonomy (including a flexible remote policy).

About Enko Education

Enko Education is a fast-growing group of African international schools, increasing access to the world's best universities for learners across Africa.

Enko Education has developed innovative programmes leading to globally recognised and sought-after qualifications. Since the opening of its first school in Yaoundé in September 2014, Enko Education has established an African group of 14 international schools in 9 countries in Sub-Saharan Africa. More than 5,400 students from primary to secondary benefit from international education at a fraction of the cost charged by other international schools on the continent. We provide individualized counselling to our learners to support them in selecting the right universities and then securing both admission and financing for their studies. We offer an outstanding learning experience striving to educate our learners with Africa at heart and the world in mind.

The Enko Education model has already yielded outstanding results with graduates currently enrolled in some of the most prestigious universities worldwide such as Yale College in the USA, Sciences Po and Ecole Polytechnique in France and the University of Toronto in Canada.

We are financially supported by international development institutions and funds including Proparco, I&P, Adiwale, BIO Invest, Oiko Credit and Liquid Africa, to achieve our growth objective of reaching 20,000 students by 2028.

For 2024, we plan to acquire new schools in countries including but not limited to Uganda, Kenya, Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe, Angola, and South Africa (countries are subject to change).