Full-Time
VP – Corporate Development
Posted on 11/19/2024
Yext
1,001-5,000 employees
AI-powered search solutions for businesses
Compensation Overview
$209.7k - $349kAnnually
Expert
New York, NY, USA
- 12+ years of experience in M&A and strategic partnerships within the SaaS industry
- Public company experience at companies with $2B+ market cap
- Proven track record of executing value-driven acquisitions and successfully managing partnerships
- Strong grounding in financial analysis, capital allocation, and valuation methodologies
- Experience working with fast-paced, growth-oriented organizations
- Familiarity with the principles outlined in "The Outsiders" by Will Thorndike, particularly regarding disciplined capital allocation and management
- Excellent communication and negotiation skills, with a collaborative approach to cross-functional teamwork
- Strategic thinker with a focus on long-term value creation
- Disciplined and methodical in decision-making processes
- Innovative mindset, able to identify unconventional opportunities for growth
- Strong leadership presence, with the ability to inspire and influence teams and stakeholders
- Experience building and developing high-performing teams, with a track record of attracting and retaining top talent.
- Bachelor’s degree or MBA preferred
- Preferred sales or partnership experience within SaaS
- Build and manage a small corporate development team, coaching and driving a learning-first, collaborative mindset that values engaging closely with stakeholders across the business to inform and enhance our corporate development strategy.
- Develop and implement a value-driven Corporate Development strategy, identifying strategic partnership, M&A, and other non-organic growth opportunities to drive our business objectives and offer intrinsic value
- Create and deliver strategic assessments on key business areas (verticals, regions, product portfolio, etc), identifying gaps and opportunities and providing data-driven recommendations to the operating team to strengthen
- Actively spend time in market, building relationships with and engaging potential partners, industry peers, existing partners/vendors and customers to inform our corporate development point of view.
- Employ frameworks for identifying, assessing, valuating, utilizing FCF multiples and other financial metrics, as well as operational analyses to assess and recommend priority areas and specific potential acquisitions and partnerships
- Cultivate and establish strategic partnerships that enhance our strategic objectives, including our product portfolio and market reach. Work with functional leaders to strengthen existing partnerships, provide support in negotiation and strategic development approaches to enhance partnership value
- Serve on the extended leadership team and collaborate with executive leadership and other stakeholders to communicate findings, recommendations, and progress on corporate development initiatives.
- Lead a cross-functional team in evaluating and executing corporate development opportunities, ensuring alignment with company strategy and goals
- Demonstrate urgency in meeting targets, benchmarking team performance, and achieving goals
- Promote a culture of accountability, collaboration, and growth mindset
Yext provides AI-powered search solutions through its Yext Answers Platform, which allows businesses to give direct answers to user queries instead of just links. This platform uses natural language processing to understand the context of search queries, ensuring users receive accurate information. Yext serves a wide range of clients, from large enterprises to small businesses, and focuses on improving search experiences in areas like marketing and customer support. The company operates on a subscription model, where clients pay for access to the platform and its features, which are built on a centralized Knowledge Graph that maintains consistent information across digital platforms. Yext also offers a training and community engagement platform called Hitchhikers, where users can enhance their skills and connect with others. The goal of Yext is to enhance search capabilities for businesses, providing better user experiences and maintaining a strong reputation for customer support.
Company Stage
IPO
Total Funding
$115M
Headquarters
New York City, New York
Founded
2006
6 month growth
↓ -2%1 year growth
↓ -10%2 year growth
↑ 16%
Simplify's Take
What believers are saying
- Yext's acquisition of Hearsay Systems could expand its market reach and enhance its product offerings.
- Recognition as a top workplace by Built In boosts Yext's reputation, making it an attractive place for talent.
- The launch of a new Customer Success Program indicates Yext's commitment to improving client satisfaction and retention.
What critics are saying
- The recent fall in Yext's stock price following Q1 results and the acquisition of Hearsay Systems may indicate financial instability.
- Potential sale amid takeover interest could lead to uncertainty and disruption for employees.
What makes Yext unique
- Yext's AI-powered search solutions focus on delivering direct answers rather than just links, setting it apart from traditional search engines.
- The use of a centralized Knowledge Graph ensures consistent and accurate information across all digital touchpoints, a feature not commonly found in competitors.
- Yext's Hitchhikers platform for training and community engagement adds an extra layer of value for clients, fostering a knowledgeable user base.
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Benefits
Comprehensive Benefits Program - One of our top priorities is to maintain the health and wellbeing of our employees and their families. We offer a robust and comprehensive benefits program, which includes top-quality health insurance (medical, dental, vision), paid parental leave, a 401(k) with match or retirement pension plan, equity, commuter benefits, and more.
Invested in Your Wellbeing - In addition to our top-tier benefits, we also have a holistic wellness program that includes physical and mental health services. A few employee-favorite perks are our company-wide subscription to the meditation, sleep, and relaxation app Calm, as well as our corporate ClassPass membership.
Stay Informed - Our leadership team is committed to company-wide transparency, ranging from email blasts, biannual goal-setting days, and a weekly all-hands video meeting called Manifesto. Manifesto is a time for leadership to share company updates, showcase new products, highlight new deals, and provide kudos to well-deserved employees.
Collaborative Workspaces - Yext has amazing workspaces in many of the greatest cities in the world — from our magnificent new HQ in New York City to those in Chicago, Greater Washington DC, London, Miami, Munich, Paris, Tokyo, San Francisco, and more. Most job families within Yext allow employees to work from any office so they can experience the face-to-face collaboration, spontaneous interaction, and mutual learning that have become such hallmarks of our culture across the globe.
Life-Work Balance - We work hard and play even harder, but we also recognize that our employees wear multiple hats as parents, mentors, caretakers, volunteers, and more. That’s why we offer flexible and generous vacation, paid company and bank holidays, and sick days for when you’re feeling under the weather — all in an effort to give our employees more time to do the things they love with the ones they love and support a better life-work balance.
Upward Mobility - One of the perks of being a relatively new publicly traded company is that there is no shortage of opportunity. This means our employees are presented with countless chances to move internally. Internal mobility is at the forefront of Yext’s hiring, as are learning and development, alongside our mentorship program and monthly lunch and learns sponsored by our ERGs.