Key Executive Programme - Manager maternity cover

EY’s Key Executive Programme (KEP) team is an exclusive relationship development programme for Mid-Market to FTSE30 C-Suite, Chairs and Board advisors. The team is responsible for sourcing and brokering key strategic relationships for EY, developing strong relationships with KEP members (both those who have been referred through to the team and those the team has proactively sourced), and networking them with both EY and our clients (primarily Private Equity clients) regarding sector insights, deal opportunities (as potential deal advisors, Chair or Management Buy In candidates), Management roles and value creation opportunities.

The KEP team and offering is core to EY's Strategy & Transactions practice, particularly so for the Private Equity sector. The KEP team is involved in mid-market and large-cap deal opportunities, with an increasing focus on large pursuit campaigns across EMEIA

• Identifying, brokering and developing relationships with industry experts and former business leaders - discussing market trends, company structure and performance, growth strategies, transformation, carve out opportunities
• Introducing Industry experts and former business leaders (KEP members) to EY pursuit teams and working with the KEP members and EY pursuit teams to unlock deep insights to Target companies
• Introducing KEP members to Private Equity clients actively pursuing the opportunity, and advising on how to position themselves with clients, what to expect working with them and potential day-rates and compensation structures
• Identifying potential Chair, and where relevant future C-suite candidates, from within the KEP network to involve in the pursuit and introduce to Private Equity clients pursuing the opportunity

The KEP team continues to support non-audit clients post-deal with introductions to future Management candidates - permanent and interim, Executive and Non-Executive. Eg CEOs for Mid-Market companies, NEDs, Chairs and Interim CFOs & CIOs for entities being carved out where there is a need for Mgmt and functions to be in place on day 1 for businesses with EV up to £3bn headquartered in the UK or Europe.

The KEP team has relationships with Origination, Talent, Investment and Portfolio Directors across several mid-market and large-cap Private equity clients and engages with them to understand how they differentiate themselves, the type of KEP member profiles they are interested in connecting with and when, and how we can better network them within their sectors and thematic areas of interest.

The KEP team engages and meets / speaks on a daily basis with very senior industry experts and former business leaders, understanding their USP and future objectives and discussing new deal, role and Private Equity introduction opportunities with them. The team also engages on a regular basis with NEDs, Chairs, CEOs and CFOs (KEP members) currently in role, understanding how EY can better support them on their business strategy and value creation needs / priorities, thereby creating new businesses opportunities for EY from KEP relationships

The opportunity

We are currently a team of three professionals, operating in the broader Origination – KEP practice within EY’s UKI Strategy and Transaction business. One manager is due to be going on maternity leave Mid April 2026 and therefore we are looking for maternity cover from 30 March for 9 months. The role will have some sector alignment, and we would expect you to focus on the CPR and HSW sectors. You will be working in a dynamic and diverse environment, alongside EY’s deal origination team, as well as with experienced advisors from across EY’s service lines. Through both formal and on the job learning, we will help you develop the skills to become an effective and trusted advisor to our clients across industries and geographies

Your key responsibilities

In your role as Manager you will help to build new and maintain existing relationships with CEOs, CFOs, COOs, Chairs and Board Advisors (KEP members) and Private Equity clients. You will engage with Private Equity clients to understand how they differentiate themselves, the type of KEP member profiles they are interested in connecting with and when. You will meet with KEP members to discuss their situation, skill set, sector experience, career objectives and potential deal propositions – becoming a trusted advisor to our KEP members. You will leverage the KEP member network for sector and deal intelligence to support the Strategy & Transactions deal origination team on pursuits and connect KEP members to clients (primarily Private Equity), providing them with access to management solutions and insights on a) deals b) carve outs and c) value creation opportunities. This role will also require you to understand the key business challenges that KEP members currently ‘in role’ face and to identify opportunities to bring the best of EY to our KEP members.

Skills and attributes for success

• Experience advising Private Equity or Corporates on transactions and / or value creation opportunities (preferably with commercial, strategic, financial or operational due diligence experience or sector relevant expert network experience)
• Ability to build relationships, recognising the need to adapt communication style and approach to build and maintain effective, sustainable relationships, internally and externally
• Demonstrate confidence in client situations, gaining client acceptance and demonstrating value through advice and sector insight
• Passion to provide high quality service to your clients – both KEP members and Private Equity clients
• Sound commercial judgement and an ability to generate creative solutions to problems and 'think on your feet'. Ability to identify potential deal opportunities
• Demonstrate interest in the Private Equity industry and value creation levers
• Exceptional team player – proactively share knowledge, communicate clearly and support the broader team on business initiatives eg on Avature (the team’s Candidate Relationship Management platform), training, updating Origination pipeline, career and technical development of other team members
• Excellent communication, both oral and written
• Project and team management skills
• Flexible and positive approach and adapt well to change
• Hands on approach - be prepared to get involved with anything / everything