Vice President, Strategy & Corporate Development

As the VP of Strategy & Corporate Development,  you will drive Klaviyo’s broader strategy and inorganic growth capabilities from inception through integration. Reporting to our Chief Product Officer, you’ll be a key member of Klaviyo’s R&D leadership team and a primary thought partner for our executive leaders in defining Klaviyo’s strategy across short and long time horizons. 

Your role will involve developing a comprehensive understanding of industry trends and establishing and maintaining relationships with key players in Klaviyo’s market. Collaborating closely with the leadership team, you will transform these insights into actionable strategies to leverage both organic and inorganic growth, furthering Klaviyo’s mission and accelerating our rapid growth trajectory. You will oversee the entire deal lifecycle, from building a pipeline of opportunities, negotiating and structuring deal terms, to ensuring the successful execution and integration of acquisitions and strategic investments.

At Klaviyo, corporate development serves four fundamental purposes: accelerating our strategic initiatives, acting as a mechanism for talent acquisition, enhancing revenue streams, and increasing market visibility. Our core M&A focus will be owned by this individual, with key targets likely identified in collaboration with the CEO, CPO, CFO, and the board. You will need to develop a thorough understanding of all companies in our ecommerce market, as well as startups in Boston and other markets where Klaviyo has offices, while also managing inbound opportunities, though these will be less frequent.

This role will loosely be focusing 60% of effort on broader company strategy, and 40% on corporate development, bursting to higher capacity when needed.  These needs will evolve over time based on the needs of Klaviyo’s business. 

How you will make a difference:

• Act as the broader owner of the Strategy function, focusing on pushing forward the craft as well as hiring/cultivating top talent.  
• Craft Klaviyo’s inorganic strategy in conjunction with our leadership team.
• Lead and execute strategic transactions, including mergers and acquisitions, and joint ventures.
• Immerse yourself in the global market in which Klaviyo operates, building relationships with partners, competitors, startups, banks, VCs, and other industry players, providing valuable insight into the evolution of the market to Klaviyo leadership.
• Create a process to identify potential investment opportunities and prioritize effectively, aligning to strategic objectives.
• Build strong relationships with and act as the primary point of contact to possible opportunities.
• Use research, data and insight to understand target audiences, shape strategic thinking and drive tactical execution of the company's vision
• Partner closely with our internal teams to assess opportunities and execution feasibility and drive internal decision-making.
• Run the deal process end-to-end: develop investment theses, model out business cases, conduct due diligence, negotiate deal structure and terms, identify risks and mitigations, and close deals.
• Create detailed execution and implementation plans to ensure deal success and oversee all integration efforts.

Who you are:

• Minimum 15+ years of experience in consulting, investment banking, private equity, venture capital, or corporate development in a large software company. 
• Experience playing a senior role in developing and implementing strategic plans.
• Proven track record of structuring and closing successful corporate development transactions.
• Extensive previous deal experience, demonstrating mastery of all aspects of successfully driving the corporate development lifecycle from identification through execution.
• Proven ability to lead the deal process end-to-end with minimal oversight.
• Experience with SaaS, ecommerce, or similar internet businesses strongly preferred.
• Exceptional communication skills, with the ability to align internal stakeholders, negotiate with deal partners, and outline execution and implementation workstreams.
• Strategic, operational, and quantitative thinker.  Ability to dive deep into business drivers and identify opportunities for improvement and value creation.