How Good an M&A / Corp Dev Leader Are You, Really?
Fifty questions across ten competencies and the four faces of a modern head of M&A / corporate development — Originator, Analyst, Dealmaker, Integrator. Behavioral and scenario-based, not flattery. About 15 minutes. Built for the people who must source the right deals and walk from the wrong ones, value and diligence them rigorously, negotiate and close — and capture the value after the ink dries.
What this assessment measures
10 competencies across the 4 faces of the Head of M&A / Corp Dev role — Originator, Analyst, Dealmaker, Integrator — built on the M&A: origination, diligence, dealmaking, integration. Five questions each: scenarios, honest reads and forced choices designed to resist self-flattery.
Originator
Sourcing, strategic fit and the discipline to walk away.
- Deal Sourcing & Pipeline — A proprietary, strategy-led pipeline and long-term relationships with priority targets.
- Strategic Rationale & Fit — Every deal serves an explicit strategy; M&A as a disciplined tool, not a trophy.
- Deal Discipline — A walk-away price kept; ignores sunk cost; passes on most deals by design.
Analyst
Valuation, due diligence and synergy rigor.
- Valuation & Financial Analysis — Rigorous, multi-method, conservative; prices to intrinsic value and a walk-away.
- Due Diligence — Forensic, cross-functional DD that tries to kill the deal and surfaces every risk.
- Synergy Assessment & Modeling — Bottom-up, owned synergies with timelines; dis-synergies modeled; realization tracked.
Dealmaker
Negotiation, structuring and getting deals done.
- Negotiation & Structuring — Builds leverage; structures to allocate risk and value; masters terms beyond price.
- Deal Execution & Process — A disciplined, fast process; directs advisors; anticipates and de-risks execution.
Integrator
Integration and capturing the value after close.
- Integration & Value Capture — Integration planned from diligence; owns the 100-day plan and the deal thesis to value.
- Stakeholders, Advisors & Team — A balanced board case; a strong deal team; partners so operators own the outcome.
How the score reads
- Emerging (0–34) — Foundations forming — operating below a full corp-dev mandate today.
- Developing (35–51) — Real strengths with clear, nameable gaps before a top M&A seat.
- Established (52–67) — A solid, credible head of M&A / corp dev across the four faces.
- Advanced (68–82) — A strong dealmaker operating ahead of the role — board-grade.
- World-class (83–100) — A boardroom-grade corp-dev leader — deals that demonstrably create value.
What you get
- An overall score out of 100 and a maturity level
- Your Head of M&A / Corp Dev archetype — the honest read on how you lead today
- A 10-competency radar across the faces above
- What companies actually demand from Head of M&A / Corp Dev hires, from real job postings, against your profile
- A personalized AI analysis and development roadmap, delivered by email with a print-ready PDF report
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