Investment Manager/VP - SME Buyouts

AIA & Our Mission:

AIA is an investment platform backed by a small handful of very successful entrepreneurs and which exists to deploy capital they have allocated us into a management buy-in investment strategy focused on acquiring owner-operated SMEs with succession issues and bringing in fresh, experienced, highly incentivized management.  Our mission is to build a diversified, pan-European portfolio of SMEs on behalf of our investors, who have allocated to us so far €350m to pursue this strategy.  We closed our first investment in November 2025 and currently have a very active and growing pipeline of opportunities.

The Role:

We are looking for an experienced manager / vice president to join our growing investment team and take ownership of our transaction process day-to-day.  You will report directly to our chief investment officer.

Your Mission:

·         Manage deal processes day-to-day across workstreams, ensuring that adequate analyses are done in-time to support investment decision making, and no opportunities are lost due to process failure.

·         Directly responsible for the content and quality of our investment documentation, such as investment memoranda and financial models.

·         Represent the deal team and participate in investment decision making discussions.

·         Manage other investment team staff on individual transactions, working towards the goals mentioned above.

·         Coordinate and oversee third parties involved in the deal process including due diligence providers, lenders and debt advisors, etc.

·         Participate in development and implementation of portfolio oversight framework including investor reporting, etc., and eventually oversee part of our portfolio from an investment perspective.

Requirements:           

Successful candidates will have a demonstrated track record of managing buyout transactions end to end and show promise of developing with us into a senior investment decision making professional.

·         10+ years of experience in transaction-focused roles

·         Demonstrated management of buyout transactions end-to-end and cross-functionally.

·         Prior experience in investment banking (M&A) earlier in career a plus

·         Private equity investing experience strongly preferred; corporate development/M&A experience at an acquisitive company also considered

·         Rock solid understanding of corporate finance, accounting, and single-firm economics.

·         Strong analytical capabilities:  Ability to understand returns functions and think through trade-offs without modelling.  Ability to quickly zoom in and out from minutiae to strategy while understanding and drawing connections between the two.

·         Absolute commitment to quality, error free work.

·         Education in a quantitative background with at least one significant business-finance related credential such as a Master degree, MBA, or CFA.

Languages:

·         English C1

·         Fluent in German, Polish or Spanish preferred