Integration Manager
Location: UK (remote-first) 12 month FTC
Travel: Frequent international travel – UK, China, Middle East
The Opportunity
A high‑growth international group is strengthening its M&A capability and is appointing an Integration Manager to lead post‑deal execution across cross‑border acquisitions.
This role owns the full integration lifecycle operating model, people, process, systems and governance, delivering synergy realisation while maintaining operational stability and stakeholder confidence.
Reporting into senior leadership, you will run disciplined integration programmes from pre‑close readiness through Day‑1/Day‑100 and optimisation, providing clear governance, pace and decision support.
Key Responsibilities
Integration Planning & Readiness (Pre‑Close to Day‑1)
- Shape the integration approach in pre‑close; translate deal thesis into an executable plan.
- Lead functional readiness assessments (Finance, HR, IT, Legal, Operations); confirm scope, dependencies and risk.
- Establish governance, workstreams, resourcing, milestones and RAID with unambiguous ownership.
- Deliver Day‑1 and Day‑100 readiness to protect continuity, controls and communications.
Integration Programme Delivery (Multi‑Workstream / Multi‑Region)
- Run end‑to‑end integration delivery across functions and regions; set cadence, standards and pace.
- Own the master plan and reporting: milestones, dependencies, benefits, RAID and governance rhythm.
- Minimise disruption; safeguard customers, revenue and BAU performance during transition.
- Remove constraints rapidly; escalate with options, trade‑offs and recommendations.
- Hold workstream leads to account; maintain momentum through to stabilisation and optimisation.
Stakeholder Leadership
- Establish credibility with executives and local leaders; become the central point of integration control.
- Align acquiring and acquired leadership on decisions, sequencing and priorities.
- Drive decisions on org design, operating model, governance and systems.
- Provide crisp, decision‑ready updates; manage escalations and risk appetite with senior stakeholders.
Organisational Change & Cultural Integration
- Integrate teams and leadership structures; clarify roles, decision rights and ways of working.
- Partner with HR to deliver stakeholder communications and engagement across the change curve.
- Lead cultural integration in a way that respects local context while aligning to group expectations.
- Protect and retain critical talent; anticipate people risks and intervene early.
Systems, Process & Operational Integration
- Integrate systems, data and core processes; ensure secure, compliant and scalable operations.
- Assure legal, regulatory and operational compliance across jurisdictions.
- Define and manage TSAs and continuity plans where required.
- Embed controls and standardisation without undermining local performance.
Synergy Realisation & Continuous Improvement
- Own benefits realisation tracking; monitor KPIs, synergy delivery and value creation.
- Report progress, cost and risk with transparency; surface decisions required and recommended actions.
- Course‑correct quickly to protect value and accelerate outcomes.
- Codify lessons learned; strengthen the integration playbook for future deals.
About You
You are an integration leader with strong programme discipline and commercial judgement—able to impose structure, governance and pace in complex, ambiguous environments.
You influence credibly at executive level, operate confidently across cultures, and deliver outcomes through aligned stakeholders, clear decisioning and rigorous execution.
Skills & Experience (Key Requirements)
- Proven post‑merger integration leadership (multi‑workstream, multi‑site), ideally across multiple acquisitions.
- Background in programme leadership / transformation / consulting / corporate development with strong governance and reporting rigour.
- Executive stakeholder management: influence, challenge and alignment across competing agendas.
- Demonstrated ability to mobilise cross‑functional, geographically distributed teams and external advisors.
- Fluent Mandarin (spoken and written) – essential.
- Commercial acumen; strong judgement balancing speed, risk and value.
- Structured problem‑solver; comfortable with ambiguity, pace and high consequence decisioning.
- High EQ and cultural intelligence; effective in change environments.
Qualifications
- Degree qualified (or equivalent professional experience).
- Programme/project management certification desirable (e.g., PMP, PRINCE2, MSP, Agile).
What’s on Offer
- Core role within an ambitious international M&A agenda; high visibility with senior leadership.
- Ownership of complex cross‑border integrations with clear accountability for outcomes and benefits realisation.
- Autonomy, pace and breadth, working across operating model, people, process and systems.
- Remote‑first UK base with frequent, purposeful international travel.
Key Relationships
Key stakeholders include:
- Executive leadership and regional management
- Corporate Development, Strategy and Finance
- HR leadership and Operational leadership
- IT, Data and Transformation
- External advisors and integration partners
- Leadership teams within newly acquired businesses