Career Path of a Senior M&A and Partnership Integration Manager at Zillow
Greyson's career journey began with an economics and entrepreneurship double major, fueling an interest in "business strategy and corporate strategy," leading to consulting internships in real estate and M&A. This path progressed through roles at EY, focusing on real estate transactions and then management consulting with a technology focus, culminating in in-house M&A integration management roles at Workday and currently at Zillow Group, where they "lead the M&A integration function."
Mergers and Acquisitions (M&A), Business Strategy, Management Consulting, Corporate Development, Real Estate
Advizer Information
Name
Job Title
Company
Undergrad
Grad Programs
Majors
Industries
Job Functions
Traits
Greyson Gardlik
Sr. M&A and Partnership Integration Manager
Zillow Group
University of Arizona
N/A
Business Management & Admin, Entrepreneurship
Real Estate, Advertising, Communications & Marketing
Business Strategy
None Applicable
Video Highlights
1. In college, Greyson pursued a multidisciplinary approach with majors in Economics and Entrepreneurship, and a minor in Environmental Science, reflecting a diverse skillset applicable to business strategy.
2. His career trajectory demonstrates a progression from consulting roles (EY) to in-house M&A integration management (Workday and Zillow), showcasing a transition from general business advisory to specialized expertise in mergers and acquisitions.
3. Greyson's experience spans various sectors, including real estate, technology, and now the online real estate industry, highlighting adaptability and a broad range of industry knowledge.
Transcript
Could you walk me through your career path, starting with your experiences in college? Please include any internships or jobs you had before your current role.
I started my college career as an economics major. I was also double majoring in entrepreneurship and had a minor in environmental science. Through my college career, I developed an interest in business strategy and corporate strategy in general.
I decided I wanted to apply an economic lens and went into consulting. I did a couple of internships in the real estate space, one as a commercial appraiser. I also did some business case study work for a community center in Arizona.
I pursued further internships in the M&A space, including a small consulting internship for a boutique M&A private equity firm. From there, I knew I wanted to work in a large-scale consulting environment.
I joined EY in their Transaction Real Estate Advisory group, focusing on real estate transactions for corporate real estate clients. These included hedge funds, private equity firms, and home builders, any corporate clients that owned a lot of real estate and were involved in buying or selling. I did that for about three years.
I realized I wanted to delve deeper into the holistic business strategy of M&A transactions. I transferred within EY to their management consulting branch, EY-Parthenon. This role focused on viewing transactions holistically, examining entire companies and their transaction lifecycle.
This included target selection and diligence, assessing targets through to closing a deal, and setting up integration efforts. I did that for about three years, focusing mainly on technology clients in the Bay Area and across the country.
This experience helped lead me to my next role at Workday, a large-scale B2B enterprise software company. I applied many of the skills learned in M&A to working in-house as an M&A integration manager.
I managed a couple of different transactions, mostly large-scale enterprise bolt-on acquisitions. These involved cross-selling Workday's core customers into new products and service lines.
This experience propelled me to my current role at Zillow, where I lead the M&A integration function. I work in the corporate development department, and I'm the point person for any acquisition that comes through Zillow's pipeline, leading it from start to finish.
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