Issue 1 2019

10 Acquisition International - Issue 1 2019 Lisa Wright has worked in the information industry for 25 years and is an influential figure in M&A through her role at Bureau van Dijk, a Moody’s Analytics company. Recently, we caught up with Lisa who revealed more about the firm, especially following her recent success as the Female Leader of the Year 2018 - M&A Research in AI’s 2018 Leadership Elite Awards. irstly, please can you tell me about your firm, the work you do and the types of customers with whom you work. Here at Bureau van Dijk, a Moody’s Analytics company, our Orbis database is the world’s most powerful data resource on private companies. With information on 300 million companies in all countries, Orbis is the resource for private company data. For the M&A data element, we research and compile data in more than 45 languages and from more than 130,000 global news sources, stock exchanges, regulatory bodies, company websites and corporate filings. In addition to this, we also receive information directly from investment banks, law firms, accountancy firms, corporate finance professionals, M&A advisory firms and private equity investors on the deals that they advise on or invest in. We collect data for multiple datasets, and our research complements the data we source from an extensive network of information providers. By combining the largest source of company and deal data together in one platform, customers can identify acquisition targets or acquirers and find comparable deals and deal values effectively and efficiently. Detailed shareholder and subsidiary data, including information on global ultimate owners and beneficial owners, provides additional insight on acquirers and acquisition targets. What is your approach when undertaking a new customer or project? How do you meet the needs of everyone involved? At Bureau van Dijk, our customers are at the heart of what we do. Having focused primarily on mergers and acquisitions data in the past, our research teams have since expanded to collect more data types to An Influential Figure in M&A meet our evolving customers’ needs. We use the same data research methodologies and quality-control procedures that have played an integral role in the way we have collected, treated and delivered M&A deals to our users. Our customers have access to clear and easy-to-interpret reports created specifically for M&A research. These reports combine information on companies, comparable deals and valuations alongside an interface to help them identify targets, or acquirers, and value companies. We link our company and deal data in a single platform to help our customers streamline their research. Our solutions help customers navigate deal data quickly and easily, whether they are new to deal information or an expert researcher. We help users: • search by hundreds of criteria, including multiples • do a detailed analysis on a set of deals • monitor deals using our alert system • see their portfolio in tailored dashboards • identify acquisition targets, acquirers and potential companies of interest Tell me about your business and your ongoing strategy. What techniques do you employ to help you achieve this? We have established a culture of continual improvement in the way we develop our data sources, data processes and how our employees work together. All team members, no matter what their individual roles are, are encouraged to bring ideas, suggestions and feedback to their managers. As a result, the business can explore improvements in processes and increase efficiency at all levels to create better data sets for private company information as well as M&A deals. “This upward and downward flow of communication within our business helps us to be aware of market changes that are either identified by the business from external sources, such as our customers, or via our internal teams’ direct observation of markets and industries.” F