Managing Director, Vertical Market Software Portfolio

Circeus; Greater London; Hybrid; GBP 180,000 - 320,000; Full time

Job summary

Circeus is seeking an operator with a proven track record in owning P&L for multiple software businesses across Europe. You will lead growth, margin improvement and AI-enabled transformations within a portfolio of embedded SaaS bets.

You will collaborate with founders, M&A and central AI, define budgets, monitor execution and drive value creation. Travel across the portfolio will be required and ownership of outcomes is expected.

Qualifications

• 8+ years of full P&L ownership in a software/SaaS business.
• Experience as a serial acquirer, software executive, or operating role in multi-entity setups.
• Evidence of using AI to drive real operational improvements and margin growth.
• Background in budget cycles, forecasting and cross-functional leadership.

Responsibilities

• Own margin and growth across a portfolio of up to seven software businesses in Europe.
• Set annual budgets with management teams and monitor performance.
• Lead a consistent operating cadence with clear targets, reporting and accountability.
• Deploy AI across businesses with the central AI team to improve margin and revenue.
• Sponsor deals originated by the M&A team and lead value creation diligence.
• Oversee integration, set priorities and operating rhythm from day one.
• Own portfolio review and variances to management; drive leadership across companies.
• Hire, coach, and upgrade leadership within the portfolio entities.
• Report portfolio performance to Circeus leadership with a data-driven lens.

Skills

P&L ownership

SaaS leadership

Cross-border ops

Budgeting

AI in business

M&A collaboration

Executive leadership

Stakeholder mgmt

Job description

Circeus is an AI-native holding that acquires and evolves mission-critical B2B software businesses globally. We have raised $225m from leading global institutional investors and serve 250,000+ businesses across diverse verticals, focusing on high-retention, deeply embedded software. Our model: acquire high-quality SaaS companies and accelerate their growth through a centralised AI platform, driving both revenue expansion and operational efficiency. We operate as long-term owners, continuously improving products through applied AI.

The Role

You will run a portfolio of up to seven vertical market software businesses across Europe, owning their performance end to end. These are high-retention, deeply embedded products with real customers and real cash flow, and you will be the person accountable for what they deliver.

The mandate has four parts: improve margin and growth across the portfolio, deploy AI into these businesses alongside our centralised AI team, set the annual budget for each company and hold management to it, and sponsor acquisitions originated by our M&A team, leading the commercial and growth side of diligence.

You will work directly with founders and management teams, our M&A and value creation functions, and the central AI team. You will spend your time in the operating detail rather than in board papers, and you will travel across the portfolio.

We are hiring an agentic MD, not an AI enthusiast. That means redesigning how these businesses operate, compete and create value rather than layering tools on top of existing process: AI embedded in the product, applied to sales and marketing effectiveness, and automating operations at scale, with intelligent systems and human teams carrying the routine decisions together so people spend their time on the hard ones. It also means building a culture of experimentation, accountability and continuous learning, so the businesses keep evolving with the technology rather than stopping at first adoption.

It suits an operator who has carried a profit and loss, enjoys the discipline of a budget cycle, and wants ownership of several businesses rather than one.

What You'll Do

• Own margin and growth across a portfolio of up to seven vertical market software businesses in Europe
• Set the annual budget with each management team, then hold them to it through the year and intervene early when numbers drift
• Run a consistent operating cadence across the portfolio, with clear targets, reporting and accountability
• Deploy AI into each business with our centralised AI team, replacing manual process and converting it into measurable margin and revenue
• Sponsor deals originated by the M&A team, leading commercial and growth diligence and owning the value creation thesis you will later be judged on
• Take acquired businesses through integration, setting priorities and operating rhythm from day one
• Own portfolio's review and be accountable of the variances to the management
• Hire, coach and where necessary upgrade leadership inside the companies you run
• Report portfolio performance to Circeus leadership, with a clear view on what is working and what you are fixing

What We're Looking For

• Native English and fluency in at least one other European language, both used in commercial settings daily
• 8+ years of full P&L ownership in a software or SaaS business, with a track record of growing revenue while improving margins at the same time
• Background as a serial acquirer, a software executive, or a consultant who moved into operating roles
• Vertical market software experience, where retention and embeddedness are the core assets
• Evidence of using AI to change how a business operates, with results you can quantify, not a record of buying tools
• High familiarity with budget processes: building them, challenging them and enforcing them
• Experience running more than one business or business unit at once, ideally across borders
• Judgement on commercial diligence, able to form a view on a target's growth potential quickly and defend it
• Credibility with founders and management teams, setting a bar and holding it without relying on the reporting line

Nice to Have

• A third European language
• Buy-and-build or multi-entity integration experience
• Board or non-executive exposure in software

Why Circeus

• Responsibility for a portfolio of software businesses rather than a single product
• AI applied to real commercial problems, with impact you can measure on the profit and loss
• Direct collaboration with our centralised AI team
• Ownership and pace, with decisions made close to the business
• Competitive compensation aligned to portfolio performance

Ready to lead, scale, and transform software businesses in the AI era? We'd love to hear from you.