Mergers and Acquisitions - James Nolan

I came into Philips with a banking background having studied law at Oxford University for my undergraduate degree and MBA at INSEAD. Every day has a full in-tray of diverse and challenging assignments and questions. My job, as Head of Corporate Mergers & Acquisitions, encompasses running a department globally, quantitative subjects, legal matters, strategic issues and operations - only my MBA could have helped prepare me for life at Philips. Furthermore, life at "le Club Med de Fontainebleau" was a lot of fun!

Joining Philips was suggested to me by an INSEAD alumnus who was then head of M&A. Immediately on joining I started working on a spree of acquisitions for Philips Medical Systems which involved investing $5 bn in about 3 years. I was truly staggered by the real ownership I was given on the terms of these deals. This empowered and challenging career has been a challenge at home. Travel used to be a problem - in one year alone I went to New York 22 times - but since becoming head of my department I have grown the geographical network which has helped enormously.

In every job and in every relationship there is a personal balance between life and work and whether the career challenge is actually worth it. For us as a family the balance is certainly in positive territory and as you see from the photo I even get away for holidays once in a while. Two of our children (we have 4) want to join Philips though as they are 7 and 11 respectively, I have ample time to suggest other avenues to them!