Deal Sourcing + Due Diligence Analyst (Australian SME Acquisitions | Ongoing) - Contract to Hire

We’re a business acquisition advisory service focused on Australian SMEs (and occasionally New Zealand). We’re looking for a sharp, reliable analyst to help us source off-market/on-market SME deals and support commercial due diligence through the acquisition process. If you’re the type who gets a quiet thrill from turning messy listings and imperfect financials into a clear “yes / no / dig deeper”… you’ll fit in nicely. This is NOT property-related due diligence. We only work on SME business acquisitions. What You’ll Do (Core Responsibilities) 1) Deal Sourcing & Pipeline Building Find and track Australian SME businesses for sale that match defined criteria (industry, size, geography, margin profile, etc.) Source deals via: business-for-sale marketplaces broker listings / broker outreach targeted Google research & industry directories other credible channels you recommend Build/maintain a clean pipeline in Google Sheets / Airtable / CRM Create short deal snapshots: business summary, location, asking price, key economics reason for sale (if known), channel/source, broker notes initial fit score + recommended next step 2) Screening & Financial Triage Rapidly screen opportunities and flag: margin quality, customer concentration, recurring revenue, staffing risks capex reality, working capital needs, seasonality “too good to be true” add-backs or shaky claims Produce 1–2 page screening memos with a clear recommendation: Proceed / Pause / Pass, and why Create simple valuation views (rule-of-thumb multiples, EBITDA normalisation, sensitivity ranges) 3) Due Diligence Support (Commercial + Financial) Build and manage DD checklists and request lists Review available documents (IMs, P&Ls, BAS summaries, bank extracts if provided, customer lists, lease summaries, etc.) Identify gaps, inconsistencies, and risks; propose follow-up questions Summarise findings into: DD summary packs risk registers “questions for seller” lists Support prep for broker/seller calls (briefing notes + question flows) Important: You won’t be providing legal/tax advice — this is analyst support: research, structure, analysis, and crisp summaries. Apply tot his job