Sara VOLPATO

WORK EXPERIENCE

May 2024 – July 2024

Gruppo Unipol (Leading Italian financial services) - Strategic Business Analyst                                                                                      

·        Built financial analyses in Excel, including scenario and sensitivity analyses, to assess risks and strategic decisions

·        Conducted market research, competitor benchmarking to evaluate Unipol’s strategic market positioning

·        Conducted a survey to identify the most in-demand services, resulting in a shortlist of 30 potential partnerships

Oct 2023 – Dec 2023

Paris, France

BNP Paribas - Private Equity Analyst                                                                                                                           

·        Built DCF and comparable valuation models for mid-market targets

·        Conducted industry analysis and financial statement reviews to support investment decisions

·        Prepared client-facing presentations and investment insights for senior management

Dec 2020 - May 2022

Conegliano, Italy

Banca Finint Investments SGR - Internal Auditor and Securitization Services Specialist                                         

·        Conducted financial statement reviews, internal controls, and risk assessment

·        Led securitization deal structuring, delivering financial models to guide corporate investment strategy

·        Streamlined reporting and improved cost efficiency by 10% through process optimisation

Jan 2018 – Sept 2020

Treviso, Italy

EY and BDO - Auditor                                                                                                                                                              

·        Executed audits across 10+ industries, improving client financial controls by 30%

·        Developed financial models in Excel to assess performance, improving analysis speed by 40% and audit accuracy

·        Corrected material misstatements worth over €1M, leading to accurate financial reporting for clients

·        Directed due diligence for M&A projects, facilitating transactions exceeding €5M in the automotive sector

May 2017 – Nov 2017

Agordo, Italy

Luxottica Group - Business Analyst (Internship)                                                                                                                 

·        Analysed financial and operational data to optimise accuracy and profitability

·        Implemented automation with Excel and SAP, boosting efficiency and reporting speed

                                        
EDUCATION

Sept 2023 – Nov 2024

Paris, France

ESCP Business School - MBA in International Management - Grande École

·        FinTech Track with coursework in International Capital Markets, Financial Modelling, Corporate Finance, and Scenario Planning

·        Built financial models, conducted valuations, performed market research, and developed cross-border investment strategies through consultancy projects and business simulations in an international cohort

Sept 2014 – Feb 2016

Treviso, Italy   

Ca’ Foscari University – M.Sc. in Economics and Finance

Including an additional one-year Master (M.Phil.) in Healthcare Management

·        Graduated with a 110/110 grade (top 1–2% of cohort) within one academic year and awarded by the Iglesias Foundation for 'Outstanding student performance’

·        Thesis: “The 2007–2008 Crisis: The effects of finance on the real economy” 

                     
EXTRA-CURRICULAR EXPERIENCE

Sept 2023 – Nov 2024

Paris, France

Member, ESCP Finance Society

Engaged member in M&A and valuation-driven case competitions, developing investment theses, acquisition rationales, and financial analysis under time constraints

Jan 2023 – Feb 2023

Barcelona, Spain                               

Future Female Leaders Award  

Selected among 50+ high-potential young professional women for exceptional leadership, career excellence, and commitment to making a positive impact; attended IESE Women in Business Conference for networking

Feb 2025 – Sept 2025

Venice, Italy   

Professor, Ca’ Foscari University  

Supervised 200 students in Financial Statement analysis (93% satisfaction) and Behavioural Economics (95% satisfaction), exceeding departmental benchmarks    

                                                                           
LANGUAGES, IT SKILLS AND INTERESTS

Languages: English (Fluent), Italian (Native), French (Professional)                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                               

IT: Advanced Excel User (Pivot, Lookup, VBA), ECDL

Finance certification: Bloomberg Certificates (BMC & ESG), LSE Portfolio Management exam in 2022

Sport: Italian artistic roller-skating champion, 1st place (September 2015) and 2nd place (September 2007,2010,2011,2014), gravel cycling and running