About Nora Emekli Baker
Nora is an accomplished corporate development, strategy, and finance executive with over 25 years of experience. She is a transaction lead for Athena and enjoys helping clients with their strategic corporate development needs.
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To date, her corporate development career has brought over $7 billion in value to leading corporations. In addition, Nora developed and directed financial, tax, and treasury strategies, implemented over 50 new customer initiatives, and led over 35 international corporate reorganizations to drive growth and efficiency. Through collaboration, analysis, and leadership, Nora translates strategic vision into successful execution.
Overseeing cross-functional teams and managing outside resources, Nora leads the full deal life cycle for acquisitions, divestitures, strategic partnerships, and joint ventures, from pipeline development to integration. During her career, Nora led over 100 deals ranging in size with the largest being the sale of International Paper’s coated paper business to Apollo for $1.4 billion. Nora has worked across multiple sectors including services, consumer products, retail, technology, packaging, pulp and paper, industrial gases, aerospace, and industrial manufacturing.
Nora’s notable achievements include helping PepsiCo expand its health and wellness products with its coconut water acquisition; being part of the team to develop and implement International Paper’s corporate transformation; and professionalizing Daymon’s international operations as the head of finance to prepare the company for sale to Bain Capital and then to Advantage Solutions. She has supported two successful IPOs, led multiple integration projects, and restructured business operations by bringing unprofitable assets to profitability, reworking teams, and implementing systems. Across her well-rounded background, she worked closely with R&D teams focusing on incubation and innovation.
Nora was the Director of over 30 companies around the world. Her direct oversight of businesses and resources, and knowledge of operating in China, Japan, South Africa, Brazil, Kazakhstan, Indonesia, Korea, Portugal, Spain, and many other countries, give her a unique perspective on risk, governance, and operations.
As a creative problem solver and critical thinker, Nora was recognized at PepsiCo as a nominee for “Contributing Strategic Impact to the Company” and for her skills in “People Leadership” for developing and implementing an onboarding process and mentorship program. Her Board experiences include serving as the Auditor on a JV with AEON, the largest Asian retailer, and on the Board of three independent bottlers in the Pacific Northwest. Nora devotes a portion of her time to giving back to her universities and community. This includes serving as Treasurer of Swim Across America Fairfield County and co-chairing the Finance Review Committee with Impact Fairfield County, a philanthropic organization. She is known for her collaborative leadership style, being hands-on and hardworking, and as a trusted advisor.
Nora has an MBA from the Yale School of Management and a BA in French from Barnard College. When she is not working, she enjoys skiing, playing tennis, and spending time with her family.
