Vice President, FinTech Coalition (SMU)

Job Description

Job Description

The Organization: MassChallenge

The Role: Vice President, FinTech Coalition (SMU)

Location: Dallas, TX

Reports to: Chief Growth Officer

Compensation: $155,000-$185,000

About MassChallenge and the Southern Methodist University/Spears Institute of Entrepreneurial Leadership

MassChallenge is the global network for innovators working to solve massive challenges. We connect startups, experts, corporations, and communities to grow and transform businesses and economies. Our mission is to equip bold entrepreneurs to disrupt the status quo and create meaningful change. Our mission is BIG, and thus we are a team that gives 100% every day. Our values ensure that we stay true to our mission and our core beliefs.

Our university partner, SMU, enrolls more than 12,000 diverse, high-achieving students from all 50 states and over 80 countries, offering small classes, meaningful research opportunities, leadership development, community service, international study, and innovative programming. Situated in Dallas, the dynamic center of one of the nation’s fastest-growing regions, SMU provides a launch pad for global impact through distinctive learning, research, social, and career opportunities.

MassChallenge is currently seeking a Vice President, FinTech Coalition, to join our Dallas team.

Position Summary

The Vice President, FinTech Coalition, will serve as the day-to-day program lead and primary operator for the Southern Methodist University (SMU) Fintech Accelerator, a flagship initiative of the SMU Cox Fintech Coalition built in partnership with Southern Methodist University’s Edwin L. Cox School of Business. This role owns end-to-end accelerator delivery and is the central driver of the program’s success across every phase, from startup sourcing and cohort selection through curriculum execution, mentor coordination, corporate engagement, and showcase events.

The SMU Cox Fintech Coalition is a landmark three-year partnership designed to establish SMU as a nationally recognized center for financial innovation, combining a highly selective startup accelerator with year-round executive convenings and marquee events, including the SMU Cox Fintech Summit and the SMU Cox Hackathon. For MassChallenge, this is one of its highest-priority initiatives and a cornerstone of its growing Dallas presence, making the VP role a rare opportunity to build something consequential from the ground up.

The Vice President will be deeply embedded in the Dallas and national fintech ecosystems and will serve as MassChallenge’s senior representative, building relationships with founders, corporate leaders, investors, faculty, and ecosystem partners. This individual will also work closely with SMU stakeholders and the broader MassChallenge team to ensure the program operates at the highest standards of quality, rigor, and impact, leveraging all of MassChallenge’s capabilities and networks developed over the past eight years of running a national fintech accelerator.

Location

This role is Dallas-based and dedicated full-time to the SMU Cox Fintech Coalition. The Vice President will be expected to work from the Dallas area and to be present at the SMU campus and partner venues for all major program activities, including convenings, bootcamps, selection events, and the annual showcase. Occasional travel to Boston and other markets may be required. Periodic evening and weekend availability will be necessary to support program execution.

What You’ll Do

Program Leadership and Delivery

• Serve as the strategic and day-to-day lead, in collaboration with team members at SMU, for the SMU Cox Fintech Accelerator, owning program design, execution, quality, and success metrics from sourcing through showcase
• Lead a four-month hybrid accelerator experience anchored by three in-person intensives (kickoff, midpoint, and finale/demo day) and structured virtual programming throughout
• Drive the full startup selection cycle, including the configuration and management of the MassChallenge Accelerate platform, multi-stage expert review, live judging, and final cohort deliberations in close coordination with SMU
• Own the end-to-end founder experience, including onboarding, goal setting, milestone tracking, mentor matching, and ongoing founder support
• Design and deliver curricula across five program modules, integrating enterprise readiness, fintech-specific content, expert sessions, and milestone-based learning
• Coordinate cross-functional implementation across MassChallenge and SMU teams in Dallas and Boston, in conjunction with SMU Cox leadership, the SMU Executive Sponsor, and the SMU Program Lead
• Manage program reporting, including quarterly and end-of-year reports to SMU, Steering Committee materials, and outcome tracking against agreed-upon success metrics

Mentor and Expert Network

• Lead the sourcing, vetting, onboarding, matching, and performance management of the mentor and expert network, targeting 45–60 core mentors, 10–20 specialist experts, and 8–15 executive judges per cohort
• Ensure the mentor network reflects the balance of academic expertise, corporate operating experience, investor perspective, and fintech domain depth required to support a high-quality and diverse cohort
• Maintain conduct standards and quality oversight across the network, addressing concerns promptly in coordination with SMU

Ecosystem and Stakeholder Engagement

• Serve as MassChallenge’s primary relationship owner with SMU Cox leadership, the SMU Executive Sponsor, and the SMU Program Lead
• Represent MassChallenge at major Dallas fintech and innovation events, including Venture Dallas and DFW Startup Week, and build the program’s visibility as a leading regional platform
• Drive corporate, investor, and ecosystem engagement through Executive Circle convenings, curated office hours, founder salons, and partner touchpoints designed to create pathways for pilots, commercial relationships, and strategic collaboration
• Support SMU’s sponsorship integration into program activities, ensuring sponsors receive meaningful, well-executed touchpoints consistent with program quality standards

Team Leadership

• Collaborate with and provide guidance to the Manager, FinTech Accelerator and Programming
• Contribute to organizational knowledge and best practices in accelerator operations, working collaboratively across MassChallenge’s program and network teams nationally

Who You Are & What You Bring

The ideal candidate is a mission-driven, operationally excellent leader with deep experience in venture programs, accelerators, or innovation ecosystems, and a strong command of fintech or financial services. This is a high-visibility, high-responsibility role that requires exceptional judgment, a founder-first mindset, and the presence to represent MassChallenge and SMU with credibility at the most senior levels.

Education and Experience

• Bachelor’s degree required; an advanced degree in business, finance, entrepreneurship, or a related field is a plus
• Eight or more years of experience in program management, accelerator operations, innovation ecosystems, venture development, or related fields
• Demonstrated experience managing complex, multi-stakeholder programs with high operational demands and visible external audiences
• Deep familiarity with fintech, financial services, or adjacent sectors, including knowledge of the regulatory landscape, enterprise adoption dynamics, and startup commercialization pathways
• Experience working with or in a university, corporate innovation, or institutional partner environment is strongly preferred
• Existing relationships in the Dallas fintech or broader innovation ecosystem are a meaningful plus

Who You Are

• You are an operationally excellent, founder-first program leader who thrives in a fast-paced, deadline-driven environment
• You bring exceptional interpersonal and relationship-building skills and can engage credibly with founders, senior corporate executives, investors, and university administrators alike
• You are a natural convener who builds trust quickly and knows how to bring people together around a shared goal
• You have strong communication skills, written and verbal, and can represent MassChallenge and SMU with confidence in public-facing settings
• You are highly organized, detail-oriented, and capable of managing multiple workstreams simultaneously without sacrificing quality
• You can operate with autonomy, exercise sound judgment under ambiguity, and escalate appropriately when needed
• You are energized by the opportunity to build something new and are willing to do what it takes to get it right in the early stages of a multi-year platform
• You are excited to be part of MassChallenge’s growing Texas presence and to build a program that makes Dallas a nationally recognized center for fintech innovation

Who We Are

MassChallenge is the global network for innovators who are working to solve massive challenges. We connect startups, experts, corporations, and communities to grow and transform businesses and economies. At MassChallenge we:

• Help entrepreneurs build the next generation of transformational businesses by connecting them with the resources, partnerships, and communities that help them launch, grow, and scale their startups.
• Help our partners build, grow, and evolve their corporate innovation practices.
• Leverage the power of entrepreneurship to strengthen global innovation ecosystems.

Why You Should Join Us

MassChallenge was just named the #2 accelerator in t