VC Director @ Social Finance in Boston, MA

Social Finance is a national nonprofit and a registered investment advisor (SF Advisors, LLC). We work with the public, private, and social sectors to create partnerships and investments that measurably improve lives. Since our founding in 2011, we have mobilized over $400 million in new investments designed to help people and communities realize improved outcomes in workforce and economic mobility, health, and housing.

We are driven by the belief that social and economic systems should enable all people to thrive, and the conviction that we can create the most meaningful and measurable change in our communities when governments and markets work together. Our organization is built upon five core values: people, performance, integrity, collaboration, and inclusion.

Our work spans four areas: Impact-first Investing, Workforce and Education Investments, Advisory & Public Sector Practice, and the Social Finance Institute. Our Impact-first investment team designs, launches, and manages investments that provide solutions for effectively deploying impact capital across a range of social outcomes. Our Workforce and Education Investments team designs, launches and manages financial solutions focused on addressing workforce challenges, including skills acquisition and training access. Our Advisory team partners with government and philanthropy leaders to implement data-driven programs for advancing social impact. And through the Social Finance Institute, we aim to build the field and change systems through actionable research, communities of practice, and educational outreach.

Note: To be eligible for our open positions, candidates must possess permanent U.S. work authorization at the time of application, without requiring employer sponsorship either at the time of hire or in the future.

Role and Responsibilities

We are seeking a Director of Impact Investments to join our Workforce and Education Investments team. This team is dedicated to generating greater economic mobility by financing and supporting reskilling and upskilling initiatives that lead to quality jobs. Our efforts include providing loans to learners to access high-quality training, offering working capital to scale training providers, and structuring financial incentives to encourage employers to actively engage in upskilling their workforce. While we work across industries, priority sectors for this Director role include healthcare and climate-related skilled trades.

The Director will report to a Vice President on the Workforce and Education Investments team and will manage both direct reports and more junior project team members. The Director will work with transaction partners (typically training providers and employers), as well as funders, service providers, and other external partners as needed to identify, execute, and manage investments for impact. The Director will also actively support business development efforts to grow the Workforce and Education Investments business line. The Director will be an integral member of the broader Social Finance Impact Investments team and Social Finance Management Team, with opportunities to engage other teams and cross-business line initiatives.

Fund and Deal Development

At the fund level, responsibilities may include:

• Support business development efforts for Social Finance and its offerings with potential partners (e.g., develop fund pitch or value proposition presentations, participate actively in meetings with potential investors or philanthropic partners)
• Identify context-appropriate fund structure and investment strategy for new funds with support from a Vice President
• Conduct fund-level analysis to determine pro forma performance and guide investment strategy; lead the development of analytic processes and tools
• Partner and collaborate effectively with Social Finance colleagues to identify, develop, and implement strategy or process-related improvements for enhanced efficiency and impact
• Actively support and lead learning and knowledge-sharing opportunities within and across investment funds

At the individual investment level, responsibilities may include:

• Oversee due diligence for potential investments to assess their ability to achieve target financial and impact metrics and identify potential risks and mitigants
• Structure and negotiate investment terms based on insights from due diligence with support from a Vice President
• Effectively communicate investment opportunities to an executive-level Investment Committee, outlining investment strengths, risks, and mitigants – both verbally through presentations and in writing through investment memos
• Execute and manage deal and investment operations, collaborating closely with our legal and finance teams
• Strategically manage investment and portfolio performance towards impact success
• Actively monitor, communicate, and mitigate fund and investment risks, working directly with partners, external stakeholders, and Social Finance teammates

Fund and Deal Management

Responsibilities may include:

• Oversee the deal team to develop and manage workplans that effectively execute the lifecycles of various investment programs
• Ensure thoughtful and timely execution of meeting timelines and workstreams
• Guide the deal team’s efforts in desk research, financial analysis and modeling, and interviews to inform deal design
• Apply structured and creative approaches to problem-solving, using frameworks to develop and test hypotheses, and drive towards recommendations
• Lead calls and in-person meetings with internal and external stakeholders, aligning with strategic objectives
• Manage relationships with external partners and oversee the team’s day-to-day communications
• Actively manage and elevate issues and risks, both internally and externally, using industry best practices
• Provide regular feedback and coaching to junior team members, supporting their skills development

Qualifications

We are looking for candidates with a high level of professional excellence, initiative, both strategic and detail orientation, and passion for our mission.

Position Requirements:

• 9+ years of full-time professional experience, including at least 3 years leading teams through investment processes and financial transactions, ideally focused on financing small businesses or nonprofit organizations through community/commercial/investment banking, private credit, venture capital, or private equity
• Experience in healthcare or climate investments is a plus
• Proven experience in people management, including mentoring and fostering the professional growth of direct reports through regular feedback, coaching, and development opportunities
• Exceptional verbal and written communication skills, with the ability to deliver executive-level messaging and build trust with external stakeholders
• Strong project and team management experience, including the ability to lead multiple high-priority workstreams, manage junior staff towards timely project and deal execution, ensure timely issue resolution, and engage in risk monitoring and mitigation
• Demonstrated experience with financial modeling and analysis, with an interest and comfort in coaching junior staff to develop these skills
• Ability to navigate complex investment landscapes, prioritize opportunities, and maintain the critical path toward fund goals with a bias toward action
• Genuine desire to learn and the ability to lead teams in quickly researching, synthesizing, and summarizing key takeaways on unfamiliar topics
• Commitment to high-quality work and accuracy, even in a fast-paced environment with multiple competing priorities
• Exceptional analytical, creative, and collaborative problem-solving skills, with a positive solution orientation
• Comfort with ambiguity and the ability to adapt and be flexible in a dynamic environment
• Willingness to constructively express your point of view and listen to the perspectives of others, both internally and externally
• Commitment to actively supporting and enhancing a team and company-wide culture of inclusion, belonging, and equity
• Demonstrated interest in workforce, postsecondary education, and economic mobility issues through direct professional experience, volunteering, board roles, etc.

Benefits

At Social Finance, we strive to deliver a benefits program that will enhance our overall value proposition to employees. Our current benefit offerings include:

• Comprehensive healthcare coverage: medical, dental and vision insurance; flexible spending accounts and more
• Retirement savings plan with employer contribution
• Short-term, long-term and life insurance policies
• Commuter benefits and cell phone reimbursements
• Hybrid work model (in office a minimum of two days per week and on an ad-hoc basis as needed)
• Dedicated budgets for team building and employee recognition
• Annual budget for external professional development opportunities
• Mentorship and onboarding programs
• Collaborative and energizing workspaces in downtown Boston, MA; San Francisco, CA; Austin, TX; Washington, D.C. and New York, NY.
• Paid vacation and paid holidays (with 12/24-1/1 off every year)
• Paid parental leave
• A truly stellar team of high performing, values-driven and fun (!) professionals

Salary

Social Finance uses a lockstep compensation model for purposes of equity and transparency – we strive for everyone coming in at a given level to be paid equitably. For this position, at the Director level, the starting base salary is $140,000; however, during the interview process, we will take into account a candidate’s full work experience and may adjust the job title, and commensurate starting salary, as appropriate. At this level, employees typically receive a $5,000 salary increase annually and are eligible to participate in our firmwide annual bonus program. Bonuses are typically between 5-10%, though bonuses are not guaranteed and are dependent on both organizational and individual performance.

If joining our San Francisco office, this hire would receive a cost of living adjustment, which includes an additional $1,000 for every month they are residing in the state of California within a commutable distance of our office in San Francisco.