About Living Cities:
Founded in 1991, Living Cities is a collaborative of 19 of the world’s largest foundations and financial institutions. We foster transformational relationships across sectors to connect those who are willing to do the hard work of closing racial income and wealth gaps. Together, we are partnering with cross-sector leaders in cities across the country to imagine and create an America in which all people are economically secure, building wealth, and living abundant, dignified, and connected lives. Our staff, investments, convenings, and networks support efforts that operationalize racial equity and inclusion in local government, create inclusive narratives, bring communities together to devise and act on a shared vision for the future, and eliminate inequities in systems such as entrepreneurship, homeownership, and access to capital.
About the Position:
One of Living Cities’ key program areas is Capital for the New Majority (CNM). In the context of closing racial income and wealth gaps, CNM seeks to drive more capital and resources to entrepreneurs and fund managers of color. Functionally, CNM consists of a field-building program, as well as two impact investment funds. Having multiple tools at its disposal allows the CNM team to constantly innovate - by developing new hypotheses and theories, testing those ideas, learning from what has and has not worked, and sharing those lessons with the broader field.
In order to accelerate the adoption of innovative financing for the benefit of people of color and the cities in which they live, Living Cities has been making impact investments for more than a decade. These investments have largely been made out of two structured debt funds capitalized by 15 institutional investors, the majority of whom are Living Cities’ members. The Catalyst Fund (LCCF), a $38 million structured debt fund closed in 2008, is in the final stages of its fund life cycle, has returned capital to its investors, and is in the process of winding down its operations. The Blended Catalyst Fund (BCF) is a $37 million fund focused on closing the racial wealth gap by supporting the development of jobs, income, and wealth for people of color. The BCF achieved its final close in December 2016 and is expected to be fully deployed by the end of Q1 2021.
Living Cities currently has a growing fund management team that reports to the Managing Director of Capital for the New Majority. This is an exciting opportunity for a technically inclined individual who is passionate about working with borrowers through all stages of the financing process and deeply committed to using capital to create better outcomes for founders of color. We refer to borrowers, loans, and debt. However, we have and will likely continue to make debt and equity investments. For ease of understanding, we refer to borrowers, loans, and debt as a proxy for all investment types in this document.
Desired Qualifications:
Superior interpersonal skills, ability to manage and work in teams, interacting constructively with diverse constituents
Highly energetic, creative problem solver exhibiting deep commitment and passion for Living Cities’ mission
The ability to collaborate across roles and locations
Racial Equity & Inclusion (REI)
Foundational knowledge and core concepts
Understands why racial equity is an integral part of Living Cities’ approach, inside and outside the organization
Displays clear willingness to learn and apply REI history and concepts REI Practice and Analysis
Engages with curiosity, humility, and openness in discussions about race, equity, and power inside and outside of the organization
Understands how the construct of race has impacted the distribution of power, resources, and recognizes its impact on current and future outcomes across systems
SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITY
None
WORK ENVIRONMENT
This job operates in a professional office environment.
PHYSICAL DEMANDS
The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job.
While performing this job, the employee must be able to remain in a stationary position at least 50% of the time. Additionally, they may require moving around the office to access files or other equipment. As collaboration and communication is a large part of our work, the employee must also be able to accurately exchange information in these situations, whether virtually or in person.
We will work to provide reasonable accommodations as needed.
POSITION TYPE
This is a full-time exempt position.
AAP/EEO POLICY STATEMENT
Living Cities is committed to building a culturally diverse and inclusive team at all levels. We are an equal opportunity employer and provide opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws.
This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, leaves of absence, compensation and training.
OTHER DUTIES
Please note this job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities, and activities may change at any time with or without notice.
