Senior Director, Institutional Philanthropy & Partnerships

• Reports To: Chief External Affairs
  Officer
• Job Type: Full-Time Employment
• Region: United States
• Location: US Remote, MA Cambridge
• Start Date: Immediate
• Contact: Please apply by using the
  company site.

About Root Capital

Agriculture is the key to unlocking a better future for billions
of people. But while rural families sustain the world, they
struggle to sustain themselves. Root Capital is a nonprofit social
impact investor that puts its money where others don’t – in
underserved agricultural businesses.

We provide financing and business training to agricultural
enterprises in the “missing middle” — those that are too big for
microloans but too small for commercial lenders. As these
agricultural businesses succeed and scale, they become engines of
impact that help farming families, communities, and economies to
flourish.

Founded in 1999, we are the largest social investor in
agricultural businesses. As both a lender and a nonprofit, our
unique model allows us to go where other financiers don’t and
support agricultural enterprises so they can succeed and grow. Our
world-class team of experts identifies, partners with, and invests
in exceptional agricultural entrepreneurs in Africa, Asia, and
Latin America.

Over 23 years, Root Capital has invested $1.9 billion in more
than 750 agricultural enterprises, proving these under-served
businesses are bankable and investable. We have shown that access
to finance helps these enterprises succeed and fuels the economy.
Root Capital’s investments and essential business and finance
training have impacted 10 million farming families through job
creation, financial security, and climate resiliency. Headquartered
in Cambridge, Massachusetts, we currently have offices in Costa
Rica, Mexico, Nicaragua, Colombia, Peru, Ghana, and Kenya.

Position Overview

The Senior Director, Institutional Philanthropy &
Partnerships (the Senior Director) provides strategic leadership,
direction, and management to ensure the maximization of private and
public institutional funding for Root Capital. The Senior Director
has overall accountability for the achievement of contributed
revenue targets from, and high-quality relationship management of,
institutional funding partners, delivered through a varied
portfolio of partnership modalities. These include strategic
philanthropy, social impact funding and investments, CSR,
marketing- and cause-related partnerships, as well as relationships
that explore innovative financial models to support the flow of
impact-linked capital to agricultural enterprises.

The Senior Director manages and develops their own active
portfolio of funding stakeholders, leveraging these relationships
and partnership to evidence best-in-class approaches to funder
collaboration through creative engagement and high-yield financial
contributions. The Senior Director models and deploys best-practice
thinking and solutions for the Institutional Philanthropy &
Partnerships (IPP) team and the entire organization. They are the
acknowledged internal subject matter expert on crafting and
executing meaningful and successful institutional funder
identification, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship
strategies. While the Senior Director’s portfolio is a hybrid of
high-yield “marquee” partnerships, they are responsible for and
supervise senior resource mobilizers who manage distinct portfolios
of institutional funders, consisting of foundations, corporations,
and bi- and multi-lateral institutions. The Senior Director coaches
and guides these managers ensuring that they contribute towards
ambitious financial goals and other defined indicators and
objectives.

Reporting to the Chief External Affairs Officer the Senior
Director partners with them to create resourcing opportunities that
include sourcing, structuring, and executing innovative blended
capital stacks designed to contribute to Root Capital’s net assets,
operational needs, delivery of specific mission-critical programs,
and its client investment/lending capabilities. As such the Senior
Director will have a demonstrated track record of translating often
complex opportunities into resourcing strategies and realized
funding, and of leading teams toward these goals. They will work in
collaboration with a broad constituency of Root Capital functions,
executive and Board leadership, as well as the broader EA
department to coordinate and strengthen Root Capital’s value
proposition and maximize the impact of private institutional
support in the furtherance of our mission.

Responsibilities

Fundraising (60%)

• Ensure the IPP team’s annual and longer-term resource
  mobilization and partnership targets are achieved.
• Lead and support the IPP team’s efforts by personally
  cultivating and soliciting a range of high impact “marquee” funders
  and partners where a level of seniority/advanced technical
  competence is relevant and appropriate.
• Design funding and partnership strategies and structures
  reflecting the realistic potential of varied institutional
  supporters, to include the spectrum of engagement opportunities
  with global private and public sector institutions, including (but
  not limited to): philanthropic funding, impact investments, PRIs,
  impact-focused core business/supply-chain partnerships, CSR and
  cause-based alliances. Expansion of Root Capital’s network of
  institutional partners leading to significant increases in capital
  mobilized will be a critical goal.
• Lead on establishing funding goals, partnership benchmarks, and
  growth strategies for Root Capital’s institutional supporter
  portfolio to include short-, medium-, and long-term metrics and
  indicators.
• As part of a broader strategy, pro-actively participate in the
  institutional funder ecosystem, establishing effective
  relationships with potential partners, funding collaboratives,
  philanthropy and impact investing advisors, to represent Root
  Capital’s mission and the opportunity it represents for impact and
  social change within rural communities.
• Support the involvement of the CXO, and other Root Capital
  staff (including the CEO), in institutional partner development and
  relationship management with briefing materials, agendas,
  background research and appropriate follow-up.
• Support and drive the active involvement of Root Capital’s
  Board members and other Volunteers in institutional partner
  development and relationship management.
• Collaborate with the Communications & Marketing team to
  develop integrated communications and marketing plans that provide
  stewardship and cultivation touchpoints for existing funders,
  partners, and prospects.
• Synthesize Root Capital’s mission and programs into clear,
  compelling presentations, proposals, and reports for institutional
  stakeholders.

Executive Leadership and Team Management
(20%)

• Inspire, motivate, and challenge the IPP team through active
  mentorship, fostering an environment that encourages new ideas and
  innovative approaches to reaching funding and partnership targets
  through new business development and relationship management.
• Lead the team’s effective management of the existing portfolio
  of institutional funding partners and guide its strategies and
  plans to develop new partnerships.
• Manage the performance and professional development of assigned
  direct reports.
• Maintain familiarity with all aspects of Root Capital’s mission
  and programs, representing Root Capital with confidence, clarity
  and knowledge of goals and objectives, serving as a resource for
  IPP and EA colleagues.
• Collaborate with Root Capital colleagues and leadership towards
  developing an overarching vision for private and public
  institutional support at Root Capital, articulating that vision to
  key internal stakeholders to encourage and develop a
  cross-functional, multi-regional culture of effective and
  innovative relationship management and opportunity
  development.
• Lead on the provision of assistance and informed professional
  insight for various Root Capital teams on matters relating to
  private and public institutional funding and partnerships.
• Support organization growth and reputation by maintaining
  strong working relationships with relevant entities and networks
  that form the thought leadership ecosystem for social enterprises
  and nonprofits at the intersection of agriculture, climate change,
  gender equity, economic opportunity, and innovative finance.

Strategic Planning, Administration and Financial
Management (20%)

• Partner with the CXO to set annual, and more regular, goals and
  KPIs for the IPP team.
• With the CXO and other EA colleagues, lead on the development
  and implementation of standards, tools, and procedures towards a
  best-in-class approach to resource mobilization generally, and
  private and public institutional funding specifically.
• Provide leadership for the IPP team’s participation in annual
  as well as long range planning and strategizing at both an EA
  department level, as well as a Root Capital enterprise level.
• Manage the IPP team’s budget with commitment, integrity, and
  accountability, working within Root Capital’s standards for
  professional conduct.
• Monitor and analyze private and public funding trends as they
  relate to resourcing mission-driven organizations, so that market
  opportunities may be capitalized on, and ensuring that Root
  Capital’s institutional funder value proposition remains compelling
  and competitive.
• Cultivate a data-driven culture within the EA department and
  broadly at Root Capital through use of Salesforce and other data
  tools/platforms to guide IPP’s work and progress, providing
  relevant analysis of the institutional funder portfolio.
• Ensure Root Capital’s institutional funders are managed and
  tracked through a comprehensive moves management system.
• Oversee the maintenance of CRM and other records relating to
  the institutional funder portfolio that contribute to comprehensive
  tracking/reporting on the overall EA stakeholder universe.

Skills & Experience

• 10-12 years experience in successful institutional fundraising
  (including any combination of foundations, corporations, bi-lateral
  and multi-lateral institutions), building generative relationships,
  establishing a shared agenda and goals, and securing resources for
  the long haul.
• Experience of working with institutional partners utilizing
  innovative funding mechanisms to support social impact and
  change.
• Understanding of the global institutional partnership and
  funding ecosystem.
• Comfortable soliciting significant funding (seven and eight
  figure amounts) directly from institutional partners in support of
  social enterprise and/or nonprofit missions.
• Comfortable facilitating and guiding funding solicitations by
  relationship proxies, for example Root Capital’s CEO, executive
  leadership, Board members, etc.
• Longstanding experience and demonstrable knowledge of using
  financial data and analysis, budget modeling, financial
  projections, and scenario planning to inform key
  decision-making.
• Ability to see the “big picture,” think strategically, and
  translate strategy into targeted goals and actions with
  demonstrated success in creating and expanding a culture of
  successful private and/or public institutional engagement.
• A polished communicator; able to craft and articulate nuanced,
  sophisticated cases for support to diverse, global audiences and
  constituents.
• Experience of managing high-performing resource mobilization
  teams, with evidence of mentoring and supporting the professional
  development of team members.
• Experience of working with/in social enterprises and
  innovative, complex nonprofits, and of their operating models and
  approaches to mission delivery and development.
• Demonstrated ability to maintain positive, collaborative,
  productive relationships with staff at all levels, and skilled at
  leading different stakeholders, teams, and departments towards
  consensus and understanding around planning, decision-making
  etc.
• A commitment to Root Capital’s mission is essential, with
  knowledge and understanding of issues and agendas related to
  agriculture, economic opportunity and poverty reduction, gender
  equity, climate change, and innovative finance, helpful.
• Spanish proficiency (written and spoken) is a plus but not
  critical to the role.
• Applicants must be authorized to work in the United
  States.

How to Apply

More information about Root Capital is available
at www.rootcapital.org. Applications are accepted
on a rolling basis. Candidates are encouraged to apply using the
company site as soon as possible, making sure to include a resume
and cover letter that describes your interest, qualifications,
language abilities, salary requirements, and how you learned of the
position. Finalist candidates will be required to provide at least
three work-related references.

U.S applicants: Root Capital Inc.
participates in E-Verify and will provide the federal
government your I-9 information to confirm that you are authorized
to work in the U.S. For more information, see here. Learn more about your right to work.

Root Capital provides equal employment opportunities (EEO)
to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to
race, color, creed, religion, sex, national origin, ancestry,
active military or veteran status, age, physical or mental
disability, medical condition, pregnancy (which includes pregnancy,
childbirth, medical conditions related to pregnancy and childbirth,
and breastfeeding and expressing breast milk), sexual orientation,
gender, gender identity, gender expression, genetic information, or
any other characteristic protected by law. Root Capital is
committed to creating a dynamic work environment that upholds our
leadership principles of empowerment, equity, integrity, service,
and transparency.