Chief Financial Officer

MCE Social Capital
Flexible Location (with preference for East Coast or Central Time Zone locations)

About MCE Social Capital

MCE is a well-known and respected impact-first investor with a strong track record built over the past 16 years through its pioneering and unique loan guarantee model (https://www.mcesocap.org/about-us#model) leveraging blended finance. Philanthropic guarantees enable MCE to leverage the excellent credit of high-net-worth individuals and foundations (our Guarantors) to borrow capital from U.S. and European financial institutions and accredited investors to support vulnerable entrepreneurs perceived to be at high risk of default.

MCE then strategically invests flexible capital in enterprises committed to generating sustainable livelihoods – with a focus on women and the environment – to allow these enterprises to scale and better serve their customers, their employees, and their communities. Since 2006, MCE has disbursed close to $300 million in debt capital to 140 institutions in 55 countries throughout the developing world.

MCE recently launched a new $40 million impact-first sustainable agriculture fund, MESA, bringing total available capital to $100 million. MESA will expand on MCE’s experience scaling economic opportunities within local communities, enhancing the climate resilience of smallholder farmers, and empowering women throughout the agricultural sector in emerging markets. We were pleased that the fund was oversubscribed, a testament to MCE’s track record, team, and investment strategy. For more information on the launch, see our press release: https://www.mcesocap.org/mce-social-capital-announces-final-close-of-mesa-fund and featured story on ImpactAlpha: https://impactalpha.com/doubling-down-on-guarantees-mce-social-capital-is-unlocking-capital-for-climate-gender/

MESA celebrated a final close at $41.6M with commitments from an impressive roster of investors, including FMO: Dutch Entrepreneurial Development Bank (https://www.fmo.nl/project-detail/61973), ImpactAssets (https://impactassets.org), Visa Foundation (https://usa.visa.com/about-visa/visa-foundation.html), Blink CV (https://www.blinkcv.com), Imago Dei Fund (https://imagodeifund.org), Sall Family Foundation (https://sallfamily.org) and Heading for Change: The Suzanne Biegel and Daniel Maskit Endowment (https://www.headingforchange.org).

MCE manages two investment portfolios:

● Small and Growing Businesses that create jobs, help smallholder farmers improve productivity and income, and facilitate clean water and energy. MCE addresses critical market gaps by providing catalytic loans of $300k to $2 million to support small and growing businesses in the “missing middle”.
● Inclusive Finance, investing in microfinance institutions and other financial service providers that help low-income households gain access to credit, savings accounts, insurance, and business education. MCE provides loans of up to $4 million.

MCE is a growing, dynamic organization with hubs in Washington, D.C., Barcelona, Spain, and Nairobi, Kenya.

Learn more about MCE Social Capital at https://www.mcesocap.org.

The Opportunity

MCE Capital is seeking a Chief Financial Officer with deep expertise in the financial aspects of lending/investing. This leader will bring excellent business acumen and strong interpersonal skills to serve as a strategic partner to the CEO, leadership team, and Board in driving MCE forward in achieving its mission focused on impact opportunities at the nexus of climate and gender. The ideal candidate will be a strategic financial thinker, highly organized, collaborative, and process-oriented with the ability to elevate the finance and accounting function through the creation of strong systems, structures, and processes that support MCE’s growth in a scalable way.

MCE’s Chief Financial Officer (CFO) will play a significant leadership role in the next stage of the organization’s evolution. In order to meet the demand for its capital and accelerate impact, MCE has scaled assets under management in recent years to $75M, with $100M in available capital commitments as a result of the recent closing of the MCE Empowering Sustainable Agriculture fund (MESA). This position offers a unique opportunity to be part of a growing organization that is viewed as an industry leader in impact-first investing, partnering with a respected group of institutional investors and family offices.

Successful candidates will be well-versed in strategic financial planning and management, treasury and asset liability management, institutional fundraising and lender relations, and accounting. The CFO reports directly to the CEO and serves as part of the five-person senior leadership team. They oversee a team of three finance and accounting professionals including a Controller, Senior Accountant, and Senior Middle Office Loan Analyst.

Key Areas of Responsibility

Strategy, Financial Planning, and Projections
• Act as a strategic partner to MCE’s senior management team, leading senior management discussions and decisions related to MCE’s financial strategy and capital formation approaches
• Design and implement a financial plan that will support MCE’s growth as a sustainable, impact-first investor, coupled with long-term financial forecasting and modeling
• Lead monthly/quarterly forecasting
• Lead ongoing analyses of MCE’s revenue mix, pricing strategy, and expense management
• Develop and manage annual and multi-year budgets for MCE and its subsidiaries

Funder and Lender Relationships
• Structure and negotiate funding from banks, institutional lenders, and development finance institutions
• Manage all financial aspects of MCE’s $35 million Global Economic Opportunity Notes program, working closely with MCE’s Chief Business Development Officer
• Oversee lender reporting
• Coordinate closely with the Chief Business Development Officer on capital raising

Treasury and Asset-Liability Management
• Responsible leading MCE’s liquidity and asset-liability management strategy, including determining the structure and timing of new capital inflows, matching those inflows to loan disbursements, and ensuring strong cash flow management
• Work with Portfolio team and General Counsel to review and approve new deal structures for MCE’s portfolio companies
• Provide financial oversight of MCE’s derivative/foreign exchange contracts

Accounting and Tax
• Oversee the accounting function, which has responsibility for ensuring timely, accurate entity-level and consolidated financial statements, completes the audit and tax-related responsibilities and manages all bank accounts

General Operations
• Ensure proper separation of duties and oversee quality assurance of best-in-class financial policies, procedures, and documents
• Oversee accounting systems and loan data system, ensure systems are maintained and reports are accurate
• Primary liaison to the Finance Committee; supports Controller in Audit Committee engagement
• Leads all financial reporting to the Board

Candidate Profile
Successful candidates will have 10-15 years of professional experience in finance and accounting-related roles with experience in a lending or investing context. An MBA, CPA, or equivalent qualification is ideal, as well as a willingness to travel 2-4 times a year.

In addition, the ideal candidate will have the following attributes and competencies:

Passion for Mission
The CFO will bring a passion for unlocking capital to empower families living in poverty to build a better future. This individual will be respectful and caring toward all key constituents, including end beneficiaries, guarantors, investors, partners, staff, and Board. The CFO will be a person of unquestioned integrity, who “does the right thing when no one is looking”.

Strategic and Forward-Thinking Leadership
A confident, yet humble leader, the Chief Financial Officer will serve as a forward-thinking strategic partner to the CEO in setting the financial strategy for the organization with the ability to think outside the box beyond the day-to-day accounting. As part of an entrepreneurial team, this leader will bring a financial vision as well as a willingness to roll up their sleeves. This leader will undertake major investment and financing decisions, communicating the narrative behind the numbers, and proactively identifying opportunities and potential risks to the organization. The CFO will develop and execute key strategies to elevate the overall financial and accounting functions of MCE Social Capital and affiliated entities (MESA Fund).

The CFO will be a strong and capable leader who will mentor, motivate, and retain a high-caliber team, building upon a strong culture of collaboration to further instill transparency, accountability, and efficiency. This leader will partner with the team to problem solve, as well as delegate appropriately. Flexible and adaptable, the CFO will adjust as priorities emerge and change, with the ability to deal with ambiguity and balance multiple tasks efficiently and effectively. In addition, the CFO will be a calm and highly aware leader, staying abreast of trends, anticipating potential issues/questions, navigating an organization during times of growth and transition, and driving sustainable outcomes.

Financial & Accounting Expertise
The Chief Financial Officer will have a strong analytical mind and will be an experienced leader in the field of finance and accounting with a strong working knowledge of generally accepted accounting principles (GAAP), with non-profit accounting and/or investment accounting preferred. This individual will bring key skills and experience in financial reporting, budgeting, asset liability management, cost/benefit analysis, financial modeling and forecasting, debt financing/lender relations, treasury, cash flow management, and risk management/compliance.

The CFO will ensure the budgeting process and financial reporting is transparent, accurate, and timely. This leader will optimize asset liability management and funding streams, providing thoughtful and informed recommendations and decision support to the Executive Team and the Board. This leader will have a high level of business acumen and judgment, with the ability to make practical, data driven, and timely decisions as well as excellent negotiation skills to secure optimal terms with lenders.

Operational Excellence and Change Management Skills
The Chief Financial Officer will play a key role in partnering with the CEO, the Executive Team, and across departments to drive better synergies around processes and systems including streamlining operations, capital allocation, eliminating redundancies, improving communication, and forecasting. The CFO will have the ability and experience to assess the existing organizational structure to ensure optimal performance and alignment to present and future organizational needs. This leader will bring an inclusive approach to leading change, with the ability to gain consensus and buy in across the organization. The CFO will be an exceptional problem solver with a management approach focused on achieving sustainable solutions.

Excellent Communication, Relationship Building, and Collaboration Skills
The Chief Finance Officer will have excellent written and verbal communication skills and an ability to speak competently about the financials and portfolio health, as well as translate complex financial information to a diverse group of constituents including investors.

A strong collaborator, the Chief Financial Officer will partner across all departments and functions to understand and support their needs, including engaging in business development activities and partnering closely with the investment team. This leader will bring excellent interpersonal skills with the ability to build strong working relationships across all levels of the organization. The CFO will have the experience and ability to represent MCE Social Capital in a way that inspires confidence in the organization.

Compensation & Benefits

Salary is competitive and commensurate with experience. The salary range for this role is $170,000 – $210,000.

MCE provides a competitive benefits package as part of its overall employee value proposition, including:

• A flexible work model that includes both remote and in-office options (depending on location)
• Generous holiday and flexible paid time off
• Retirement savings plan with employer contribution
• Comprehensive health care coverage
• A sabbatical benefit after five years of employment
• Dedicated budgets for professional development and team building
• Opportunity to travel and work with entrepreneurs around the world
• Opportunity to learn from frequent interactions with MCE’s Board members, impact investing leaders, and angel investors sitting on MCE’s committees

Contact

Koya Partners l Diversified Search Group has been exclusively retained for this engagement, which is being led by Michelle Bonoan and Medelene Beasley. Express interest in this role by filling out our Talent Profile: https://apptrkr.com/4924533 or emailing the search team directly at MCESC_CFO@koyapartners.com. All inquiries and discussions are strictly confidential.

Koya Partners l Diversified Search Group is committed to providing reasonable accommodation to individuals living with disabilities. If you are a qualified individual living with a disability and need assistance expressing interest online, please email NonprofitSearchOps@divsearch.com. If you are selected for an interview, you will receive additional information regarding how to request an accommodation for the interview process.

MCE Social Capital is an equal opportunity employer and strongly encourages applications from people of color, persons with disabilities, women, and LGBTQ+ applicants.

About Koya Partners l Diversified Search Group

Koya Partners, a Diversified Search Group company, is the nation’s premier search firm dedicated to mission-driven leadership. Since its founding in 2004, Koya has had an exclusive focus on mission-driven clients and was founded on the belief that the right leader can transform an organization and have a deep and measurable impact on our world. Koya works with nonprofits & NGOs, responsible businesses, and social enterprises in local communities and around the world.

Diversified Search Group is consistently recognized by Forbes on its top 10 list of “America’s Best Executive Recruiting Firms” and is an industry leader in recruiting transformational leaders for a changing world. The firm is deliberately different in its approach, with best-in-class teams who have decades of experience in cultivating inclusive leaders, understanding the dimensions of diversity, and building equitable teams.

Learn more about Koya Partners l Diversified Search Group via the firm’s website: https://diversifiedse1.wpengine.com/our-brands/koya-partners/.