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Senior Vice President of Programs

Company: Community Vision

Location: San Francisco, CA

Job Function: Other

Background

Communities on the margins of opportunity deserve a trusted partner on their journey towards financial growth and stability. As a locally invested, collaborative partner in social justice and financial equity, Community Vision works to advance community ownership of community assets by providing nonprofits, social enterprises, and small businesses with responsive lending, catalytic capital, and advising and support to achieve justice, power, and equity. With offices in San Francisco, Oakland and Fresno, and a staff of 40, Community Vision is a Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) that promotes economic justice and alleviates poverty by increasing the financial resilience and sustainability of community-based nonprofits and private enterprises. Through flexible financial products and sound consulting and advice, Community Vision creates opportunities to support community-rooted nonprofits and businesses to purchase, preserve, and develop social purpose real estate that revitalizes Northern and Central California communities.

Since its founding in 1987 as the Northern California Community Loan Fund, Community Vision has been connecting investors to communities, lending to nonprofits, small businesses, and cooperatives, and providing financial and real estate consulting to organizations that share the organization’s vision of sustainable communities and social, racial, and economic justice. Over the past 36 years, Community Vision has invested more than $350 million in projects

throughout California, impacting the lives of more than 1.5 million of its neighbors. Community Vision’s lending and consulting services support organizations that deliver healthcare, education, and human services; provide affordable and supportive housing; build income and wealth; and, foster cultural expression.

Standing proudly as an anti-racist organization, Community Vision recognizes that a history of discriminatory financial practices and intentional disinvestment have contributed to a lack of economic progress in low-income communities and communities of color. Community Vision provides capital and technical assistance for communities that have been systemically disinvested to ensure fairness in opportunities, resources, and rights for everyone.

Learn more about Community Vision at https://communityvisionca.org

Summary

Community Vision seeks a dynamic and visionary Senior Vice President of Programs with a strong equity lens to oversee its Capital and Real Estate Solutions departments. This role brings a strategic, community-centered view to align programmatic efforts and leverage expertise across teams to meet Community Vision’s mission. The Senior Vice President of Programs ensures that Community Vision’s programs are responsive to community needs, while being well executed, data-driven, and impact-focused. As a program expert, the role builds relationships and partnerships in communities and across the community development/finance ecosystem, and supports resource development and capitalization activities. Developing strategic relationships and partnerships with institutional funders and government agencies will be an important part of this role’s portfolio of work.

Community Vision’s Capital Solutions manages a $100M+ loan fund that is building a restorative approach to deploy a spectrum of community development capital to clients and projects that increase community ownership of community assets, supporting wealth creation and power building in communities of color. Its Real Estate Solutions provides expert advising and training in commercial real estate that ensures nonprofits and businesses are anchored with the support tools and systems they need to root and to thrive. Finally, Community Vision’s Advising and Support helps organizations and businesses to grow and scale effectively and equitably, creating jobs and wealth for its target communities.

The Senior Vice President of Programs is a key member of Community Vision’s Executive Team and reports to, and works closely with, the organization’s President. This position requires a collaborative leadership style, an ability to guide active and engaged teams, and a commitment to work effectively in partnership across departments.

Responsibilities

More specifically, the Senior Vice President of Programs will:

  • Provide strategic leadership to Community Vision’s advising, catalytic capital and lending practices in pursuit of the organization’s mission; ensure that departments sustainably deliver their services and activities in a rigorous, high-impact manner that is aligned with community priorities and Community Vision’s theory of change and strategic plan
  • Drive strategic growth by developing and implementing new business lines, capital strategies initiatives and program offerings that respond to community needs; leverage organization competencies, complement existing offerings, and have metrics for success
  • Oversee the programmatic areas of the organization by providing support and direction to program leaders and staff, serving as a thought partner and resource, nurturing continuous learning and development, and supporting opportunities for staff leadership
  • Oversee all program delivery, ensuring that Community Vision provides rigorous, high quality services that meet all contracted deliverables and reporting requirements
  • Advance Community Vision’s commitment to racial equity and economic justice through a restorative and community- and client-centered approach to client acquisition, services, new business lines, and grantmaking practices
  • Guide program prioritization, ensuring the organization’s programs, initiatives, and activities are aligned with Community Vision’s strategic plan and theory of change
  • Ensure that Community Vision remains a cutting-edge innovator within the CDFI sector, adapting to new realities, incorporating new approaches, and expanding alliances
  • Build connection and collaboration between various departments and activities, enabling program departments to leverage cross-departmental opportunities
  • Collaborate with Community Vision’s President, VP of Finance, and Executive Team on capital deployment strategies and execution, identifying capitalization needs, opportunities, and areas for improvement
  • Collaborate with the External Relations department to develop and implement an ongoing fundraising and capitalization strategy in support of products, programs, and initiatives
  • Act as a subject matter expert in development of investor and funder proposals
  • Guide planning and budgeting of program departments with an eye toward sustainability, transparency, and accountability
  • Collaborate with Community Vision’s impact team to ensure ongoing, data- driven impact measurement, program insight, and accountability to guide decision making
  • Ensure ongoing assessment and improvement of systems and procedures that support capital deployment, operations, compliance and portfolio/asset/risk management
  • Foster a culture that values collaboration and inclusivity, high performance, problem solving, excellent client services, learning, and innovation

  • Act as a subject matter expert to build the organization’s reputation as a trusted community real estate lender and advisor and thought leader by participating in conferences, panels and other public speaking opportunities, and developing written materials such as blog posts and white papers

Requirements

The Senior Vice President of Programs will be an experienced leader who is passionate about the community development and finance ecosystem, with a real capacity to drive growth and innovation. Community Vision will welcome an informed and well-respected systems thinker who is familiar with the points of intersection of economic empowerment, commercial lending, community-owned real estate, advocacy, and equity. The Senior Vice President of Programs will also be able to appreciate how innovative problem-solving can empower communities and change lives. The successful candidate will possess proven leadership, relationship management, equity acumen, and institutional fundraising experience. The successful candidate will have experience at the intersection of social justice and finance. This could include the CDFI industry, or more broadly the financial services industry, and will also demonstrate strong values alignment with Community Vision, combined with unimpeachable personal and professional integrity.

More specifically, Community Vision seeks a professional who embodies the following:

  • Extensive (10+ years) experience as a senior leader in economic or community development with increasing responsibility, management, and supervisory roles
  • Prior experience managing experienced staff in a complex, high volume department or organization
  • Strategic thinker with ability to translate community expressed needs into actionable programs responses (lending, investment, advising opportunities)
  • Experience with or strong understanding of complex commercial real estate lending and underwriting, including affordable housing, deal structuring, and risk mitigation
  • Extensive experience building and nurturing relationships with investors and institutional funders, including philanthropic foundations and government agencies
  • Familiarity and experience with community real estate financing like New Market Tax Credits (NMTCs), Low Income Housing Tax Credits (LIHTCs), Historic Tax Credits (HTC), and Program Related Investments (PRIs)
  • Experience cultivating and maintaining a diverse set of relationships
  • Experience in CDFIs, impact investing, and/or community/economic development
  • Experience or expertise on issues of racial and economic equity and the intersection of social justice and community economic development
  • Dedication to a collaborative approach grounded in equity and with respect for others’ concerns
  • An entrepreneurial spirit that puts clients and communities first
  • Sound judgment, problem-solving, resilience, and results-driven capabilities
  • Exceptional writing, speaking, and presentation skills
  • Understanding of advanced business planning and growth strategies
  • Experience living, working, or organizing in the communities served by Community Vision, especially communities outside of the Bay Area; Central Valley knowledge is particularly desirable
  • Prior real estate development experience a plus

Compensation and Benefits

This position offers a competitive salary range of $200,000 to $220,000 and includes a comprehensive benefits package. We actively welcome all candidates from a wide range of backgrounds who have the skills to fulfill this role – regardless of compensation history.

How to Apply

All applications are held in strict confidence. Please submit your credentials and a letter of interest through our private applicant portal to The 360 Group at:

https://the360group.us/portal/

Applications should be directed to the attention of Monica Rodgers, Senior Consultant or Vincent Robinson, Managing Partner. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. Earlier applicants may receive priority consideration. To be considered, The 360 Group encourages all interested candidates to submit their applications promptly, via the confidential applicant portal linked above.