Programme Manager, Membership Support

Role Purpose

Responsible Finance is the membership association for the UK’s Community Development Finance Institutions (CDFIs). CDFIs are community lenders which offer affordable finance on fair terms to businesses, social enterprises and to people unable to access it elsewhere.

To enable us to meet our ambitious strategy and deliver our vision for scaling up the sector we need an exceptional candidate to work closely with our members to manage the delivery of key projects.

No prior knowledge about CDFIs is required as long as you have a keen interest to learn about the sector. Do not be discouraged from applying if you do not meet all the criteria listed in this job description. If you are passionate about increasing access to fair finance for people, businesses and communities, we welcome hearing from you.

Key Responsibilities

The Programme Manager, Membership Support will manage the delivery of several key work streams, including:

• A funding project with a small number of CDFIs, which includes an external evaluation of the project. This includes monitoring progress, speaking with CDFIs, receiving data and sending it to the evaluator, preparing the reports for the funder (London’s biggest independent charity funder).
• The delivery and wind up of a funding project for a small number of CDFIs. This includes monitoring progress, speaking with CDFIs, preparing the reports for the funder (a leading bank in the UK).
• Organising regular virtual meetings for 2-3 subgroups of CDFIs.
• Work with the team on an information gathering research project to collect and present more information about CDFIs, the customers they lend to, and the funding they need.

Responsible Finance’s membership base is divided into 3 distinct segments, for members who: lend to individual consumers; lend to small businesses; and lend to social enterprises. A key goal for Responsible Finance is to ensure we provide high quality support and resources to members across these segments, and work to catalyse the growth and development of the UK CDFI sector. This is a varied and dynamic role, working closely with our members and a number of key external stakeholders.

This job description is not exhaustive; it outlines the key tasks and responsibilities of the post. These key tasks and responsibilities are subject to change. Any changes will be made in consultation with the post holder.

Skills and Experience

Essential experience:

• Strong and proven project/programme management experience.
• Demonstrated ability to manage multiple projects at once.
• Ability to get information needed from busy people.
• Ability to pull together information into an easy to comprehend format/narrative (both written and verbal).
• Ability to manage communication with multiple stakeholders.
• Concise writing skills.
• Collaborative working style.
• Experience working with excel to analyse data.
• Highly self-motivated and able to drive your own work forward.
• Organised with attention to detail.
• Some experience with research, monitoring and evaluation experience is desirable.
• Understanding of CDFIs and/or lending helpful but not essential.

How To Apply

Equality and fairness are at the core of our organisation and we are committed to creating an inclusive workplace where everyone can be their best.

Please send your CV and responses to the following questions when submitting your application:

• What appeals to you about this job/Responsible Finance and why do you think you’ll do a great job?
• You are working on multiple projects. The people you need information from are super busy. How do you ensure project targets are met on time?
• You are tasked with gathering regular programme reporting information from a group of Responsible Finance’s CDFI members. You will need to turn this into a report for the funder. Please describe how you would go about collecting the information, synthesizing it, and writing up a report.