Director, Centre for Impact Investing

About MaRS:

MaRS works with partners to catalyze, accelerate and amplify innovation. We support entrepreneurs starting and growing global businesses. Together, we are building Canada's knowledge economy. The MaRS Centre, a convergence innovation facility, is located in Toronto's Discovery District. For more information, please visit www.marsdd.com.

About the Centre for Impact Investing:

Building upon the foundational work of the Canadian Task Force on Social Finance, which was supported by Social Innovation Generation (SiG) and MaRS, the Centre for Impact Investing is a national social finance hub dedicated to advancing impact investing in Canada. The MaRS Centre for Impact Investing will increase awareness, develop and share knowledge and expand the effective application of social finance, by catalyzing new partnerships, mobilizing new capital, attracting and developing talent, and stimulating innovation focused on tackling social and environmental problems in Canada.

The Centre will support the growing, vibrant network of players active in social finance across Canada, and help connect Canadian partners to the active global community working in the field of impact investing in both developed and emerging markets. The Centre will be active in market and product development, as well as develop and deliver programs and services focused on research and policy, impact measurement, education and multi-sector engagement initiatives to mobilize private capital towards public good. The Centre will also deliver current MaRS programs such as the Social Venture Exchange (SVX), the Canadian B-Corp licensing hub, and SocialFinance.ca.

Position Overview:

The Director, Centre for Impact Investing will provide strategic direction for the Centre's programs and initiatives, manage the operations and staff of the Centre, and manage an extensive network of external stakeholders and partners.

Responsibilities:

The Director, Centre for Impact Investing is responsible for the following activities and deliverables:

• develop the strategic direction and associated deliverables, and the operational plan for the Centre;
• provide direction and support to a core staff team, and engage partners and stakeholders, in order to meet the Centre's objectives;
• engage and leverage a high caliber Advisory Board of impact investing experts from across the country and internationally;
• develop products and services that clearly demonstrate growth and maturation of impact investing in Canada, through mobilization of private capital in new funds or financial instruments for public purpose, this includes securing significant financing for promising social ventures;
• develop tools and services to advance the area of impact measurement to global best practice standards;
• create a world leading knowledge/expertise hub on impact investing;
• play a leadership role in informing and influencing public policy relevant to impact investing;
• work collaboratively with relevant stakeholder representatives from across the country in the government, finance, and community sectors;
• build a strong, engaged impact investing community in Canada through both personal and online networks;
• act as a global connector to impact investing institutions and organizations such as the Global Impact Investing Network (GIIN), B Lab, the Rockefeller Foundation, Social Finance UK, the Centre for Social Impact (CSI) in Australia and others;
• develop partnerships and secure funding to support the sustainability of the Centre, including corporate partnerships, philanthropic contributions, grants and contributions from government, and earned revenue activities;
• report on the activities of the Centre to MaRS leadership team and Board of Directors, as well as other funding partners and key stakeholders;
• provide thought leadership on impact investing through presentations and publications to the local and global community; and
• other duties as assigned.

Qualifications:

MaRS is searching for a candidate with the following attributes:

• an articulate, visionary leader that can effectively communicate the potential of impact investing in Canada and the role of the Centre in helping to achieve that potential;
• credibility to represent impact investing to traditional financial institutions, foundations, corporations, governments, philanthropists and global thought leaders through relevant expertise, experience and/or education;
• a track record of success in mainstream finance or impact investing;
• extraordinary interpersonal skills and exceptional collaboration attributes;
• an ability to work with stakeholders ranging from community organizations to corporate executives to high net worth individuals;
• an ability to both lead strategically and execute on core objectives by effectively managing and motivating a high-functioning team;
• strategic and tactical thinker who understands both the system levers and the practical mechanisms to drive the development of the impact investing marketplace in Canada;
• an experienced, results oriented leader with an ability to operate in a fast-moving yet emergent landscape at a local, regional, national, and global level;
• an understanding of the innovation landscape and ability to work in close partnership with the senior team at MaRS and key players in the MaRS community; and
• an ability to function in both official languages (French and English) is considered an asset.

Location: This position is based at the MaRS Centre in Toronto. There will be travel throughout the country, as well as attendance at global events, as required.

Terms: This is a full-time, salary position. The Director reports directly to the CEO, MaRS Discovery District and will be provided with strategic guidance and support by an Advisory Board of high profile impact investing experts.

To Apply:

Interested candidates should forward their resume and cover letter by January 30th, 2012.

MaRS thanks all candidates; however, only candidates selected for an interview will be contacted.

If you have any questions about the position, please contact Allyson Hewitt, Director, SiG@MaRS and Director, Social Entrepreneurship.