Market President

Market President

LiftFund is a national nonprofit Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI) that expands access to capital for small businesses and strengthens local economies. With a long operating history and a reputation for execution and impact, LiftFund is recognized as a leading CDFI and a trusted partner to funders, public agencies, and community institutions supporting entrepreneurs and small business resilience.

This role is built for a senior market leader who can grow philanthropic and institutional investment, expand LiftFund's visibility and credibility, and build durable partnerships that increase small business access to capital. This is not an event-and-outreach role. It is an experienced, externally facing leadership position with clear accountability for funding partnerships, public-sector alignment, and measurable pipeline growth. The Market President will be LiftFund's primary external representative across the area and will operate with autonomy, executive-level exposure, and market-building responsibility.

What you will own:

1. Institutional fundraising growth (foundations, corporate partners, bank foundations, and aligned public-sector opportunities)
2. Strategic partnerships that expand capital access and small business resilience
3. Borrower pipeline growth built through referral ecosystems and trusted networks
4. LiftFund's market presence as a credible, outcomes-driven institution in the region.
5. Operating discipline (pipeline tracking, forecasting, CRM rigor, and internal coordination)

A high-performing leader in this role will deliver:

• A qualified pipeline of philanthropic and institutional funding opportunities, with consistent movement from first meeting to commitment.
• Strong working relationships with key public entities and ecosystem leaders that lead to tangible opportunities.
• A measurable increase in fundable borrower referrals driven by partner networks.
• Clear internal coordination across lending, programs, communications, and finance to support delivery and reporting.

Essential duties and responsibilities:

• Institutional fundraising and partnership closing
• Build and execute a fundraising strategy focused on foundations, corporate partners, bank foundations, and aligned public-sector investment.
• Identify, qualify, cultivate, and close multi-year commitments that expand LiftFund's ability to deploy capital and services.
• Lead partner strategy and stewardship, including renewal planning and performance reporting that strengthens trust and repeat investment.
• Develop funder-ready materials in coordination with internal teams, including concept briefs, budgets, outcomes, and impact reporting.
• Public-sector and civic partnerships
• Build trusted working relationships across the civic and economic development ecosystem, including public agencies, chambers, anchor institutions, and coalition partners.
• Position LiftFund as an execution-capable partner for initiatives tied to small business recovery, stabilization, and long-term economic mobility.
• Participate in convenings and strategic efforts where cross-sector alignment can unlock measurable outcomes and funding.
• Borrower pipeline growth through partner ecosystems
• Build and manage referral networks that drive a consistent flow of viable, fundable borrowers.
• Activate partnerships with trusted intermediaries and technical assistance providers to strengthen readiness and improve conversion.
• Collaborate with lending teams to support movement from intake through underwriting and closing, with a focus on speed, clarity, and borrower experience.
• Monitor pipeline quality and bottlenecks, using data to refine outreach and partner strategy.
• Market visibility and executive representation
• Serve as LiftFund's senior external representative in the area through executive meetings, funder briefings, and ecosystem engagement.
• Coordinate with communications colleagues to support thought leadership and visibility that advances fundraising and partnership priorities.
• Strengthen LiftFund's reputation as a high-trust institution that delivers and reports results.
• Internal operating cadence and reporting
• Maintain accurate and timely CRM records and opportunity tracking across funders, partners, and referrals.
• Provide regular forecasting and updates to leadership, including risks, opportunities, and decision needs.
• Coordinate across internal teams to ensure partner expectations, delivery, and reporting remain aligned.
• AI-enabled market strategy
• Use AI tools to accelerate market research, funder and partner targeting, meeting preparation, stakeholder mapping, and draft development of briefs and proposals.
• Apply strong judgment and confidentiality in AI-supported workflows.

Minimum qualifications:

• Bachelor's degree required; advanced degree preferred.
• Ten (10) years of progressively responsible experience in institutional fundraising, philanthropy, corporate partnerships, CRA/community development, economic development, CDFI or community finance, or related external leadership roles.
• Demonstrated success securing and stewarding institutional commitments and/or public-sector funding, preferably including multi-year partnerships.
• Strong executive presence and ability to represent LiftFund with senior leaders across philanthropy, corporate, banking, and government sectors.
• Track record of building partnerships that produce measurable outcomes.
• Strong writing, communication, and public speaking capabilities.
• High autonomy, high follow-through, and strong CRM and pipeline management discipline.
• Experience with a CDFI, community development intermediary, bank CRA/community development team, or bank foundation.
• Track record closing large institutional commitments (e.g., $250K+).
• Familiarity with the region's philanthropic, civic, and economic development ecosystem.
• Experience with small business recovery, resilience, stabilization, or disaster-response programming.

Please note this job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties, or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities, and activities may change at any time with or without notice.

Travel: Routine travel within market area and infrequent overnight travel, potentially out-of-state to meet with donors, partners, and government officials.

Position type, days and hours: This is a full-time, exempt position. The days and hours of work are generally Monday through Friday, 8:30 am to 5:30 pm, but the schedule may vary based on the needs of the position and the timing of key meetings and events.

Physical demands: This position requires the ability to sit, stand, and walk for extended periods of time. The employee must be able to drive to and from client locations, which may involve prolonged periods of sitting and the ability to operate a motor vehicle safely. The role also requires attending in-person meetings at client places of business and in an office setting. Regular use of routine office equipment is required, including computers, phones, printers, and other standard office devices. The employee may occasionally be required to bend, reach, or carry light materials such as files or a laptop.

LiftFund Inc. is committed to providing equal employment opportunities for all our applicants and employees without regard to age, color, mental or physical disability, gender, gender identity, genetic information, marital status, military status, national origin, pregnancy, race, religion, sexual orientation, veteran status, or any other protected characteristic. Also, LiftFund provides reasonable accommodation, and it is committed to engaging in the interactive process.