California, Remote

Grants Officer, Working Solutions CDFI

The Organization

Working Solutions CDFI (www.workingsolutions.org) is a certified, nonprofit Community Development Financial Institution (CDFI). As the First to Believe in start-up and early-stage entrepreneurs, Working Solutions (WS) makes affordable capital—primarily microloans of $5,000-$50,000—available to small businesses and provides business consulting in conjunction with every loan. WS is committed to connecting with communities that have historically not had access to capital and places an additional priority on serving lower-income individuals, women, and entrepreneurs of color.

Acutely focused on high social impact, WS mapped out an ambitious five-year strategic plan in 2019 to reach $50MM deployed to small businesses by 2024. Over the last three years, WS has delivered outstanding YOY results and is on track to meet this goal, connecting more than 3,000 local entrepreneurs to critical capital and consulting along the way. Headquartered in San Francisco and lending in the Bay Area since 2005, WS recently answered the call to expand its footprint to 19 counties throughout Northern California, encompassing more than 20,000 square miles and an estimated 2 million entrepreneurs.

As a continuously learning organization, WS has made significant investments in its team and operations to improve the entrepreneur experience. WS’ financial and impact successes and local and national visibility speak to its commitment to core markets, staff, and excellence in getting the job done. WS is looking for new community-minded change makers committed to being part of this small but mighty industry leader to grow loan deployment volume and set new sights for the years ahead. Come be a part of this vision!

Position Overview

As part of the Capitalization Team, the Grants Officer will report directly to, and work closely with, the Chief Development Officer (CDO). The Grants Officer will manage the entirety of WS’ institutional grants cycle from inquiry through compliance. This includes managing WS’ grants calendar, tracking and communicating deadlines, and writing narrative for all letters of inquiry, proposals, and reports. The Grants Officer will be an exceptional writer who can refresh and expand existing narrative to support WS’ fundraising case, particularly in the context of WS’ recent expansion to a 19-county regional footprint and plans to scale deployment significantly over the next 24 months. This person will be an analytical thinker who can connect the dots of WS’ accomplishments to funder objectives. The Grants Officer will demonstrate superior attention to detail, especially with CRM data entry, have confidence managing multiple projects and deadlines, and be a strong communicator with internal and external stakeholders to ensure that WS’ goals and deliverables are communicated in a compelling, timely manner.

Key Duties:

  • Write and submit letters of inquiry (LOIs), proposals, and reports to secure new grant funding from corporate, foundation, and philanthropic partners and steward existing institutional supporters;
  • Manage application details and coordinate proposal writing for government grants;
  • Coordinate with the Finance, Impact, and Communications teams to ensure timely preparation of LOIs, proposals, and reports, including any necessary budget, finance, and impact data;
  • Support the CDO with tracking grant prospects and conducting due diligence on grant opportunities with a goal to increase overall revenue from contributed sources;
  • Coordinate with the Finance Team to ensure a smooth onboarding process for grants as well as seamless reporting and compliance; and
  • Maintain immaculate and consistent records using cloud-based tools (Box/Salesforce).

Qualifications:

  • Bachelor’s degree or relevant work experience required;
  • Exceptional writer with a passion for small business and entrepreneurship; experience with grant and proposal writing are a strong plus;
  • Outstanding written and verbal communication skills, with an emphasis on clarity, conciseness, and professionalism;
  • Self-starter with the ability to take initiative, meet deadlines, prioritize assignments, and juggle multiple tasks simultaneously with calmness and confidence;
  • Exceptional attention to detail, well organized with strong customer service skills and high standards of performance;
  • Demonstrates sound judgment and effective decision-making skills;
  • Ability to work independently with limited supervision and also cooperatively with a small, but mighty team;
  • Proficient with virtual office environment and tools including, but not limited to: Zoom, Outlook, and comfortable tracking data via Salesforce;
  • Experience with the CDFI industry highly preferred;
  • Bilingual language skills preferred;
  • Demonstrated commitment to diversity, equity, belonging, and inclusion practices;
  • Commitment to Organizational Values of: 1) Economic opportunity for those historically excluded from mainstream finance; 2) Transparency, integrity, and respect for all; and 3) Significant social impact; and
  • Self-awareness with a flexible, growth-oriented mindset for a great culture add.

Salary Commensurate with Experience

Excellent Benefits: Working Solutions offers a competitive salary based on industry best practices, as well as an excellent benefits package, including employer-paid medical, dental, vision, disability, and life insurance; a 401(k) retirement savings plan with employer match; flexible spending accounts (medical, dependent care); commuter benefits; professional development funds; generous paid time off; gym, telephone, and internet subsidies; and an Employee Assistance Program (EAP).

Working Solutions is an Equal Opportunity Employer.

How To Apply

Please email resume and cover letter with the subject line “Grants Officer” to jobs@workingsolutions.org. No phone calls please.

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