Director, Credit Strategy

The Director of Credit Strategy is a new, full-time remote position that provides organization-wide strategic leadership and oversight of CEO’s core lending operation – including application and loan processing, underwriting and loan decisions, origination, servicing, and collections. The Director will supervise an expanding team, consisting of the Deputy Director, Origination & Servicing, loan officers and business and consumer technical advisors. The Director of Credit Strategy reports directly to the Executive Director and works closely with other core CEO departments to ensure innovation, sustainability, impact, accessibility and best-in-class customer and partner support.

This position is remote and can be located anywhere in the U.S.

Major Responsibilities:

Strategic Leadership

- Provide strategic leadership for CEO’s core lending, aligning goals with the overall mission and vision of the organization - Collaborate with executive leadership to develop and implement initiatives that enhance the efficiency, effectiveness and core impact of CEO’s work - Proactively engage in a process of continuous improvement in collaboration with the Partnership & Learning team to offer and receive actionable feedback from partners and borrowers - Work closely with other departments to develop strategies for portfolio growth, impact, and diversification

Loan Application, Underwriting & Origination

- Oversee the application and origination process; ensure timely processing and review of applications in full compliance with state and federal regulations - Cultivate partnerships with borrowers, partners and CEO’s External Loan Committee and ensure efficient engagement with all aspects of CEO’s lending process and ensure best-in-class support - Oversee the underwriting process and ensure thorough yet accessible risk assessments are applied; review performance and update underwriting standards as required

Servicing and Collections

- Maintain transparent collection policies & standards and ensure consistent application across all partners and borrowers - Provide strategic direction and oversight for loan servicing activities, including payment processing, account maintenance, and customer service - Develop and implement collections strategies to minimize delinquency and mitigate credit risk - Collaborate with the collections team to ensure compliance with policies and regulations

Team Management

- Supervise, mentor and provide leadership ensuring ongoing compliance and risk mitigation - Foster collaborative and high-performance culture with relentless focus on ensuring borrowers and partners are clear and correct in their expectations of working with CEO

Job Requirements:

- Bachelor's degree in Finance, Business Administration, or a related field (Master's degree preferred) - Proven experience in a senior leadership role within a CDFI or financial institution, with a focus on loan operations, underwriting and impact - 8 years of experience in similar finance-focused roles - In-depth knowledge of underwriting principles, risk management, loan servicing, and collections - Experience working in diverse, non-profit setting offering economic development services and programs to low-income, credit-thin populations - High degree of professional integrity; ability and commitment to maintain confidentiality of sensitive data - Solid organizational skills: detail-oriented, ability to multi-task, set priorities, and meet deadlines - Ability to work independently, be flexible and work well under pressure in a fast-paced team environment - Excellent communication, analysis and negotiation skill, availability to work with a variety of stakeholders - Strong leadership, communication, and relationship-building skills. - Solid Computer skills: MS Word, Excel, other financial-related software required

**Working Environment*****:***

- This is a remote position that can accommodate candidates in any U.S. State. The majority of the workday is at a computer terminal. While remote, the position may require travel to conferences or in-person team meetings, estimated to be less than 5% time.

Compensation: Posted pay ranges apply to US-based candidates. Ranges are based on various factors including the labor market, job type, internal equity, and budget. Exact offers are calibrated by work location, individual candidate experience and skills relative to the defined job requirements.

Gender Equality: IRC is committed to narrowing the gender gap in leadership positions. We offer benefits that provide an enabling environment for women to participate in our workforce including parental leave, gender-sensitive security protocols and other supportive benefits and allowances.

Equal Opportunity Employer: We are an equal opportunity employer and value diversity at our company. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, national origin, sex, gender, gender expression, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status. We will ensure that individuals with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodation to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and to receive other benefits and privileges of employment. Please contact us to request accommodation.

US Benefits: The IRC offers a comprehensive and highly competitive set of benefits. All US employees are eligible for sick time, a 403b retirement savings plans: up to 4.5% immediately vested matching contribution, plus an 3-7% additional IRC contribution, and an Employee Assistance Program which is available to our staff and their families to support in times of crisis and mental health struggles.

In addition, full-time employees are eligible for 10 US paid holidays, 20-25 paid time off days, disability & life insurance, medical, dental, and vision insurance (employee contribution starting at $135, $7, and $5 per month respectively) and FSA for healthcare, childcare, and commuter costs. Part-time employees are eligible for a proportionate amount of paid time off. These additional benefits apply to employees who work at least 6 months within a 12 month time period.

Qualifications