Investment Manager – Portfolio in London

Better Society Capital (BSC) is the UK's leading social impact-led investor. Our mission is to grow the amount of money invested in tackling social issues and inequalities in the UK; we do this by investing ourselves and enabling others to invest for impact too. Since 2011, we have helped the social impact investment market grow twelve-fold to over £10 billion. This capital has financed social purpose organisations tackling homelessness, mental health and fuel poverty.

BSC manages £634m of its own investments as well as acting as a portfolio manager for the Schroders BSC Social Impact Investment Trust managing its £83m portfolio. BSC is about to implement its next five-year strategy, which will offer new opportunities.

The opportunity involves managing our impact investments at critical points in their lifecycle and our treasury portfolio: actively managing performance, supporting assets as they approach exit, or working through special situations with rigour and strategic judgement. This position offers a significant opportunity to apply investment and financial markets expertise within an organisation where impact, purpose and system change are integral to our mission.

You will develop deep impact-investing capability by working across asset classes, while contributing to the delivery of both financial and social outcomes for investments. You will own portfolio management of a broad and diverse portfolio, including charity bonds and other social impact investments, and build relationships with investee impact fund managers. You will work collaboratively with colleagues across lending, venture, and property teams on high-impact projects designed to improve outcomes for underserved communities across the UK. Finally, you will assume a leading role in the management of our treasury portfolio, working closely with teams across BSC on performance management and market analysis that feed into how we manage our liquidity.

We invest in our people as seriously as we invest our portfolio. You’ll accelerate your growth through hands-on experience across multiple asset classes, tailored training programmes, direct exposure to our Investment Committee, and collaboration with sector-leading specialists. If you’re passionate about using investment to help improve people’s lives, we want to hear from you.

What you will do

• Support the delivery of performance management and exiting deals in our portfolio, including support on specific special situations across the portfolio working with the Investment Director – Portfolio and asset class investment teams.
• Support the active management of exits across the portfolio, working with the Investment Director – Portfolio and asset class investment teams to successfully exit investments.
• Oversee and embed continuous improvement and learning on special situations and exits.
• Lead the performance management and manager engagement for our social impact investments, including managing a portfolio of social impact investments towards exit and delivery on financial returns, high social impact and system change goals.
• Oversee our externally managed charity bond portfolio, engaging with issuers on refinancing where needed.
• Capture key portfolio learnings that can help improve how we invest to benefit underserved and vulnerable individuals in the UK.
• Take a leading role in the ongoing management of our largely fixed income treasury portfolio, collaborating with the Middle Office and Finance Teams on performance management and liquidity planning.
• Collaborate with our external advisor to shape views on market conditions, investment ideas, and report treasury portfolio performance to our Investment Committee.
• Collaborate with our Middle Office and Finance Teams to effectively manage our liquidity supported by the treasury portfolio.
• Support strategic initiatives on how we deliver our treasury portfolio, including review of asset allocation, ESG approach, or fund mandates.
• Help to build a world-class social impact investment approach and team, including leading and contributing to parts of our practice in collaboration with colleagues across BSC.
• Contribute to team- and organisational-wide initiatives that help us deliver our mission, such as working groups to improve our approach on key areas.

What you will bring

Qualifications & Experience:

• Essential: Demonstrable commitment to improving lives in the UK; experience in fixed income and/or credit analysis, including performing investment analysis, making investment recommendations, monitoring performance and engaging with investees/fund managers; demonstrable strong quantitative analysis and investment research skills, including through financial analysis, modelling and market research; demonstrable experience in project management; proven relationship building and stakeholder management.
• Desirable: Work experience in impact investing or sustainable investing; work experience that faces the financial, social or public sector; knowledge of investing in real estate, renewables, venture, or outcome contracts.

Skills, Abilities and Attributes:

• Structured thinker – able to deal with complexity and uncertainty.
• Innovative, creative and strategic approach to problem solving.
• Solves problems with multiple stakeholders in an open and empathetic way.
• Collegial team player – flexible and willing to work with and contribute to a team.
• Self-starter – able to work under own initiative and run with new opportunities.
• Relationship management – excellent interpersonal skills and able to build relationships at all levels.
• A confident and effective communicator when writing and speaking.
• Hunger for continued learning and development, including developing others.

Core values:

• Purposeful: We are passionate and energetic in our work to bring about our long-term vision of a thriving social investment market that enables positive social impact.
• Pioneering Spirit: We give our team the autonomy and flexibility to be entrepreneurial and creative. We have the courage to push boundaries and a restless drive for change.
• Openness: We listen, learn, experiment and collaborate. And we are adaptive and flexible in responding to what we learn.
• Rigorous: We take a rigorous approach in all we do. We expect the highest standards and continually strive for excellence.
• Respectful: We are genuine in both our approach and aspiration. We value each member of our team and our partners for what they bring.