Director of Finance & Investment

About this position

The Catherine Donnelly Foundation

The Catherine Donnelly Foundation (CDF) is a mission driven private national foundation committed to promoting social change by funding high impact programs and projects across the country in our priority areas of Environment, Housing and Adult Education. We promote joint action and networking by helping organizations to pursue systems change.

We embrace collaborative funding, community-based opportunities, deep listening, and flexible grant-making with an organizational culture that is collaborative, encouraging of learning, and deeply committed to serving the most marginalized communities.

To maximize our impact, we align our investments with the causes we care about: we oversee our endowment to ensure we don’t fund the activities we work hard to eradicate, such as the burning of fossil fuels; we make traditional investments in corporations that embrace positive social change; and we use our position as a shareholder to encourage companies to uphold practices and policies consistent with our values and mission.

We have also pledged to invest 10% of our assets into impact investments. Since 2014, we have made, approved or committed to 15 investments tied to our core funding areas.

Established in 2003 with current assets of over $50 million, The Catherine Donnelly Foundation is the legacy of a progressive community of Catholic women religious, The Sisters of Service. The Foundation is a living testament to the Sisters' tradition of response to the greatest needs in communities across Canada.

Director of Finance & Investment

The Foundation is a leader in the application of environmental, social and governance (ESG) guidelines to investments and socially responsible investing. CDF was among the first foundations to divest our portfolios of fossil fuels and was an initial Canadian signatory to Divest-Invest Philanthropy, a global alliance of foundations committed to accelerating the clean energy transition. CDF has grown its impact investing portfolio over the last seven years.

The Director of Finance and Investment is responsible for financial management and operations including: audit preparation, oversight of our Financial Administrator, IT and HR admin (e.g., payroll, benefits, tracking vacation/sick usage, employee enrolment), quarterly reports, cash-flow management, meeting compliance and statutory requirements, preparing budgets, risk management, internal controls, insurance, contract oversight, etc.

The Director will work with our adept Finance & Audit Committee and Investment Committee in the implementation of a progressive investment strategy and in creating asset allocation policies that align with the Foundation’s mission and values.

Reporting to CDF’s Executive Director, the Director of Finance & Investment will work closely with our small dynamic team and manage the Foundation’s capital. Responsible for the oversight of the Foundation’s assets ($50 million+), as well as its financial and administrative processes, you will recommend, implement and oversee a responsible investment strategy using a variety of methods of ESG evaluation, shareholder engagement, and product choice while working closely with our external Investment Manager.

You will be directly involved in the due diligence, recommendation and deployment of a $4 million Impact Investment Portfolio. You will be working collaboratively with the Investment Committee to develop key performance metrics to measure, monitor and communicate the impact of our investments and carry out learning evaluation and capacity-building activities.

CDF identifies the ethical investment of all of its capital resources as part of its strategy for promoting positive social change.

This is an exciting opportunity that will appeal to candidates with a passion for sustainable investing, a high degree of initiative, and a desire to work in a progressive foundation. The Director will also seek out partners and investments that serve the Foundation’s mission, conduct the appropriate due diligence, and monitor social impact, performance and risk.

This is a full-time position with a competitive salary, benefits, vacation and group RRSP. The Foundation is located in Toronto.

The Ideal Candidate

You have a rock-solid background on the finance/accounting side and understand the not-for-profit/ foundation world as well as a passion for social good and an entrepreneurial spirit.

The Director of Finance & Investment will have a post-secondary degree in finance or other related discipline; ideally be a CPA; be proficient in SAGE accounting software, Excel, Google Drive, etc.; have investment experience with an interest in impact investing and/or experience in impact investing; be an effective communicator in writing and conversation; show meticulous attention to detail; be a true collaborative team player with demonstrated ability to communicate effectively and to build strong, mutually beneficial working relationships; demonstrate a low ego-high competence working style; with strong time management and prioritization skills. You have a deep respect for compliance, process and deadlines; are a problem solver who is adaptable, resourceful and entrepreneurial with a sincere interest in social issues such as sustainable development, human rights, diversity, and good corporate governance.

You possess strong management skills with a capacity to empower and mentor staff, holding them accountable for meeting and exceeding goals and will be available for occasional travel within Canada as needed.

The successful candidate must also be aligned with the Foundation’s values – collaborative, inclusive, flexible, nimble, relationship-based, thoughtful, creative and solutions-oriented and have a heart for our social good. You’ll be part of a small team of professionals who are helping to create positive social change with valued partners across the country.

http://www.catherinedonnellyfoundation.org/

To Apply:

Please send your resume and cover letter as a single PDF or Word doc to jobs@catherinedonnellyfoundation.org with the subject line, “Director of Finance & Investment.” In your cover letter, please explain why you are interested in this position, and describe how your experience will enable you to succeed in this role.

The Catherine Donnelly Foundation is committed to diversity and recognizes that structural barriers shape experiences and opportunities and will take this into consideration when screening and selecting candidates for this position. For applicants who are differently abled, accommodations during the hiring process are available on request. CDF strongly encourages applications from underrepresented groups in our communities.

We sincerely thank you for your interest in this opportunity and will only contact those under consideration for the role.

Application deadline: May 31st, 2021