Head of Investment

Head of Investment

Sporting Assets is the leading provider of advisory and investment management services to the sport and physical activity sector in the UK. We manage impact investment funds that provide affordable patient loans to community-based organisations delivering impact through sport and physical activity. Investors and stakeholders in our funds include Sport England, National Governing Bodies, Trusts and Foundations such as the Bank Workers Charity, and Impact Investors including the Access Foundation and Better Society Capital.

Beyond our funds, we provide business advisory services to the sector, helping organisations build capacity, develop investment cases and business plans to access funding and finance to become more sustainable and impactful. 

As a social enterprise, improved social and health outcomes are at the heart of our work building resilient, sustainable, well invested community enterprises. 

To date we have developed and manage a series of successful small funds, each with a specific focus of activity. We are now in the process of establishing several more funds, building towards an overall scale that the sector requires. The first of these will be launched in 2025, and subsequent funds will develop in planned stages over the next 1-3 years driving a step change in our capacity and reach.

To deliver this significant development in our business and the sector we are looking to recruit a Head of Investment, a new senior role in our organisation.

The new Head of Investment will lead the team responsible for delivering all of our investment work, including overall responsibility for managing the existing funds, driving the development of new funds, and supporting any other new investment product or investment management initiatives. 

Working alongside our existing Head of Advisory Services, the individual will report directly to the CEO and manage an existing team of 5, which is expected to grow materially in the coming years. Whilst we have a solid existing operational base there is an opportunity for the Head of Investment to shape and lead a transformation in the scale and capacity of the team to originate, evaluate, execute, and manage loans and investment, and build a substantial portfolio of activity in the sector. 

Role

As Head of Investment your primary focus will be the management and delivery of our growing portfolio (existing funds and new funds as they come on stream). Specifically, reporting to the CEO you will be responsible for:

• Pipeline development. Ensuring funds have a robust pipeline of investible projects. This will include working with partners and the wider team to drive origination and project development through aligned technical assistance.
• Portfolio construction and Investment. Based on the portfolio construction strategy, leading the investment team to originate, evaluate and execute a growing portfolio of loans ensuring that capital is responsibly but actively deployed to meet lending and growth targets. 
• Portfolio Management. Review and evaluate portfolio performance regularly, assisting the team with underlying investment management activities including non-performance and default, actively managing the overall risk and performance.
• Reporting. Ensure compliance with relevant reporting requirements. Maintain accurate investment records, produce timely and accurate investment reports, and communicate investment performance and updates to stakeholders and clients.
• Risk and Compliance. Ensuring compliance with relevant regulatory guidelines and reporting requirements. Overseeing robust risk management practices by reviewing and developing risk and operational frameworks and monitoring risk exposure. Developing contingency plans and risk mitigation strategies to safeguard the portfolio against adverse market conditions.
• Investor relations support. Supporting the CEO with Investor relations activities.

Alongside this, in conjunction with the CEO you will lead the development of new fund opportunities including:

• Fund development. Identifying relevant opportunities and developing the business case for new funds with partners
• Investor marketing. Identifying and engaging with a wide range of relevant commercial, impact and philanthropic investors to attract investment.
• Investor due diligence. Managing the overall investor due diligence process through credit committee approval and execution of legal agreements.

Internally you will be:

• Responsible for Team leadership. Providing strong leadership and guidance to the investment team, fostering a collaborative and high-performance culture. Setting clear goals and expectations, mentoring team members, and promoting professional development to enhance individual and team capabilities.
• An active member of the Executive team. Contributing to wider stakeholder relationship building and sales, marketing and operations activities for the overall business.

The Individual

We are looking for someone who is:

• Commercial, with an entrepreneurial approach to fit into a small but growing team.
• Impact driven and motivated to create lasting change and challenge the status quo.
• Intellectually curious, and a strategic thinker that is passionate about how sport can change lives, and finance can be better structured and deployed to help that.
• A do-er. You will need to be a self-starter, proactive and a problem solver that will thrive in a fast paced, dynamic business.
• A leader and good manager of people.

Qualifications and Requirements

We are looking for someone with:

• Experience of delivering and managing SME loan underwriting and credit assessment processes in complex sectors requiring insight and judgement alongside analytical evaluation.
• A successful track record of loan origination, assessment, execution and portfolio management.
• Knowledge of developing and implementing portfolio construction strategies and developing origination plans to deliver them.  
• Strong motivation for impact investment is a requirement, existing experience of this or investment in the sports sector is highly desirable.
• In-depth knowledge of financial markets, investment products, and asset classes.
• Excellent analytical and quantitative skills, with the ability to conduct rigorous investment analysis and due diligence.
• Sound understanding of risk management principles and regulatory compliance.
• Effective communication and presentation skills, with the ability to articulate complex investment concepts to both internal and external stakeholders.
• Strong business acumen and strategic thinking, with the ability to identify market opportunities and drive business growth.

If you are a results-oriented investment professional with a passion for driving investment excellence, we invite you to join our team as the Head of Investments.

Compensation and location details

• Base salary of £55,000 - £65,000 per annum.
• Discretionary bonus of up to 30% of base pay, plus statutory pension contribution.
• Full time (5 days per week) is preferred although part time will be considered for outstanding candidates.
• 25 days flexible holiday plus additional 2-3 days fixed at Christmas (plus English bank holidays).
• Hybrid working arrangements.
• Potential to become a shareholder in the future.

At least 2 days per week attendance is required in our Leeds office.