Investment Manager

Sporting Assets is the UK's leading provider of advisory and investment management services to the sport and physical activity sector. Over the last 13 years we have completed more than 750 projects and helped mobilise over £300 million of investment into community sport — backing the clubs, facilities and organisations that make a real difference to people's lives.

We design and manage impact investment funds that provide affordable, patient capital to community-based organisations delivering social impact through sport and physical activity. Our investors and partners include Sport England, DCMS, National Governing Bodies, Better Society Capital, Triodos Bank, and a range of Trusts and Foundations — a coalition that reflects the credibility and ambition of what we're building. Our first fund, Sporting Capital, delivered over £39 million of proven social value, with a return on investment more than three times the sector benchmark.

We have established and managed five funds to date, with three currently live and further funds in development over the next twelve months. Our ambition is to have over £50 million under management by 2030 — a significant scale-up that will expand our reach and deepen our impact across the UK.

Beyond our funds, we provide business advisory services to the sector, helping organisations build capacity, develop investment cases and business plans, and strengthen their long-term resilience.

We are a small, expert team with offices in Leeds, and London (Vauxhall). This role is based in our Leeds office. That means real visibility, genuine responsibility, and the chance to help shape an organisation at an exciting moment in its growth.

If you want your work to have a tangible impact on communities across the UK, this is a rare opportunity to do exactly that. For further details see www.sportingassets.co.uk

Role

This is a full-time role based in our Leeds Office, with a minimum of 2 days per week in-office. We will, however, consider part-time applications. This role reports to the Senior Investment Manager. Occasional travel to our London (Vauxhall) office may be required.

The Investment Manager will play an important role in our Fund Management team. Supporting the CEO and Senior Investment Manager, you will work across the full fund management lifecycle, both fund development and fund operations. We currently manage £15m under three impact investment funds, focused on community sport, physical activity and facilities, and are in the process of developing new funds.

You will work primarily across our existing portfolio and new fund development with responsibilities including:

Fund Development:

·      Supporting fundraising for new funds, including preparation of pitch decks and investment memoranda.

·      Managing investor relations and responding to investor queries.

·      Supporting investor negotiations, including preparation of term sheets and liaison with legal advisors during investment structuring.

·      Managing due diligence processes, including commercial and legal due diligence, reviewing constitutional documents, funding agreements and security arrangements.

Fund Operation and Delivery:

·      Preparing investment proposals for Investment Committee review, including financial modelling and impact assessment.

·      Conducting investee reporting and reporting to funders and Investment Committees.

·      Actively managing underperforming investments, including engagement with investees and development of recovery plans.

·      Managing our online loan management software and maintaining accurate investment records.

Qualifications and Requirements

We are looking for candidates with relevant experience rather than a specific qualification. Relevant experience may include:

▪         A minimum of three years’ experience in social investment, impact investment, corporate finance, management consultancy or a related field, with demonstrable exposure to investment processes and fund management.

▪         Investor relations experience, including managing relationships with institutional and impact investors, producing investor reports and fund updates, and responding to investor queries.

▪         Experience producing high-quality investor materials, including pitch decks, investment memoranda and impact reports, to a standard suitable for institutional audiences.

▪         Ability to support investor negotiations, including drafting and reviewing term sheets, heads of terms and investment agreements, and liaising effectively with legal advisors.

▪         Understanding of commercial and legal due diligence processes, including reviewing constitutional documents, funding agreements, security arrangements and legal structures relevant to social investment transactions.

▪         Strong financial and commercial skills, including rigorous financial due diligence, business plan assessment, financial modelling and making recommendations to an Investment Committee.

▪         Strong writing capability and presentation skills.

▪         Analytical and numerate, with proficiency in Microsoft Office (especially Word, PowerPoint and Excel) and financial modelling.

▪         Understanding of business finances and the drivers behind profitability.

We do not expect candidates to possess all these skills and competencies; importantly, what we are looking for is someone who can show how their skills and experience could be adapted to fit this profile, if/where there are gaps.

The Individual

We strongly encourage applications from a variety of candidates — we believe that different experiences result in increased ideas, collaboration and success.

We are looking for someone who is:

▪         Excellent communicator with strong relationship-building capabilities and an adaptable style.

▪         Enthusiastic, self-starter with ability to work independently and as part of a small, collaborative team.

▪         Detail oriented and well-organised, with the ability to manage multiple priorities and deadlines with limited supervision.

▪         Ambitious and ownership-minded — comfortable taking initiative and generating new ideas.

▪         Willingness to present ideas to peers and senior colleagues.

▪         Genuinely passionate about sport, physical activity and social enterprise.

▪         A can-do attitude with willingness to take the initiative and generate new ideas and opportunities to support the wider team and organisational objectives in an early-stage but fast-growing market.

What we offer

▪         Up to £47,500 base salary, dependent on skills and experience.

▪         Discretionary bonus of up to 30% of base pay, plus statutory pension contribution.

▪         Private medical insurance, and Group life insurance

▪         Full time (5 days per week) preferred; although part-time applications will be considered for outstanding candidates.

▪         25 days flexible holiday (plus English bank holidays) plus additional 2–3 days fixed at Christmas (pro-rata).

▪         Hybrid working arrangements with a minimum 2 days per week in our Leeds office.

Learning and continuous improvement is core to how we support staff develop. Support is provided for individual development, through external training and coaching from members of the executive team. The role will allow opportunity to progress rapidly in a growing business at the forefront of community sport investment in the UK.