Chief Executive Officer

Overview

Craft3 is one of the nation's leading Community Development Financial Institutions, and the largest CDFI loan fund in the region. We center marginalized people in our work by investing capital in people, businesses, and communities across the Pacific Northwest. Craft3's investments build household and business wealth, amplify community voice and agency, and create lasting networks of trust and mutual support. We work towards a future of shared prosperity across our region.

We are seeking our next Chief Executive Officer, a person who believes in delivering community-driven impacts and systemic changes in our region. We want a collaborative leader who is a strategic thinker, creates inclusive opportunity, and who is relentless in building a customer-focused organization that provides capital for those who need it most.

Craft3 is in a period of transition after years of significant growth. Our next CEO will know how to lead large organizations, manage through uncertainty, and be comfortable making and delegating decisions to strengthen the organization, its people, and systems to deliver maximum positive impact for the communities we serve.

In 2023, Craft3 originated 1,114 loans totaling $76 million. Our history of investing and impact has earned the confidence of over 150 financial partners, nationally and regionally, including mission-driven philanthropic and religious communities, banks, government agencies, and high net worth individuals and families.

Our more than 80 employees are passionate about our mission and accomplished in a variety of fields, including banking, community development, finance, accounting, natural resources, and city and regional planning. While they connect to our mission in different ways, all staff care deeply about using finance to expand opportunities and create a more inclusive world.

Mission and Values

Craft3 is a nonprofit community development organization that uses capital, relationships, and voice to build a thriving, just and empowered Pacific Northwest. We invest in people, businesses, and communities, and work towards a future of shared prosperity across our region.

We have three core strategies:

• Capital: Craft3 invests in underserved communities, businesses, and households to create economic opportunities.
• Relationships: Craft3 builds relationships with local and regional partners to create a shared vision for the future.
• Voice: Craft3 amplifies the voices of people seeking an equitable and sustainable future.

Programs to Build a Stronger Pacific Northwest

Craft3 focuses on three regional challenges: (1) Systemic Racism, (2) the Climate Crisis, and (3) Rural and Tribal Economies. These challenges threaten to hold our region back and hurt us all. We address these challenges by using our core strategies of Capital, Relationships, and Voice. Learn more in our 2023-2027 Strategic Plan.

As a community development financial institution (CDFI), Craft3 uses capital and financial tools to enable entrepreneurs to invest in their businesses and homeowners to invest in their homes with:

• Business Loans: Too many entrepreneurs with good ideas and strong businesses cannot access capital. Craft3 specializes in working with borrowers, including nonprofit organizations, who are unable to qualify for bank financing.
• Consumer Loans: Our loans help Pacific Northwest homeowners invest in their homes, primarily through the repair and replacement of septic systems.

The CEO Position Within the Organization

Craft3 is in a period of transition after years of significant growth. The new CEO will inherit a strong balance sheet and lead an organization with an operating budget of $17M and a staff of more than 80. The CEO will manage a senior leadership team, referred to as the Leadership Committee, currently consisting of eight direct reports representing major functional areas and business units of the company. Simultaneous to this search, Craft3 is also searching for a permanent Chief Financial Officer and expects to hire its first Chief People Officer by the end of 2024.

The CEO reports to the Board of Directors, which consists of 14 members with deep experience in CDFIs, community lending, and Craft3's mission, core strategies and communities served. The Board is structured with six committees: Executive, Finance, Governance and Nominations, Credit, Strategy and Impact, and Audit and Enterprise Risk Management.

Priorities for the Position

After an initial period of learning about the organization's business model and internal dynamics, and building relationships and trust with the staff, board and community, the new CEO will need to facilitate strong leadership team alignment and share responsibility for defining and executing the following key priorities in their first 18-24 months:

1. Develop a Realistic and Achievable Strategy and Business Model: Drive a strategy planning or program prioritization process to simplify the business model to achieve better operational resilience and organizational stability.
2. Culture and Equity Reset: The CEO should model, improve, and reset the internal culture by strengthening communication and professionalism.
3. Leadership Structure and Team Building: Guide a strong and effective leadership team helping to integrate new leaders onto the team into the organization to maximize organizational success.
4. Talent Development and Management: Sponsor and collaborate with the Chief People Officer to develop and implement a system to improve the organization's talent development and retention strategies.
5. Improve Community and Customer Engagement and Connection: Ensure that the organization uses its relationships both internally and externally to develop a deep understanding of what products will work for our target communities.
6. Improve Operational Systems to Become a More Efficient Organization: Sponsor and/or lead a process to improve and standardize operational systems to increase operational efficiency.

Essential Skills and Attributes

Craft3 is seeking a collaborative CDFI leader who knows how to lead large organizations, manage through uncertainty, and is comfortable making and delegating decisions. The ideal CEO will have the following skills and attributes:

• Senior leadership/management experience: Ten years of senior management experience within the CDFI, community development or a related field.
• Strategic leadership: Experience in leading/facilitating collaborative planning and decision-making processes.
• Emotional intelligence; excellent people skills: Demonstrated emotional intelligence; track record of inspiring and motivating a team.
• Exceptional business & financial acumen: Experienced operator with an entrepreneurial track record of developing new and innovative loan products.
• Demonstrated leadership on diversity, equity, and inclusion: A track record of recruiting, hiring, mentoring, and promoting diverse talent.
• Strong yet collaborative leadership: Decisive and collaborative leader who can bring people together.
• Effective communicator and relationship builder: Exceptionally clear and concise communicator with cultural competency.
• Successful track record of managing change: Experience implementing structured approaches within a complex environment.

Job Requirements

• The ability to travel as needed, likely up to or over 20 percent of the time for industry events, customer, and office visits.
• Must be able to pass criminal background and credit checks.

Equal Opportunity Statement

Craft3 is an equal opportunity employer. Diverse staff and perspectives advance our mission and help our organization thrive and grow.

Reasonable Accommodations

Reasonable accommodation may be provided to enable individuals with disabilities to perform essential functions.

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