In 2017, the Eastern Bank Charitable Foundation launched the Foundation for Business Equity (FBE) and its inaugural program, the Business Equity Initiative (BEI). The program is earmarked, in part, to address troubling statistics about wealth and income inequality in Boston, as evidenced in a 2016 Brookings Institution report and research from the Federal Reserve.
BEI is addressing this issue by offering end-to-end business growth acceleration for Black and Latinx businesses ready to scale but frustrated by structural barriers to reach their full growth potential. It is recruiting such enterprises positioned to grow in Eastern Massachusetts, Southern New Hampshire, and Rhode Island to participate in the initiative. Each business is provided with experienced strategic advisors, tools, and a holistic, customized approach that focuses on capacity building, supplier partnerships, access to growth capital, and community transformative development. The envisioned impact of BEI includes stronger balance sheets, expanded and deeper supplier relationships between these enterprises and anchor institutions, job creation for residents of color, and the potential for greater civic engagement by the owners of color and their workforce.
The Opportunity
The Director of Development will be the chief development strategist and primary fundraiser for the Foundation for Business Equity (FBE), a newly established 501(c)(3). S/He will report to the Executive Director and will work in partnership with the Executive Director to plan the Foundation for Business Equity’s transition from its three-year incubation stage with the Eastern Bank Charitable Foundation to an independently sustainable program. This is FBE’s first development hire and third full-time hire.
This is an entrepreneurial opportunity for a generalist with success raising major gifts and grants from foundations, corporations, and individuals, and who has a track record brokering public-private partnerships. The candidate will also need to demonstrate experience creating and executing multi-year development plans. Ideal candidates thrive in start-up, fast-paced environments and a culture of disruption.
