Senior Associate at CrossBoundary

CrossBoundary is recruiting a full-time Senior Associate. We are seeking candidates with experience working in West Africa, contacts across the region’s financial services sector preferred, and an understanding of the investment landscape in West Africa.

CrossBoundary is not a development firm and is not seeking typical development skills. As Senior Associate, you will actively contribute to a powerful intervention that has the potential for significant impact on investment into West Africa, in addition to building CrossBoundary’s long term presence in the region. You will evaluate investment opportunities, offer technical assistance and strategy advisory and provide investment transaction support. Senior Associate candidates should have at least 5 years of work experience, with 2-3 years of experience working in high caliber finance or consulting organizations and experience working in developing countries – ideally in West Africa (Nigeria, Ghana, Senegal, Ivory Coast, Benin etc.) Expertise in agribusiness investing or  international trade and investment programs will be regarded favorably.

Who We Are

• The CrossBoundary team is a unique group made up of people who are genuinely excited by the opportunity to make a difference in some of the most challenging yet exciting markets in the world. Team members come from diverse backgrounds, but share several qualities: curiosity, humility, integrity, a drive for excellence, and a bias for action.

Who You Are

• Self-starter who is passionate about creating lasting change in frontier markets
• Willing to take on new types of work, even without prior experience or direct supervision
• Enthusiastic about working, traveling, and living in a sometimes-challenging environment
• Comfortable with ambiguity; able to operate effectively in a changing context
• Humble

Primary Responsibilities

• Deal sourcing, pipeline development and evaluation: Rigorously assess investment opportunities including assessment of agribusiness economics
• Market assessment and ongoing market analysis: Conduct macroeconomic, regulatory, and operational assessments; provide analysis of priority areas for investment in key sectors with strong focus on agribusiness, trade and manufacturing
• Investor qualification and relations: Assist in identifying qualified investors; manage investor relationships.
• Investment facilitation and transaction support including opportunity validation, due diligence, investment structuring and other transaction support services
• Assist, and often lead, team in supporting complex high-impact transactions
• Stakeholder relationship and project management: Manage relationships with key public and private sector stakeholders including investors and donor partners. Lead drafting of quarterly reports and manage end-to-end project operations to ensure seamless delivery

Qualifications

The ideal candidate will have the following skills and qualifications:

• 5 years of work experience, with 2-3 years of experience working in top tier banking, consulting, private equity, or similar fast paced, knowledge-based environment
• Experience working in developing countries; experience in West Africa (Nigeria, Ghana, Senegal, Ivory Coast, Benin etc.) is particularly relevant
• Past experience or a passion for the agriculture sector and entrepreneurship development in West African markets
• Working knowledge of French and another West African language
• Data analytics capabilities e.g., ArcGIS, Tableau, Sql, Python
• Bachelor’s degree required; MBA or other advanced degree strongly desired

Required skills and qualifications:

• Strong quantitative skills and finance background; familiar with company evaluation and valuation
• Excellent problem-solving ability and discipline; ability to think clearly, structure problems logically with limited supervision, and then design and implement solutions that focus on the core issues
• Understanding of agribusiness economics, international trade and investment
• Ability to build strong relationships with partners and colleagues in challenging environments
• Ability to work independently and drive workstreams with minimal supervision
• Strong analytical and conceptual skills including corporate / project finance
• Advanced Excel, PowerPoint and database skills
• Excellent presentation skills; ability to communicate clearly and effectively with diverse audiences