Head of Endowments & Commercial Development

About Greensville Trust

Greensville Trust is committed to delivering meaningful impact through its programmes and initiatives. To ensure the long\-term sustainability of the Trust’s work, we are establishing a portfolio of business endowments — commercial ventures that are nurtured from inception, developed into profitable enterprises, and whose returns directly support the Trust’s charitable objectives.

Purpose of the Role

This is a founding appointment. The Head of Endowments \& Commercial Development will set the commercial architecture for how Greensville Trust identifies, structures, and grows its endowment portfolio — building the systems, governance, and culture that will sustain the Trust’s commercial work for the long term.

We are seeking an exceptional individual to identify, launch, and grow these business endowments. This is a unique leadership role at the heart of the Trust’s commercial strategy, combining entrepreneurial vision with rigorous stewardship.

The successful candidate will take primary ownership of each initiative from business case through to profitable operation, ensuring that every venture is aligned with the values and mission of Greensville Trust.

Key Responsibilities

Business Endowment Development

• Lead the identification, evaluation, and prioritisation of new business endowment opportunities in alignment with the Trust’s strategic objectives.


• Build and maintain a repeatable pipeline methodology for sourcing, screening, and progressing endowment opportunities — creating a sustainable system, not just evaluating individual ventures.


• Develop robust business cases, financial models, and operational plans for each proposed initiative.


• Oversee the launch and early\-stage development of each business venture, managing risk and ensuring milestones are met.


• Build and manage relationships with external partners, investors, suppliers, and stakeholders as required.


• Conduct comprehensive feasibility studies and ‘pre\-mortem’ risk assessments for all new ventures to protect the Trust’s capital.


• Plan exit strategies from the inception of each venture — defining in advance the conditions and mechanisms under which the Trust will realise or divest value from a mature endowment.


• Drive each endowment towards profitability within agreed timescales, adapting strategies as market conditions evolve.


• Monitor financial performance across all initiatives, producing regular reports and forecasts for the Board.


• Conduct periodic portfolio rebalancing — reviewing the endowment mix across sectors, risk levels, and return timescales to maintain appropriate diversification.


• Identify and pursue co\-investment and syndication opportunities, bringing in aligned co\-funders to reduce the Trust’s capital exposure while retaining meaningful upside.


• Identify opportunities to scale successful ventures and divest or restructure underperforming ones.


• Ensure all commercial activities comply with relevant legal, regulatory, and charitable frameworks.


• Develop and implement Social Return on Investment (SROI) metrics to measure the community impact alongside financial profit.

• Develop and maintain a Diversification Framework spanning asset classes, sectors, and geographies — ensuring the Trust’s portfolio is resilient across different market conditions.


• Monitor correlation risk across the portfolio, ensuring that ventures are not unduly exposed to the same underlying market or operational risks.


• Evaluate alternative asset classes and investment vehicles beyond trading ventures, including property income, ethical funds, and social bonds, where these align with the Trust’s values and return objectives.


• Present a Portfolio Diversification Strategy to the Board annually, with clear parameters for sector exposure, risk appetite, and return horizons.

• Report directly to the Board of Trustees on the progress, performance, and outlook of each business endowment.


• Maintain clear governance structures and documentation for all commercial activities.


• Ensure transparent financial reporting and accountability in line with the Trust’s policies and charity law.


• Establish an Ethical Investment Framework to ensure all business partners and supply chains align with the Trust’s values.

• Build and lead small teams or working groups as each initiative requires, including external consultants and contractors.


• Develop internal commercial infrastructure and capability — creating the systems, tools, and processes that enable the Trust to identify and progress commercial opportunities consistently, not just on an ad hoc basis.


• Act as an ambassador for the Trust in commercial settings, promoting its mission and values.


• Engage with beneficiaries, donors, and community stakeholders to ensure the Trust’s commercial work remains purpose\-driven, including through beneficiary co\-design where communities have a voice in which ventures are pursued.


• Foster a culture of ‘Intrapreneurship’ within the Trust, mentoring staff to identify commercial opportunities within their own departments.

• Successful launch of one major endowment venture with clear milestones and financial targets agreed with the Board.


• A 3\-year commercial roadmap approved by the Board, incorporating a Diversification Strategy with defined sector parameters and risk appetite.


• An opportunity pipeline of at least three further ventures at varying stages of development — demonstrating the pipeline methodology is operational.


• A governance and reporting framework fully embedded, with regular Board reporting in place and an Ethical Investment Framework adopted.

Essential Requirements

• Proven track record in business development, commercial management, or entrepreneurship — ideally within a social enterprise, charity, or trust context.


• Strong financial acumen with experience developing business cases, P\&L management, and financial reporting.


• Demonstrable ability to take a concept from inception through to profitable operation.


• Experience in portfolio construction or management — overseeing multiple ventures with different risk profiles, return timescales, and sector exposures simultaneously.


• Demonstrated ability to build commercial infrastructure from scratch in a greenfield context — creating systems and processes, not just managing existing ones.


• Experience managing multiple projects or ventures simultaneously.


• Excellent communication and stakeholder management skills, including engagement with boards and senior leadership.


• Degree\-level education or equivalent professional experience in a relevant discipline (e.g. Business, Finance, Social Enterprise Management).


• Proven experience in Capital Protection — the ability to grow a portfolio while minimising the risk of loss to the parent charity.


• Exceptional negotiation skills, with a track record of securing high\-value partnerships and contracts.


• The ability to balance immediate revenue needs with the long\-term horizons (5–10 years) typical of endowment growth.

• Postgraduate qualification (MBA or equivalent) or professional accreditation (e.g. CFA, ACCA, CMI).


• Experience in the charitable or third sector, with an understanding of charity law and governance.


• Knowledge of impact investment, social finance, or endowment structures.


• Familiarity with Shariah\-compliant finance or ethical investment screening frameworks.


• Experience with property as an endowment vehicle, including income\-generating real estate or development projects.


• Existing professional networks relevant to the Trust’s areas of operation.

All employees of Greensville Trust are expected to demonstrate the following core values in their day\-to\-day work:

• Integrity — acting honestly and transparently in all matters.


• Respect — treating all people with dignity and consideration.


• Accountability — taking ownership of responsibilities and decisions.


• Community — working in the best interests of the communities we serve.


• Excellence — striving for the highest standards in all we do.

This role is site\-based at Mustafa Mount in Bradford with travel to other sites including the endowments as and when required.

Pay: £55,000\.00\-£75,000\.00 per year

Benefits:

• Casual dress


• Free parking


• On\-site parking

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