Background information

• Remuneration:           SIS board members are not remunerated although reasonable expenses for travel may be claimed.

• Location:                    SIS is based in Edinburgh however operates across Scotland and board meetings regularly take place in other locations (normally SIS investees). Conference call facilities are usually available.

• Time commitment:    At least 4 board meetings per year, including an away day with ad hoc single item agenda meetings as required. Board meetings are normally three hours long, excluding travel and preparation time.

  Alongside this the board member will be expected to join one of SIS’s board committees, which also meet quarterly in line with the board cycle.

  Board members may have to attend other committee/working group meetings on occasion and attend meetings with the CEO.

  They will also represent the organisation at various events and meetings with key stakeholders.

Our values: the SIS Way 

Purpose: We are purpose driven; we are committed, innovative and impactful;

Integrity: We do what we say; we are reliable, honest and consistent;

Unique: We embrace the power of difference; we are inclusive, open and ethical;

Partnership: We grow strong partnerships; we are collaborative, confident and respectful.

SIS background and objectives  

Social Investment Scotland’s (SIS) mission is to connect capital with communities, making investments that make a real, measurable and sustainable impact upon people’s lives. Since 2001, we’ve been doing this by making loans and other repayable investments into purposeful organisations that might find access to finance from mainstream providers difficult. Since 2001, SIS has made investments of almost £80m into approaching 400 organisations, primarily in Scotland but increasingly elsewhere in the UK through specific funds.

SIS’s vision is to build an impact economy:

• Enterprises will be provided with the tools, support and inspiration to plan, create and scale their social impact;

• Governments and their agencies can partner with social enterprises in a range of different ways, but particularly to enhance the delivery of social impact;

• Social entrepreneurs can readily access mission-aligned investment and support;

• Consumers and businesses can purchase products and services from social enterprises;

• Investors of all kinds can make purposeful investments for a financial and a social return; and

• Businesses of all kinds implement responsible business approaches as standard. 

The SIS strategy has four segments that encompass a range of objectives that are intended to support progress towards the SIS vision. These segments are:

• Market Building: business support and scale up programmes that are designed to support organisations understand their social investment options and expand their operations and impact.

• Communities: encompassing all of SIS’s direct investment team, across a spectrum of amounts, products and business models.

• Access to finance: supporting the growing responsible finance sector across the UK;

• Innovation: exploring innovative ways in which social investment might be used to create greater social impact.

Principal responsibilities

SIS is now seeking new board members, to support the continued growth and evolution of SIS, and to support the ambitious priorities set out in SIS’s strategy. In particular, individuals that have direct experience of having set up, worked for or grown a social enterprise are sought to ensure that SIS remains an organisation that is credible and relevant amongst the communities that it seeks to serve.  

SIS board structure

The SIS Group board follows a broadly conventional structure, aligned with the operations and ambitions of the organisation. As well as fund boards that oversee the investment activity of both SIS Ventures and the Social Growth Fund, there are a range of committees that oversee key governance functions:

• Remuneration and appointments committee; overseeing board, committee and leadership team appointments;

• Audit committee; reviewing internal and external audit services;

• Risk committee; overseeing operational, strategic and portfolio/investment risk;

• Capital and finance committee; reviewing financial performance and capital raising strategies.

Terms

SIS board members serve for a two-year term which may be extended by up to two further two year terms i.e. six years in total.