Investment Officer, Northwest Arkansas

Village Capital•Bentonville, AR

2d•$85,000 - $100,000•Remote

About The Position

Village Capital is piloting an Innovative Capital Facility in Northwest Arkansas, deploying revenue-based financing (structured as redeemable equity and revenue-based debt) to early-stage companies that traditional capital structures often overlook. This is a fixed-term, one-year contract role at the center of that effort. As Investment Officer, you will be VilCap's sole on-the-ground presence in NWA: collaborating with regional entrepreneur support organizations (ESOs) to build pipeline, evaluating prospects, supporting due diligence, and closing investments. You will be representing VilCap's mission across the ecosystem. You will operate with significant day-to-day autonomy and report to the Senior Investments Manager. You bring the place-based relationships and credibility this pilot needs from day one. The ideal candidate has 3 to 7 years of experience at a CDFI, bank, investment organization, or accelerator within Arkansas, a command of deal analysis and financial modeling, and a genuine belief that capital is a tool for founder success.

Requirements

3 to 7 years of experience at a CDFI, bank, investment organization, or accelerator within Arkansas, with direct exposure to early-stage companies and financing decisions.
Experience analyzing financial statements and building financial projections, through investment diligence or underwriting; comfort with P&L modeling, unit economics, and early-stage valuation approaches.
Familiar with alternative financing structures, specifically redeemable equity and revenue-share debt, able to match the right instrument to a founder's business model and growth stage, grounded in an understanding of how financial returns and mission objectives can be aligned in deal structuring.
Established presence in the NWA entrepreneurial ecosystem, or demonstrated ability to build credibility and relationships quickly across founders, ESO leaders, investors, and community partners.
Communicates complex financial concepts clearly to non-technical audiences and produces well-structured written deliverables, including investment memos and stakeholder reports.
Operates effectively with independence across a varied workload; organized in managing pipeline, due diligence timelines, and reporting obligations without close supervision.
Comfortable navigating ambiguity in a pilot initiative where structures are still taking shape, and brings a growth mindset to deals that do not close and approaches that require iteration.
Proficient in Excel and Google Sheets for financial modeling; familiarity with pipeline and portfolio management tools such as Airtable or Pitchbook is an asset.

Nice To Haves

Familiarity with pipeline and portfolio management tools such as Airtable or Pitchbook.

Responsibilities

Identify and cultivate early-stage investment opportunities across the NWA ecosystem, building and maintaining an organized pipeline aligned with VilCap's impact thesis and the parameters of this pilot facility.
Work closely with regional ESO partners to surface deal flow, identify promising founders, and build ecosystem awareness of innovative financing structures.
Build and interpret financial models, including P&L projections and revenue-share scenarios, and lead due diligence on financial health, business model scalability, and founder capability.
Evaluate the fit of specific financing instruments (redeemable equity and revenue-based debt) for individual companies and draft clear, well-reasoned investment memos for review by the Investment Committee.
Manage the end-to-end deal process from sourcing through close, coordinating with internal teams and external legal counsel, and maintaining accurate records of deal status and decision history.
Maintain active relationships with portfolio companies, collect financial and impact data periodically, and surface material developments to the Senior Investments Manager in a timely manner.
Serve as a visible, credible presence in the NWA ecosystem by attending events and hosting workshops that expand founder and partner familiarity with alternative financing tools.
Proactively cultivate relationships with local and regional investors, growing VilCap's investor network in NWA and increasing awareness of innovative financing as a viable capital deployment strategy.
Produce regular pipeline and portfolio updates for the Senior Investments Manager and the Walton Family Foundation, and contribute insights to an Innovative Finance Field Guide documenting best practices for capital deployment in NWA.