External Affairs Director
Tala is a global technology company building the world’s most accessible financial services. With more than $350 million raised from visionary investors, we are serving millions of customers around the world who have been overlooked by traditional financial institutions – and our plan is to serve millions more, and have been named by the Fortune Impact 20 list, CNBC’s Disruptor 50, and Forbes’ Fintech 50 list for four years running. We are expanding across product offerings, countries and crypto and are looking for people who have an entrepreneurial spirit and are passionate about the mission.
By creating a unique platform that enables lending and other financial services around the globe, people in emerging markets are able to start and expand small businesses, manage day-to-day needs, and pursue their financial goals with confidence. Currently, more than 7 million people across Kenya, the Philippines, Mexico, and India have used Tala products. Due to our global team, we have a remote-first approach, and also have offices in Santa Monica, CA (HQ); Nairobi, Kenya; Mexico City, Mexico; Manila, the Philippines; and Bangalore, India.
Most Talazens join us because they connect with our mission of enabling financial agency for underbanked people around the world. If you are energized by the impact you can make at Tala, we’d love to hear from you!
Lead a cross-functional policy and external affairs team in the design and implementation of action plans to enhance Tala’s engagement with policymakers, relevant stakeholders, and the organization’s ability to inform policy. The roles will lead the development and execution of opportunities that advance the business and mitigate threats in key policy areas, including through building alliances among external stakeholders
What You’ll Do
- Develop and implement external affairs strategic plans for informing key public policy issues, while enhancing corporate opportunities and mitigating threats.
- Work with Tala’s global Policy and External Affairs team to conduct research and provide expert advice to internal business partners about the policy environment relevant for Tala in the financial services sector.
- Drafting compelling white papers and position papers to express Tala’s thought leadership and to advocate for policy directives consistent with Tala’s mission and principles.
- Assist in the development and execution of our General Manager’s outreach to policymakers, ensuring that external government relations are adequately managed.
- Identify and ensure current awareness of key external constituencies, including Governmental & Non-Governmental Organizations and key opinion leaders that may have a positive/negative impact on our business.
- Work closely with outside consultants responsible for helping develop the strategy and supporting the execution of the strategy, including coordination with public relations partners and internal teams for the design and management of public-facing events and campaigns.
- Partner with key constituents (internal/external) to determine the most appropriate direction for building relationships and avoiding adverse legislative or public policy action.
- Identify potential threats and opportunities.
- Manage multi-dimensional projects across business units, successfully navigating throughout the organization to partner effectively with individuals from other departments and markets to deliver results.
- Leverage appropriate corporate membership opportunities in industry associations and policy organizations on behalf of Tala, and ensure appropriate utilization of outside consultants when necessary.
- Demonstrate Tala’s principles internally and externally, in particular, strong ownership, a bias for action, and customer-centricity.
What You’ll Need
- 7+ years of proven success in engaging with the government and private sector entities related to Tala’s financial business (SEC, BSP, and NPC, among others).
- Strong communication and advocacy skills relevant to work with policymakers, private or public associations, and political officials. This could be from prior experience within a regulatory authority, an administration, a trade association, or a company with complex policy and business issues and needs across a range of products or business activities.
- Significant business acumen and ability to collaborate across multiple internal organizations including business groups and sales teams, identifying relevant issues, needs, and strategies to shape the external policy environment.
- Excellent writing skills with the ability to translate those skills into persuasive advocacy materials and submissions to a variety of agencies and authorities on a range of issues.
- Self-starter and entrepreneurial mentality that takes ownership and is able to effectively navigate ambiguous, fast-moving environments.
- Fluency in English is a must.
Our vision is to build a new financial ecosystem where everyone can participate on equal footing and access the tools they need to be financially healthy. We strongly believe that inclusion fosters innovation and we’re proud to have a diverse global team that represents a multitude of backgrounds, cultures, and experience. We hire talented people regardless of race, religion, color, national origin, gender, gender expression, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, or disability status.