Lab Operations Associate Jobs in Washington, DC (NOW HIRING)

Accion is a global nonprofit on a mission to create a fair and inclusive economy for the nearly two billion people who are failed by the global financial system. We develop and scale responsible digital financial solutions for small business owners, smallholder farmers, and women, so they can make informed decisions and improve their lives. Through targeted investment strategies, advisory solutions, and expert thought leadership, we work with local partners to develop and scale cheaper, more accessible, and customer‑friendly financial solutions. Since 1961, Accion has helped build 285 financial service providers serving low‑income clients in 77 countries, reaching 478 million people. More at https://www.accion.org.

Accion Venture Lab is a leading early‑stage investor in inclusive fintech providing seed‑first capital and strategic support to innovative startups that are meeting the financial needs of underserved people globally. Accion Venture Lab has invested in more than 75 early‑stage startups that operate in over 30 countries worldwide with a strong record of financial and social returns. Accion Venture Lab is an investment strategy of Accion and is managed by Accion Impact Management. More at https://www.accion.org/venturelab.

We are seeking a Senior Platform Associate that will provide industry‑leading support to our global network of founders, build a content practice that demonstrates our excellence in inclusive fintech, and leverage internal and external insights to optimize these areas of focus. This person’s north star is to serve founders in our portfolio and the broader inclusive fintech community, with a consistent and measurable slate of world‑class thought leadership, connection points, and events. Accordingly, this role will involve some international travel.

The Senior Platform Associate will be joining a diverse team of global investing and operational experts that have invested in and supported over seventy early‑stage fintech startups across five continents. Ideally, the Senior Platform Associate will be based in Washington, DC, where the team works 2–3 days in‑office per week. They will report to the Operating Partner of Accion Venture Lab and can expect to receive high‑quality coaching, mentorship, and guidance to become a more effective and supportive professional in the impact‑focused venture capital industry.

The role is highly entrepreneurial, as it will require a combination of growing awareness of fintech trends, community building techniques, and quantitative/qualitative skills to assess program effectiveness. We are looking for someone available to start as soon as possible.

• Build a World‑Class Thought Leadership Engine: Work with Accion’s global communications and brand team to identify effective ways to share our knowledge with the broader fintech ecosystem, helping to further align our reputation with our strong impact and commercial success. Build relationships with other ecosystem members to support delivery channels of our thought leadership, and identify ways to make our voice stand out amongst our peers.
• Build our Founder Community: Refine our strategy to broadly serve Venture Lab portfolio company founders and operators. Find key topics of need within the founder network that we have a unique perspective on that’s distinct from other investors, build sustainable ways for founders to connect one another, and facilitate a community of founders seeking to support one another in their efforts to promote financial inclusion. This role will also play a critical function in coordinating and structuring our annual, in‑person CEO Forum and Fintech for Inclusion Global Summit, as well as biennial, in‑market Investor Days.
• Learning Experiences: Help to develop a slate of in‑person and virtual events across our founder and broader fintech community to share intra‑portfolio knowledge, Venture Lab expertise, and lessons learned from our Portfolio Engagement work. This could include webinars, podcasts, or other media not yet explored.
• Data‑Led Optimization of Our Platform: Across all of these dimensions, collaborate with Accion’s Communications team in using data, insights, and analytics to evaluate the most valuable mediums of communication, founder engagement, and support. This role should have their “finger on the pulse” of our core audiences.

• At least 4 years of relevant experience across venture capital platform / investor relations / marketing roles, or marketing / communications / sales roles in an early‑to‑growth stage startup.
• Demonstrated functional experience in community management, marketing, customer success, product management, or sales.
• Experience working in emerging markets, particularly with startup founder communities.
• Experience working with community‑focused tools (e.g., Notion, Slack, Heartbeat, Brella, or others).
• Passion for entrepreneurship to help advance the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
• Strong research and analysis skills, including baseline experiences with generative AI.
• Ability to thrive in a dynamic, high‑performing team environment, and ability to work effectively with individuals from diverse backgrounds.
• Outstanding relationship management skills and ability to earn the respect of Accion colleagues, investors, partners, and startup founders/operators.
• Exceptional written and oral communication skills and ability to communicate data and insights in a structured fashion.
• Interest in Accion’s mission and working globally, and alignment with and embodiment of our team values.
• Comfort with/ability to undertake occasional international travel.
• Domain expertise in financial services and/or financial inclusion, particularly financial technology, payment systems, and/or innovative delivery models.
• Experience with customer analytics and marketing tools, including social media tools. Surveying knowledge a plus.

Language skills beyond English.

• Salary Range: $75K – $85K
• The above salary range serves as a general guideline. Accion considers a number of factors when determining base salary offers such as the scope and responsibilities of the position and the candidate’s experience, education, training, skills, location, current market conditions as well as internal pay alignment.
• Accion provides a total compensation package, including base salary, discretionary merit‑based bonus, and a variety of benefits including health insurance (90% employer funded), life and disability insurance, retirement plans (up to 6% employer match), paid holidays and paid time‑off for vacation plus personal days as well as sick days.

Accion is an equal opportunity employer. We are committed to a diverse and inclusive workplace culture. Accion seeks qualified applicants without regard to race, color, gender, sex, age, religion, creed, national origin, ancestry, citizenship, marital status, sexual orientation, physical or mental disability, medical condition, military and veteran status, gender identity or expression, genetic information, change of sex or transgender status, or any other basis protected by law. Accion is committed to providing reasonable accommodations to applicants with disabilities.