Senior Vice President, Cleantech

Company

Cox Enterprises

Executive

SVP, Cleantech

EVP/SVPHybrid - Ability to work remotely part of the week

Yes, 25% of the time

Day

About Cox Enterprises and Cox Cleantech

Cox Enterprises is a family-owned company with a 127-year track record of building industry-leading businesses that create enduring value for people and the planet. Since 2007, Cox has invested in sustainable businesses and clean technologies, scaling solutions across advanced recycling, renewable energy and indoor agriculture.

Cox Cleantech is the enterprise platform for this commitment. As an operator-investor, the portfolio partners with founders and management teams to transform how materials are made, used and reused, accelerate the circular economy and decarbonize critical systems. Cox Cleantech combines patient capital, operating expertise and the scale of a company built to endure.

The Opportunity

Cox Enterprises is seeking a Senior Vice President of Cleantech to lead the strategy, performance and long-term growth of the Cox Cleantech platform. Reporting into enterprise leadership, this executive will set the portfolio vision, direct capital allocation, strengthen governance and accelerate value creation across current and future investments.

The SVP will operate at the intersection of investing, enterprise strategy and scaled operations. The successful leader will bring the judgment to make high-conviction investment decisions, the operating credibility to partner with CEOs and boards, and the enterprise influence to align stakeholders around a differentiated cleantech agenda. This is an opportunity to build durable growth platforms that deliver measurable environmental outcomes and enterprise value.

Key Responsibilities

Enterprise Strategy and Portfolio Leadership

• Set enterprise direction. Define and continuously evolve the Cleantech vision, investment thesis and multi-year portfolio strategy in alignment with Cox Enterprises priorities.
• Own portfolio performance. Establish clear strategic, operating and financial expectations across the portfolio; identify performance gaps and mobilize resources to improve outcomes.
• Lead capital allocation. Recommend the deployment, pacing and prioritization of capital across new investments, follow-on funding and portfolio value-creation initiatives.
• Shape governance. Serve as a senior board representative and trusted advisor to portfolio company CEOs and leadership teams, strengthening governance, accountability and decision quality.
• Advance enterprise value creation. Identify and activate capabilities, partnerships and synergies across Cox Enterprises that accelerate commercial growth, operational maturity and competitive advantage.

Investment Leadership and Market Development

• Build a differentiated pipeline. Cultivate a robust, proprietary pipeline across priority cleantech sectors through deep relationships with founders, investors, advisors, corporates and ecosystem leaders.
• Lead complex transactions. Provide executive leadership across the full investment lifecycle, including origination, thesis development, valuation, structuring, negotiation, diligence, financing and close, in partnership with Corporate Development and functional experts.
• Chair investment conviction. Present clear, evidence-based recommendations to the Investment Committee, articulating strategic fit, risk, return potential, value-creation pathways and exit considerations.
• Represent Cox externally. Elevate Cox Cleantech as a trusted, long-term partner and thought leader across the cleantech, sustainability, investment and policy ecosystems.
• Anticipate market shifts. Translate technology, capital-market, customer, regulatory and competitive developments into actionable portfolio and investment decisions.

Operating Partnership and Value Creation

• Partner with portfolio CEOs. Co-create and oversee ambitious growth plans spanning commercial acceleration, operating model, talent, digital capabilities, capital structure and strategic partnerships.
• Scale businesses responsibly. Guide companies through critical inflection points, balancing speed, capital efficiency, risk management and organizational readiness.
• Drive measurable outcomes. Establish a disciplined performance-management cadence with clear strategic, financial, operating and environmental measures.
• Navigate transformation. Sponsor or directly lead interventions involving business-model evolution, leadership transitions, restructuring, integration or other high-stakes changes when required.

 

Executive Leadership and Talent

• Lead the Cleantech organization. Set a clear agenda and operating rhythm for the investment and portfolio team, fostering intellectual rigor, speed, collaboration and accountability.
• Build leadership capacity. Attract, develop and retain exceptional talent; create succession depth and a pipeline of future investors, operators and sector leaders.
• Influence across the enterprise. Build trusted relationships with Cox Enterprises senior leaders and functional partners to align decisions, resolve complexity and deliver shared outcomes.
• Model enterprise leadership. Demonstrate sound judgment, integrity, inclusive leadership and a long-term ownership mindset in every internal and external interaction.

Required Experience and Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree with 18+ years of progressive experience in private equity, growth equity, venture capital, investment banking, corporate development or an equivalent combination of investing and operating leadership. An advanced degree is preferred. With at least 10 years experience in a leadership role.
• OR MS degree + 16 years of work experience
• OR Ph.D. degree + 13 years of work experience
• OR 18+ years of work experience with no degree
• Demonstrated success leading a significant investment platform, portfolio or business with accountability for strategy, capital allocation and results.
• Deep cleantech, renewable energy, circular economy, sustainable technology or adjacent sector experience, with the pattern recognition to evaluate technologies, markets and business models.
• Proven track record originating and executing complex private-market transactions, including control or majority-owned investments, from initial thesis through closing.
• Extensive experience working with private-company boards, CEOs and management teams to scale businesses and deliver operational transformation and value creation.
• Sophisticated financial judgment, including expertise in valuation, capital structuring, scenario analysis, portfolio construction and investment risk.
• Enterprise-level executive presence and communication skills, with the ability to influence boards, investment committees, founders, co-investors and senior internal stakeholders.
• Exceptional leadership record, including building high-performing teams, developing senior talent and leading through ambiguity and change.
• Established network across the cleantech ecosystem, including founders, executives, investors, strategic partners and advisors.

Leadership Profile

• Enterprise strategist who connects purpose, market opportunity and disciplined capital deployment.
• Investor-operator who moves fluently between boardroom decisions and the practical realities of scaling businesses.
• High-conviction decision-maker who combines curiosity, analytical depth and prudent risk-taking.
• Relationship builder who earns trust with founders, management teams and enterprise stakeholders.
• Talent multiplier who sets a high bar, creates clarity and develops leaders for broader impact.

What We Offer

• The opportunity to shape and lead a strategic growth platform with the resources and long-term orientation of Cox Enterprises.
• A collaborative, intellectually rigorous and purpose-driven environment where leaders can translate bold ideas into measurable impact.
• A competitive executive compensation package commensurate with experience, including performance-based incentives.

Other Essential Job Requirements and Working Conditions

Travel: 30% or more, driven by the footprint of portfolio companies, board responsibilities and business development for new investments.

As our primary divisions Cox Automotive and Cox Communications drive new waves of innovation, Cox Enterprises is entering spaces like cleantech, healthcare, esports and more. We're a family business guided by a legacy of bold innovation that’s driven by those who want to make their mark. Benefits of working at Cox may include health care insurance (medical, dental, vision), retirement planning (401(k)), and paid days off (sick leave, parental leave, flexible vacation/wellness days, and/or PTO). For more details on what benefits you may be offered, visit our benefits page. Cox is an Equal Employment Opportunity employer – All qualified applicants/employees will receive consideration for employment without regard to that individual’s age, race, color, religion or creed, national origin or ancestry, sex (including pregnancy), sexual orientation, gender, gender identity, physical or mental disability, veteran status, genetic information, ethnicity, citizenship, or any other characteristic protected by law. Cox provides reasonable accommodations when requested by a qualified applicant or employee with disability, unless such accommodations would cause an undue hardship.

 

 

Applicants must currently be authorized to work in the United States for any employer without current or future sponsorship. No OPT, CPT, STEM/OPT or visa sponsorship now or in future.