Associate Portfolio Manager, Credit Investing

Purpose Unlimited is an independent financial services company with an unrelenting focus on customer-centric innovation, delivered through technology-driven solutions. Led by entrepreneur Som Seif, the company is developing a diversified product platform aimed at addressing historically underserved segments of the market. Purpose Unlimited’s businesses include Purpose Investments, Advisor Solutions by Purpose, and Driven.

Who is Purpose Investments?

Purpose Investments is an innovation- driven asset management company with over $20 billion under management, offering both managed and quantitative investment products. Much of what is available to the average Canadian investor today is outdated and expensive. Purpose Investments’ goal is to constantly innovate, and make investing simple, intuitive and affordable for everyone.

Vacancy Status: This is for a current opening.

Compensation: $135,000 - $165,000

Responsibilities: What you will own

The mandate is simple and unambiguous; generate alpha through differentiated credit insight while protecting donside risk – at scale, with conviction, and with AI as your edge.

This is a true investing role. You will own positions – not just analyze them. You will contribute to capital allocation decisions, not prepare slide decks for others to make them. You will be given the tools, the data infrastructure, and the AI capability to move faster and see further than the market. What you bring is the judgment to act on what you see.

You are joining Purpose's credit investment team at a moment when high yield and opportunistic credit are being reshaped by data, technology and AI-driven investment process advancements and accelerating market complexity. The investor who thrives here combines deep fundamental skill with the fluency to direct AI workflows, override them when the model is wrong, and synthesize signal from noise at a pace the previous generation of credit analysts could not match.

What you will do

• Develop and defend differentiated credit theses with clear catalysts and risk/reward frameworks

• Exercise judgment at the intersection of data and uncertainty – particularly in stressed and distressed situations

• Build genuine issuer relationships that surface information before it reaches the market

• Challenge AI-generated outputs when your read of the credit diverges from the model

• Translate macro developments into actionable conviction in a high-conviction portfolio

Where you will have impact

Idea Generation & Investment Ownership

• Source and develop high-conviction opportunities across high yield bonds, leveraged loans, and stressed credit – with AI accelerating your screening and you supplying the judgment on what to act on
• Own select positions end-to-end: underwriting, monitoring, and exit decisions
• Develop differentiated views with explicit catalysts, risk/reward frameworks, and clear theses you can defend under pressure

Credit Underwriting & Risk Assessment

• Lead fundamental issuer analysis – business quality, financial profile, industry dynamics – using AI-assisted modelling as a starting point, not a conclusion
• Evaluate capital structures, covenant protections, and recovery scenarios with enough depth to surface the non-obvious
• Stress-test models across base, downside, and tail-risk cases; assess liquidity and default probability with rigor

Portfolio Construction & Capital Allocation

• Actively contribute to sizing, diversification, and risk-budgeting decisions – this is capital allocation work, not support work
• Participate in entry, exit, and rebalancing decisions as an accountable contributor, not a preparer of materials

Market Intelligence & AI-Augmented Research

• Develop and maintain views on credit markets, spreads, and liquidity that translate directly into portfolio positioning
• Direct AI tools to synthesize sector dynamics, issuer data, and macro signals – you set the agenda, AI surfaces the evidence
• Identify dislocations and thematic opportunities before they are consensus; treat early-warning signals from AI surveillance systems as a competitive advantage to be acted on

Qualifications: What you bring / What you must have

• 4–8 years in credit investing, leveraged finance, or investment banking with a clear track record of analytical ownership – not just support
• Deep fluency in high yield bonds, leveraged loans, and credit markets; you understand these instruments well enough to see what others miss
• Demonstrated capacity to build and stress-test financial models with conviction, not just competence
• Judgment under uncertainty – you have made calls that were yours, defended them, and learned from what happened

What will set you apart

• Ongoing curiosity to improve and learn new skillset to become best credit investor in the world
• Experience directing AI tools (Bloomberg GPT, LLM-based research assistants, automated surveillance systems) to accelerate your workflow without outsourcing your thinking
• CFA charter holder or meaningful progress toward it
• Comfort operating at the intersection of fundamental credit analysis and data driven signal – you do not treat these as separate disciplines
• A track record of identifying ideas early; you are not waiting for consensus before forming a view
• Strong communication – you write and speak with the clarity and confidence of someone who knows what they think

What success looks like in your first year

• Ideas with ownership: You have sourced, underwritten, and taken ownership of a minimum of three investment positions that contributed meaningfully to the CROP portfolio – with clear documentation of your thesis, your process, and the outcome.
• AI fluency in action: You have built at least one AI-augmented research or monitoring workflow that measurably reduces time-to-insight on issuer surveillance or idea screening – and you have shared it with the team.
• Investment committee presence: You are a trusted and active contributor to investment committee discussions – not a preparer of materials for them. Your views are heard, tested, and acted on.
• Portfolio judgment: You have demonstrated the ability to identify credit deterioration early, defend a contrarian view under pressure, or size out of a position ahead of consensus – and you can explain the reasoning.
• Track record begun: You have started building a documented record as an investor. One year from now, you can show what you did, what happened, and what you learned.

If this is the role you have been building toward, we want to hear from you.

Tell us about a credit situation where your view diverged from the market. What gave you the conviction to hold it – or change it?

Every role at Purpose is assessed against our five values:

• Innovation – You bring new ideas, challenge the status quo, and find better ways of building. You don’t wait for permission to experiment.
• Courage – You speak up when something isn’t working, take difficult stands on technical quality, and act with conviction even when it’s uncomfortable.
• Owner’s Mindset – You take full accountability for your squad’s outcomes. You treat the platform, the team, and the business as your own.
• Client Focus – You place client outcomes at the center of every architectural and delivery decision.
• Winning Through Individual and Collective Growth – You invest in your own development and actively contribute to the growth of every engineer around you.

Why should you join us?

• We are one of Canada's Top Small & Medium Employers' 2023 & 2024.
• We believe in innovation and a vibrant culture - work for an innovative, people-first, financial services firm that values entrepreneurialism.
• We believe in a flexible work structure – A flexible hybrid work model that empowers you to do your best work whether at home or the office.
• We care about your rewards - Competitive compensation including equity program.
• We care about your health – comprehensive group health and dental benefits and life insurance at little to no cost to you. We also offer a Lifestyle Spending Account for all your wellness needs.
• We care about your quality of life - a flexible paid time-off policy covering vacation, sick, and mental health days.
• We care about your family - Paid parental leave for eligible employees with a top-up.
• We care about your future – Generous Group RRSP matching and an optional TFSA program.
• We care about your development – We offer training opportunities and tuition support year-round.

Purpose Unlimited is an equal opportunity employer and we are dedicated to fostering an inclusive and barrier-free work environment for all employees and candidates. We encourage all qualified candidates to apply and if accommodation is required during any stage of the recruitment process, please contact any member of the People & Culture team at ... . We thank all applicants for their interest; however, only those selected for interviews will be contacted.

Our work philosophy is a hybrid model allowing for flexibility and collaboration. Applicants must be legally entitled to work in Canada. Immigration sponsorship is not offered for this role.

We may use artificial intelligence technology to assist in screening, assessing, or selecting applicants for this position. Final hiring decisions are made by qualified human reviewers.