Role Summary
Bridge is seeking a Vice President, Purchase Order Finance – Credit Risk to lead credit and risk for our purchase order financing activities serving middle market suppliers. This leader will shape PO credit strategy and underwriting standards, ensuring a scalable, disciplined approach to providing working capital against confirmed purchase orders from major brands.
You will oversee the PO credit and underwriting function, set risk appetite, establish credit policies, and build the team and processes that anchor this capability. Leveraging proprietary data and deep partnerships with companies like Walmart and other strategic retailers, you will underwrite in new ways and deliver differentiated capital to suppliers when they need it most.
This role is ideal for a veteran PO finance and credit professional eager to apply their expertise in a fast moving, entrepreneurial environment: the opportunity to refine the playbook, manage risk at scale, and influence how technology, data, and capital come together in a next generation lending platform.
You will work closely with senior leadership, origination teams, and key internal and external partners.
Key Responsibilities
Program Design and Credit Framework
- Work with senior leadership to design and scale Bridge’s middle market purchase order financing program, including target customer profile, eligible transaction types, and risk appetite.
- Develop end to end credit frameworks for PO finance: underwriting standards, advance rates, concentration limits, covenants, collateral structures, and monitoring requirements.
- Create and maintain PO specific credit policies, playbooks, and approval matrices that align with Bridge’s overall risk strategy and funding partner expectations.
- Lead PO credit committee, including preparing and presenting complex transactions to internal leadership and external capital partners as needed.
Program Design and Credit Framework
- Lead underwriting for complex, middle market PO finance opportunities, with a focus on suppliers selling into large retailers, hospitality brands, and other strategic partners.
- Evaluate borrower financials, purchase orders, supplier terms, end buyer credit quality, supply chain dynamics, margin resilience, and operational execution risk.
- Structure transactions and facilities that balance borrower needs with strong downside protection, including intercreditor considerations with ABL, factoring, and other working capital facilities.
- Oversee ongoing portfolio performance, including early warning indicators, trend analysis, and remediation strategies for challenged credits.
- Implement rigorous risk reporting, stress testing, and portfolio analytics to monitor concentrations, performance, and program economics.
Data, Product, and Technology Enablement
- Partner with product and engineering to reimagine how PO finance is underwritten end to end, using technology and data to replace manual spreadsheets, static checklists, and legacy lender processes.
- Help design decisioning tools, scorecards, and dashboards that use retailer data, transaction histories, and alternative data to drive faster and more precise credit decisions.
- Define data requirements and feedback loops so that each transaction improves models, underwriting heuristics, and risk insight.
- Advise on automation opportunities across the PO lifecycle, from application intake and document collection to approvals, funding conditions, and monitoring.
Leadership and Team
- Build and lead a high performing PO credit and underwriting team, including underwriters, analysts, and portfolio managers as the program scales.
- Set clear standards for credit quality, analytical rigor, and documentation across all PO transactions.
- Coach and develop team members, creating a culture of ownership, curiosity, and continuous improvement.
- Partner closely with Sales, Partnerships, and Capital Markets to ensure a seamless experience for suppliers, retailers, and funding partners.
Stakeholder Management and Governance
- Serve as a subject matter expert on purchase order financing across Bridge, educating internal teams and external stakeholders on structures, risks, and best practices.
- Collaborate with compliance, legal, and operations to ensure the PO program meets regulatory, contractual, and investor requirements.
- Contribute to strategic conversations on new product extensions, capital structures, and scaling the PO platform over time, including potential expansion into adjacent supply chain finance products.
Qualifications & Experience
- 7+ years of progressive experience in commercial credit, asset based lending, trade finance, or specialty finance.
- At least 3 years of direct experience in purchase order financing or closely related pre shipment supply chain finance, with hands on underwriting responsibility for PO transactions.
- Deep experience underwriting middle market borrowers, ideally suppliers to large retailers, hospitality brands, or national accounts, with a strong grasp of working capital dynamics and cash conversion cycles.
- Proven ability to design credit frameworks and policies for a new or evolving product line and to balance growth with disciplined risk management.
- Strong analytical and financial modeling skills, including comfort with complex capital structures, intercreditor issues, and collateral analysis.
- Data oriented mindset with a track record of partnering with product, engineering, or analytics teams to build tools, scorecards, or decision engines that improve credit decisioning.
- Experience leading and scaling small, high impact credit or underwriting teams, with a reputation for developing talent and instilling strong credit culture.
- Executive presence and communication skills, with the ability to present complex credit topics to senior leadership, boards, and external funding partners.
- Entrepreneurial orientation and comfort operating in a fast moving, high growth environment where you help build the playbook rather than simply execute it.
Why Join Bridge?
- Own a Greenfield Program: Architect and lead a new PO finance business line at a Series A fintech, with real influence over strategy, risk appetite, and how technology and credit come together
- Leverage Unique Partnerships: Underwrite suppliers serving some of the world’s most recognized brands, using data and relationships that are difficult for traditional lenders to replicate
- Build and Lead a Team: Recruit, mentor, and scale a high impact PO credit and underwriting team from day one
- Shape the Product: Work hand in hand with product and engineering to design the tools, workflows, and automation that make PO financing faster, smarter, and more transparent
- Redefine an entire category: Help design a technology and data driven model for PO finance that can become the new standard for how suppliers access working capital
- Mission Driven Environment: Join a founder led, VC backed company that is committed to making financing efficient, transparent, and accessible for mid sized businesses and hospitality developers across the country
Compensation and Benefits
- Competitive base salary with annual performance bonus potential.
- Meaningful participation in the company stock option plan.
- Comprehensive health coverage including medical, dental, and vision plans, plus 401(k) with company contribution.
- Robust parental leave and a flexible, collaborative work environment.
Equal Opportunity
Bridge is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender identity, sex, sexual orientation, national origin, disability status, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law or company policy.
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