Position Details
Development and Alumni Relations Office
Location: University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham UK
Full time starting salary is normally in the range £56,921 to £65,814 with potential progression once in post to £85,544
Grade: 9
Full Time, Permanent
Closing date: 27th March 2025
UK and International travel may be required for this role
Our offer to you
People are at the heart of what we are and do.
The University of Birmingham is proud to have been a part of the City of Birmingham and the wider region for over 100 years, and we are equally proud to be recognised as a leading global university. We want to attract talented people from across the city and beyond, support them to succeed, and celebrate their success.
We are committed to helping the people who work here to develop through our sector-leading Birmingham Professional programme which provides all professional services staff with development opportunities and the encouragement to reach their full potential. With almost 5,000 professional services jobs in a wide range of functions in Edgbaston and in our campus in Dubai, there are plenty of opportunities for you to be able to develop your career at the University.
We believe there is no such thing as a typical member of staff and that diversity is a source of strength that underpins the exchange of ideas, innovation, and debate. We warmly welcome people from all backgrounds and are committed to fostering an inclusive environment where diversity is at the heart of who and what we are, and how we work.
Supporting our people to achieve a healthy work/life balance is important both to our employees and to the success of the University and, depending on the role, we offer a variety of flexible working arrangements. We therefore welcome discussions on all forms of flexible working. In addition, you will receive a generous package of benefits including 40 days paid holiday a year, one paid day a year for volunteering, occupational sick pay, and a pension scheme. We also have three high quality subsidised day nurseries.
The University is situated in leafy Edgbaston and there are excellent transport links to our beautiful campus, including main bus routes and a train station on site. On campus we have a state-of-the-art sports centre with pool, shops, places to eat and drink, our own art gallery, museum and botanical gardens.
Background
Office Overview
Our University has a proud history of philanthropy stretching back to its foundation in 1900. With a clear vision to change the lives of the people of Birmingham, Joseph Chamberlain raised the funds required to build the University from citizens and corporations based locally and around the globe. Since then philanthropy has continued to play an important role in shaping the University. There have been a number of fundraising campaigns, including a £1m urgent capital appeal after the Second World War and a £1.4m campaign to fund the Vale ‘student village’ in the 1960s. In 2015 we closed the Circles of Influence Campaign, raising £193 million, making it the largest HE fundraising campaign outside Oxbridge and London.
The University has global reach, including several partnerships with other leading universities around the world, and is grounded in our local community, having opened the first fully comprehensive University secondary school in the country in 2015. We are an ambitious and successful research-intensive University (one of the top 100 research-led universities globally) and have produced 10 Nobel Prize winners, including three who received their awards in 2016. Academics here are exploring the impact of climate change, helping to address global health epidemics, and changing our understanding of Shakespeare. Our students come from nearly 150 countries and our flagship outreach programmes mean that almost 25% of our student population come from underrepresented backgrounds: one of the highest proportions in the UK.
DARO exists to support this academic and student community by engaging, inspiring, and celebrating alumni, individuals, and charitable funders who give their money, time, and networks to support the University’s strategic priorities. The Office, which is comprised of five teams, is focused on fundraising and volunteering from alumni, organisations and individuals who are passionate about changing lives, through funding various research projects, supporting student bursaries, mentoring students, and providing internships, as well as providing a versatile programme of engagement opportunities for our global alumni community.
Role Summary
We are looking for an Associate Director of Fundraising to maximise our enormous income generation potential; coach, nurture and challenge the well-established fundraising team; and deliver a bold and innovative strategy to support our exciting Birmingham in Action campaign, raising significant gifts yourself from a developed and growing pool. You will lead a team of expert Major Gift and Legacy fundraisers and our Donor Experience team to work across the campus and deliver an institution-wide service to generate income, networks and influence. You will be responsible for creating a motivational and supportive environment for your team with professional development opportunities for all members. You will maintain oversight of all significant relationships, including your own portfolio, and be the first point of contact for the amazing opportunities in this space. As a key member of DARO’s Senior Leadership Team you will help shape the strategic direction of the function and work collaboratively with other Associate Directors to take our campaign to the next level, as well as plan for the next campaign.
Main Duties
Leadership and performance
* Lead, deliver, and monitor the Birmingham in Action fundraising strategy, including delivery of DARO KPTs.
* Play an active role in the office’s Senior Leadership Team to contribute to setting the strategic direction, providing technical insight and delivering the campaign objectives.
* Work collaboratively with other members of the Senior Leadership Team on key projects internally and across the University.
* Lead a team of 16 Fundraising and Donor Experience colleagues with direct line management of the Head of Philanthropy, Head of Philanthropy (Asia), Head of Philanthropy (North America), Head of Legacies and Endowments, and the Donor Experience Manager.
* Coach, nurture and challenge team members to ensure they thrive and reach their potential, and be responsible for targets.
* Lead by example to ensure that all colleagues exhibit the DARO values and behaviours, work with pace and energy and create a culture of positivity.
* Provide support for professional development and opportunities for Fundraising Team members (individually and as a team).
* Celebrate exceptional team and individual performance whilst acting on underperformance.
* Develop and implement a culture (including policies and procedures) that promotes equality and values diversity and inclusion.
* Support the University’s sustainability agenda through resource efficient working.
* Any other duties commensurate with the grade.
Fundraising and Relationship Development
Refine and deliver a bold, innovative, and impactful fundraising strategy aligned to the overall DARO strategy and the University’s Strategic Framework:
* Inspirational leadership of the Fundraising Team, delivering against specific targets of funds raised, prospect pipelines progress, management of endowments and legacies, and exceptional stewardship.
* Responsibility for the fundraising strategy including the identification, cultivation, solicitation and stewardship of prospective donors for the campaign priorities and other opportunities.
* Refine and deliver systems and structures across the Fundraising Team to enable both effective day-to-day management and long-term strategic leadership within DARO.
* Ensure that the Fundraising Team is effectively directed, has clear ownership, and works collaboratively within DARO and across the University.
* Be the point of contact and escalation for any opportunities and challenges within this donor portfolio.
* Raise significant philanthropic income from your own prospect pool with a focus on securing complex and/or ambitious relationships.
* Lead the relationships with The Heads of College for the College of Medicine and Health (CMH) and the College of Arts and Law (CAL), ensuring that fundraising asks across DARO align with college priorities.
* Represent DARO at working groups and committees across the University to ensure that the office is aligned with the University’s strategic priorities.
* Have oversight of the fundraising budget and work collaboratively with the Head of Operations to ensure resource is budgeted for effectively, and actively monitored.
Ethical engagement and legislation
Ensure the University’s fundraising programme is conducted ethically and adheres to relevant regulation:
* Ensure all partnerships within the portfolio are delivered in compliance with the relevant legislation (ICO, Fundraising Regulator) as well as University procedures.
* Be a role model for best ethical practice in fundraising and provide quality assurance that the Fundraising Team is successfully collaborating with other aspects of compliance led activity within DARO – for example, TPS, Due Diligence, PCI-DSS, ICO (including PECR), and GDPR.
Stakeholder Management
As a member of the DARO Senior Leadership Team, represent the office to key internal and external stakeholders using a wide range of communication skills:
* Represent DARO to all internal stakeholders, as a member of the Senior Leadership Team.
* Work closely with members of the University Executive Board, and other senior colleagues/academics as necessary.
* Work internally with Heads of College, academics, and professional services colleagues (Business Engagement & Research Impact, Research Support Services Division, Finance, Birmingham Global etc.) to ensure the Fundraising strategy maximises income, and impacts. This will include the relationship management of key academics across the University.
* Manage of a pool of High-Net-Worth Individuals within the UK and overseas and co-canvass prospects in your team.
Required Knowledge, Skills, Qualifications, Experience
Leadership and strategic thinking
* Substantial experience of leading and managing a fundraising team and acting as the expert authority in the area.
* The ability to think and plan strategically, to develop, implement and deliver the fundraising strategy and, as part of the Senior Leadership Team, the overall DARO strategy.
* Proven record of developing innovative and practical solutions to deliver a strategy.
* The ability to work with initiative, to take decisions and think creatively and laterally.
* Strong sense of professional integrity.
* The ability to work effectively both in a team and independently.
* Actively promote equality and diversity to internal and external stakeholders.
* Able to use data to identify equality and diversity issues.
* Experience of developing interventions to address equality and diversity issues.
Knowledge and experience
* A strong track record of leading a fundraising team.
* A strong track record of securing leadership and principal (6 and 7 figure) gifts for charitable causes.
* Extensive experience of working to and delivering against specific targets.
* An understanding of, and experience in, share, legacy, and other ways of tax-efficient giving in the UK and overseas and an understanding of the relevant charity laws.
* Passion for, commitment to, and knowledge of higher education and the role of philanthropy.
* Experience of working in a large, complex organization.
* Awareness and understanding of University activities and objectives.
* An empathy with and understanding of the worlds of business and academia.
* Understanding of and empathy with the vision and mission of the University of Birmingham, specifically the Birmingham in Action campaign.
Communication and relationship building
* Experience of building long-term relationships with leading philanthropists in the UK and overseas.
* The ability to write compelling proposals for a range of prospects/donors.
* Strong interpersonal skills and the ability to interact effectively with a wide range of audiences including senior colleagues, donors, volunteers, academics, students, and external organisations.
* Negotiation skills and experience of using substantial expertise to persuade and influence a range of stakeholders and senior management.
* The ability to represent the University internally and externally with confidence, diplomacy and authority.
General
* Educated to Degree level (or equivalent level qualifications), or extensive experience of working in a complex organisation plus substantial relevant managerial experience.
* Ability to work to tight deadlines and prioritise own workload under pressure.
* Ability to exercise a substantial degree of independent professional responsibility and discretion.
* Proven experience of solving complex problems.
* Experience of resource and financial management.
* Excellent general IT skills, with a strong working knowledge of Microsoft Office.
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