Compassion in World Farming International was founded in 1967 in England by Peter Roberts, a British farmer who became horrified by the development of intensive factory farming. Over 50 years ago, Peter decided to make a difference and take a stand against this farming system. In his lifetime, Peter saw the demise of veal crates and gestation crates in the UK, and in Europe achieved recognition that animals are sentient beings. Compassion in World Farming, Inc. was incorporated in 2014 and received 501(c)(3) status in 2015. The USA is an important international office for Compassion, as part of their increasing global reach.

This is an exciting time to join the Global Philanthropy team at Compassion in World Farming and contribute to delivering their mission to end factory farming. With growing awareness of the impact of factory farming, not only on animal welfare, but on human health and the environment, now is a unique moment to help raise money for Compassion’s work and bring new donors on board.

The Global Philanthropy team has a strong track record, growing income from £300K in 2012/13 to over £4.3M in 2023/24. Of that, $1.6M was raised in the US. In 2023, Compassion launched a three-year strategy, alongside a fundraising growth plan which aims to significantly grow income by 2030.

Purpose of role

In this role, you will develop a strategy of fundraising from foundations, working closely with the US Director of Philanthropy to develop a plan to deliver annual income targets and growth plans in the coming years. You will be responsible for fundraising from foundations based in the US including developing and writing proposals, budgets and reports. Your focus will be to manage relationships with existing $10K+ donors, providing them with scrupulous and punctual account management through meetings, written updates and reports. New business growth is a priority, with a focus on expanding the number of $10K funders. You will work closely with US and international programs colleagues to identify funding opportunities and build creative and compelling proposals. Strong relationship management skills, excellent organization and writing skills, and a creative and energetic spirt are essential to the success of this role.

You will report to the US Director of Philanthropy (Ro Conder) as part of a dynamic and supportive team of 3 major donor fundraisers in the US and a Global Philanthropy team of 12 in the UK and Europe and a Global Fundraising team of over 50. You will work closely with your international counterparts supporting strategy, proposal and budget development maintaining alignment across markets.

Essential duties and responsibilities include the following:

1. Secure annual revenue from foundations in portfolio and prospects

• Solicit donors annually or as their grant schedule permits to achieve the annual budget target.
• Build and manage long-term relationship with a large portfolio of existing funders and prospects to generate increased support and engagement with Compassion’s work, including multi-year grants.
• Deliver excellent and innovative tailored stewardship (e.g. regular reports, updates, and donor meetings).

2. Proactively research and cultivate a pipeline of new prospects

• Develop a fundraising growth strategy for foundations in the US, identifying the biggest opportunities for growth.
• Develop a strong pipeline of new funding sources (through desk research, networking etc.), working with the Global Senior Prospect Research Manager to identify and prioritize new prospects.
• Use Salesforce dashboards and reports to manage the prospect pipeline and achieve KPIs.

3. Strategic oversight of income targets and KPIs

• Drive income to meet challenging annual targets by securing donations from new foundations.
• Monitor progress against targets, using KPIs and data to develop and adapt the strategy, identify priorities and identify opportunities for growth, and deliver KPI reports as required.
• Contribute to annual budget and planning process through developing budgets and strategic plans for the US foundation revenue stream.

4. Develop compelling funding proposals, cases for support and impact reports

• Work closely with program staff to develop compelling funding opportunities from programmatic priorities.
• Develop a comprehensive understanding of Compassion’s programmatic priorities, the ‘case for support’ and the impact of factory farming on animals, people and the planet.
• Produce high quality, well-written funding applications, using plain English to distil complex programmatic information into compelling proposals.
• Use creativity and innovation to keep donor communications engaging and unique.
• Extrapolate financial budgets and data for use in donor proposals and reports, working closely with the finance team to ensure accuracy.

5. Maintain accurate donor records for financial reporting and evaluation

• Keep comprehensive records (including financial) of all fundraising related activities, in line with CIWF’s US data protection guidelines.
• Work with finance and program colleagues to provide timely, precise and appropriate updates to key funders regarding the charity’s activities (including the use of restricted funds).
• Use Salesforce to record donor activity logging all donor communication, interactions, findings and ensuring accurate financial reporting.

6. Contribute to the wider team’s activity and success

• Contribute to the strategic direction of the US Philanthropy team and the wider Global Philanthropy team, contributing expertise on foundations and inputting into growth plans and objectives.
• Contribute to the development and implementation of the Global Philanthropy team’s policies and processes.
• Ensure fundraising literature is kept up to date, available to members of the team and other colleagues as appropriate.

Additional responsibilities and requirements

• Actively support the promotion, delivery and embedding of equality, inclusion, and diversity.
• Help create a fundraising ethos within the organization to benefit the work Compassion does now and in the future.
• As part of your employment, you may be required to travel domestically and internationally to carry out the duties of your employment.
• There may be a requirement to carry out some work outside of office hours. This work is to be arranged in accordance with procedures.
• Provide training at the request of your line manager, senior manager or director, on your areas of expertise, to other members of staff, work experience students, trustees, etc.
• Take due and reasonable care of oneself and others in respect to Health & Safety at Work.
• Act in accordance with the principles of Compassion in World Farming International’s Ethical Policy.
• Comply with data protection legislation and Compassion in World Farming International’s requirements for the protection of personal information and the privacy of individuals.
• The job description is not exhaustive, and you may be asked to carry out additional tasks which are appropriate to your job role, as required by your line manager.

Requirements to carry out the job effectively (and which may be developed). The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required.

Experience and Skills

Essential:

• Proven ability in fundraising from foundations, including significant experience independently preparing complex proposals, reports, and budgets for donors.
• Demonstrable experience of successfully securing grants of 6+ figures.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills, ability to write clearly and persuasively.
• Proven ability to inspire and motivate donors.
• Able to be entrepreneurial, identifying and seizing new opportunities.
• Budgeting and financial management skills.
• Good IT skills including Microsoft Office applications.

Desirable:

• Experience of fundraising for an animal welfare, environmental, or climate NGO.
• Bachelor’s degree in liberal arts, environment, or equivalent.
• Experience working with an international NGO or in an international context.

Personal Traits and Qualifications

Essential:

• Excellent understanding of philanthropic fundraising including prospect research, cultivation, gift solicitation and stewardship.
• Exceptional interpersonal and communications skills.
• Able to pioneer new ideas, adapt processes and create innovative solutions.
• A well-organized, methodical approach with attention to detail.
• Positive disposition; approachable and adaptable with a sense of humor.
• Interest in, combined with the ability to communicate enthusiastic for, Compassion’s mission and work.
• Ability to work on own initiative and as part of a team.
• Uses information effectively to present a persuasive case.
• Able to present complex information to small and large groups of people in an appropriate manner.
• Truly can-do attitude – used to thinking strategically AND making it happen.
• Personal motivation that inspires energy and commitment in the team.
• An analytical and questioning mind.
• Able to pioneer new ideas, adapt processes and create innovative solutions.
• Excellent proof-reading skills.
• Ability to work effectively within Eastern Time Zone hours while collaborating across global time zones and cultures.  

Desirable:

• Good working knowledge of Salesforce or equivalent CRM database.
• Proficiency in graphic design for crafting communication pieces such as reports, invitations and newsletters.

To apply for this role, please submit a copy of your CV/resume and a cover letter outlining your interest in the role and how you fulfil the requirements set out in the job announcement by clicking on the link below. 

Please contact Shoshana Grammer at shoshana@darylupsall.com for any queries you may have.

The deadline for application is Sunday 15th December 2024

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