Position Details
Development and Alumni Relations Office
Location: University of Birmingham, Edgbaston, Birmingham UK
Full time starting salary is normally in the range £56,021 to £64,914 with potential progression once in post to £84,644
Grade: 9
Full Time, Permanent
Closing date: 12th May 2024
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.
Find out more about the benefits of working for the University of Birmingham
Background
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.
The Development and Alumni Relations Office (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
As part of DARO’s ambitious plans, we are looking for a highly experienced ‘face-to-face’ fundraiser to join our team. You will be responsible for identifying, cultivating, and securing principal gifts, at the 7 and 8 figure level, from High Net Worth Individuals (HNWIs) and organisations from within the UK and internationally. Whilst our alumni audience will still be a focus, we aim to increase our engagement with, and support from, national and international philanthropists whose giving priorities match our own research strengths and ambitions. As a key member of DARO’s Senior Leadership Team you will help shape the strategic direction of the Principal Giving function and work collaboratively with other Associate Directors to take our campaign to the next level.
The University of Birmingham is partnering with Joanna Logan and Erin Hall-Westfall of Constellate Global Talent on this search. Please visit https://bit.ly/3UeDupF to download the candidate pack or contact them on info@weareconstellate.com for a confidential discussion about the role.
To apply, please send your CV and cover letter no later than midnight on Sunday 12 May to info@weareconstellate.com.
Please do not apply via the University of Birmingham website.
Main Duties
Fundraising and relationship building
The Associate Director of Principal Giving will deliver against set financial targets to secure year-on-year gift income growth, and a strong, sustainable pipeline of prospects to maximise future performance by:
Strategic and operational planning
The Associate Director of Principal Giving will develop and deliver strategic and operational plans that will increase the number of national and international philanthropists that are engaged with, and supporting, the University of Birmingham by:
Working collaboratively
With an understanding that fundraising is not a solo pursuit, but a co-ordinated approach that requires collaborative working both within and outside of the institution, the Associate Director of Principal Giving will:
General
Required Knowledge, Skills, Qualifications, Experience
Fundraising
Strategic thinking & understanding
Communication & interpersonal skills
General
Role context
Roles at this level will be senior professionals with high-level expertise, exercising within their particular functional area/section a substantial degree of independent professional responsibility and discretion, including the development and implementation of policies and processes. You will either lead a functional area or be a senior individual expert professional. You may have a deputising role for the most senior manager of the area. You are expected to resolve problems where there is a lack of precedent, requiring innovation and creativity to develop appropriate options. You will be responsible for setting quality and professional standards and managing service delivery against this or for providing professional expertise. Your work is likely to have a medium to long term horizon and you will typically work with a variety of people from several teams. You will also be able to make a major contribution to the longer-term strategic planning for your area, in line with the wider University strategy.
Core competencies/transferable skills
Working at this level you will be able to develop and successfully demonstrate the core competencies/transferable skills outlined in each of the areas shown below. You will be expected to take ownership for getting things done, including calling on others to join you in collaborative working groups as necessary. You will need to be flexible in supporting your department and wider University.
Planning and organising
Problem solving and decision making
Organisational understanding
Relationships and communication
To apply, please send your CV and cover letter no later than midnight on Sunday 12th May to info@weareconstellate.com.
Please do not apply via the University of Birmingham website.
View our staff values and behaviours here
We believe there is no such thing as a 'typical' member of University of Birmingham staff and that diversity in its many forms is a strength that underpins the exchange of ideas, innovation and debate at the heart of University life. We are committed to proactively addressing the barriers experienced by some groups in our community and are proud to hold Athena SWAN, Race Equality Charter and Disability Confident accreditations. We have an Equality Diversity and Inclusion Centre that focuses on continuously improving the University as a fair and inclusive place to work where everyone has the opportunity to succeed. We are also committed to sustainability, which is a key part of our strategy. You can find out more about our work to create a fairer university for everyone on our website.