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Development Manager, Trusts & Foundations (Fixed-term role)

Job purpose and background

CDP’s Global Development Team is ambitious, dynamic and at the heart of everything CDP does. As Development Manager, a key aspect of your role will be working with the team to identify and develop strong relationships with trusts and foundations internationally. With a team member supporting with grant management, you’ll have space to innovate and put donors first and to use your extensive experience to lead the development of successful grant applications. Half of CDP’s global income of circa £23 million comes from grants and there is significant potential for growth.

This is an important role in an expanding team. You’ll be the kind of person who gets out from behind your desk to meet people, influence and achieve long lasting, mutually beneficial relationships. As with any expanding organisation there are challenges – you’ll need to be determined, tenacious and focused on solutions.

Main duties and responsibilities

  • Manage a portfolio of current strategic donors, building strong relationships and implementing creative solicitation plans to maximise donor engagement and income.
  • Research, develop and secure income from new donors, with a strong focus on funders with a potential to give 6 and 7 figure grants.
  • Write high quality funding proposals and reports,
  • Develop an excellent knowledge of CDP’s work, liaise with colleagues to prepare and present high-quality information such as tailored presentations and proposals for the donor. This includes working closely with colleagues in London and overseas.
  • Build excellent external working relationships at all levels with donors, their staff and networks in order to directly influence their decisions.
  • Build excellent internal working relationships to engage staff at all levels in supporting donor stewardship to manage prospective and existing donors effectively.

Person specification

  • Proven ability to build and manage donor income streams, maximising the value of existing and prospective supporters.
  • Proven track record of relationship building to secure grants at six figure level.
  • Ability to understand diverse donor motivations and deliver a bespoke relationship to meet these. Demonstrable skill in adapting written and verbal communications for a philanthropy audience.
  • Excellent face to face, interpersonal, negotiating and persuasive skills.
  • Confidence in working with senior stakeholders internally and externally, using tact and diplomacy.
  • Extensive experience of bespoke proposal and report writing for a philanthropy audience at five and six figure level.
  • Excellent numeracy and attention to detail, ability to analyse and prepare budgets.
  • Experience of managing the complexities of restricted income projects.
  • Organised and methodical approach to plan and deliver against a varied workload, managing competing priorities under your own initiative and to strict deadlines.

This is a full-time, 12-month role based at CDP’s Central London office reporting to CDP’s Senior Development Manager - Trusts & Foundations. CDP staff are currently home-based. Flexible working will be considered.

Salary and benefits: £40,000 - 45,000 per annum dependent on experience, annual discretionary bonus, 30 days’ holiday, generous non-contributory pension provision, life assurance and other benefits.

Interested applicants must be eligible to work legally in the UK.

Before you apply

We’ll only use the information you provide to process your application. For more details on how we use your information, see our applicants privacy notice. By emailing us your CV and covering letter, you are permitting CDP to use the information you have provided for recruitment purposes.

How to apply

To apply please email your CV and a covering letter setting out how you meet the required skills and experience or key responsibilities, which should be no more than two pages, to [email protected] with ‘Development Manager, Trusts & Foundations’ in the subject, by 9am 19th March 2021.


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