Role purpose

As the Head of Fundraising, you will be a key member of the senior leadership team, primarily responsible for strengthening our revenue pipeline and securing both unrestricted and restricted funding for Reach. Working closely with the Director of Partnerships and Growth and CEO, you will lead Reach’s global fundraising and strategic communications efforts, building enduring support for our critical platform-implementation work and driving long-term growth for the organization. You will play a key role in enhancing the organization's reputation and influence, positioning Reach as a leader in the delivery of global digital health solutions.

Working closely with the Director of Partnerships and Growth and the CEO, you will be responsible for identifying donor resources, raising funds, and writing proposals to ensure the long-term sustainability of the organization. Your role is crucial in driving Reach's financial growth by creating and executing successful fundraising strategies, as well as building strong relationships with donors and stakeholders. This position calls for a strategic thinker with outstanding communication skills, a strong network of potential funders and a deep commitment to our mission.

Key Focus Areas

Strategic Fundraising Development and Execution

The Head of Fundraising is responsible for developing and executing comprehensive fundraising plans leading to grant-making and disbursement of funds. This involves identifying new funding opportunities and revenue streams while aligning fundraising efforts with organizational priorities and projects. Additionally, this role requires assistance in developing business plans to generate income from various sources. Keeping track of and predicting fundraising trends is essential to maintaining stable funding levels and ensuring the organisation’s financial resilience.

Donor Cultivation and Relationship Management

Cultivating relationships with individual donors, corporate sponsors, and foundations is a crucial aspect of this role. The Head of Fundraising engages donors through personalized communication and stewardship activities, researches and identifies prospective donors and funding sources, and maintains an updated database of international and local donor organizations. Building and maintaining strong relationships with current and past donors and actively seeking new ones is vital. Additionally, monitoring donor websites for opportunities that align with the organization’s work is essential to expanding the donor base.

Fundraising and Grant Management

Organizing fundraising events and campaigns is another key responsibility. This includes coordinating logistics, marketing, and communications for events, as well as evaluating their success and identifying areas for improvement. Supported by the Partnerships and Growth team, the Head of Fundraising also researches and develops compelling grant proposals, manages the grant application process and reporting requirements, and ensures compliance with grant guidelines and deadlines. Regular reporting and updates to senior management and board members on fundraising activities and financial performance are also critical components of this role.

Major Duties and Responsibilities

Fundraising Strategy:

• Develop and execute comprehensive fundraising plans
• Identify new funding opportunities and revenue streams
• Manage private philanthropy, individual giving, and corporate contributions
• Maintain strong relationships with current and past donors and build new ones
• Align fundraising efforts with organisational priorities and projects
• Assist in developing business plans to generate income from various sources

Donor Cultivation:

• Cultivate relationships with individual donors, corporate sponsors, and foundations
• Engage donors through personalised communication and stewardship activities
• Research and identify prospective donors and funding sources
• Promote fundraising initiatives to external audiences
• Maintain a database of international and local donor organisations
• Monitor donor websites for opportunities matching the organisation's work

External Communications:

• Organize fundraising events and campaigns
• Work with the Communications Manager to coordinate logistics, marketing, and communications for events
• Evaluate event success and identify areas for improvement
• Represent the organisation at networking events, conferences, and meetings

Grant Writing and Management:

• Research and develop compelling grant proposals
• Manage grant application processes and reporting requirements
• Ensure compliance with grant guidelines and deadlines
• Write concept notes, project ideas, and proposals for timely submission

Performance Monitoring:

• Monitor fundraising activities and financial performance
• Analyse data to measure progress and identify areas for improvement
• Provide regular reports and updates to senior management and board members

Profile

Qualification

• Relevant degree or equivalent experience in a related field or industry.

Skills and Experience Required

• Fundraising Expertise: Proven track record of successful fundraising in the region of $10 million per annum or more in the nonprofit sector, with 10+ years in leading and managing public fundraising and income portfolios.
• Grant Writing and Management: Experience in writing successful grant proposals and managing relationships with grant-making organisations.
• Strategic and Innovative Thinking: Ability to develop and implement innovative fundraising strategies, with expertise in best practices and strategic communications, aligned with Reach’s organizational goals.
• Communication and Relationship-Building: Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to build relationships, convey Reach’s mission and impact, and inspire support from diverse stakeholders.
• Technical Proficiency: Strong understanding of fundraising techniques, donor cultivation, grant writing, and direct response digital fundraising. Includes proficiency in budgeting, financial reporting and managing fundraising budgets and allocating resources effectively to maximize fundraising outcomes.
• Commitment to Mission: Dedicated to health equity and technology.
• Leadership: Strong leadership skills with experience managing high-performing departments and collaborating with multi-disciplinary teams.
• Networking and Partnerships: Extensive network of contacts, with strong connections to implementation partners and large multilateral funding partners.
• Relationship Management: Cultivate and maintain relationships with key donors, partners, and stakeholders across Africa, including foundations, corporations, and high-net-worth individuals. Engage with African diaspora communities and local organizations to enhance support and collaboration.
• Donor relations: Proven ability to cultivate, solicit, and steward relationships with individual donors, corporate sponsors, and foundations/philanthropies.
• Independent and Remote Work: Comfortable working independently with distributed teams.
• Results-driven: KPI and results-driven, taking accountability and ownership of achieving income targets (OR Skill in analyzing fundraising data and metrics to optimize strategies and drive fundraising success).

Desirable Criteria

• Creativity: Ability to generate new fundraising ideas and propositions.
• Partnerships and Campaigns: Experience working with partnerships and multi-stakeholder fundraising campaigns.
• Audience Insights: Expertise in using audience research and insights to drive and optimize fundraising strategies.
• Donor Segments: Experience growing income from different donor segments, including high-net-worth individuals in the digital health space.
• Relevant industry exposure: Experience in Digital Health, non-profit, social impact industries.
• Adaptability and innovation: Ability to adapt to changing trends and innovate fundraising approaches tailored to the digital health nonprofit environment.

Terms of Appointment

• Employment Status: Full-time.
• Reporting to the CEO.

Role Location

The role demands comfort in working remotely and independently, with a willingness to travel frequently to meet key funding partners.

How to Apply

To apply for this position, please ensure you complete the Application Form provided below by 01 October 2024 (23:59 hrs, GMT +2). It is essential that you submit your CV in English, specifically in Microsoft Word format (.doc/.docx), not exceeding 10MB.

Applications in other languages or formats will not be considered.

Rest assured, all information will be handled with the utmost confidentiality.

SRI Executive is exclusively retained by Reach Digital Health to undertake this assignment.