Business Development & Partnerships Officer in Manchester

Location: Salford, Manchester

Reports To: Head of Business Development & Partnerships

Contract Type: Full-time

Here at Action For Humanity (AFH), we are looking for a Business Development & Partnerships Officer to join us at our International Office in Manchester. You will receive a competitive annual salary of £26 – 29k. AFH is an INGO that provides aid and assistance to people affected by natural and man‑made disasters. Our vision is a world of crises‑resilient communities. Our mission is to mobilise and respond to emergencies and critical needs through humanitarian, development and peace‑building action, helping affected communities survive, recover and build a better future.

As a Business Development & Partnerships Officer at AFH, you will play a pivotal role in supporting the organisation’s sustainability and growth by contributing to institutional fundraising efforts, strengthening strategic partnerships, and enhancing AFH’s capacity to secure and manage donor funding. The role involves aligning with global offices to foster relationships with donors, partners, and stakeholders in support of the organisation’s global objectives and projects. You will also assist in maintaining donor relations, expanding funding opportunities, and facilitating communication between key stakeholders, including internal departments and field staff. Additionally, you will support the oversight of partnerships with AFH’s implementing partners. The Business Development & Partnerships Officer will also support collaboration with country offices, implementing partners, and programme managers to ensure alignment with donor priorities and emerging trends.

Your key responsibilities will include:

• Strategic Donor Engagement and Partnerships: Support the cultivation and stewardship of relationships with a variety of donors and stakeholders, including institutional donors, UN agencies, INGOs, trusts, foundations, and private sector partners. Conduct donor and partner mapping and identify potential funding opportunities from bilateral, multilateral, philanthropic, and corporate sources. Contribute to the development of customised donor engagement plans and pitch materials in collaboration with the Communications and Programmes teams. Assist in coordinating donor meetings, preparing briefing notes, and ensuring timely follow‑up and relationship tracking.
• Proposal Development and Grant Acquisition: Collaborate with country offices and technical teams to support the design and development of high‑quality concept notes, proposals, and supporting documentation in response to donor opportunities. Coordinate internal workflows and inputs for multi‑stakeholder or multi‑country proposals, ensuring alignment with donor guidelines and internal standards. Provide technical inputs on proposal narratives, log frames, and budgets in close collaboration with Programme and Finance teams. Ensure all business development activities are carried out in alignment with AFH’s safeguarding, ethical fundraising, and data protection policies.
• Grant Management and Compliance: Support the grant lifecycle, including tracking deadlines, maintaining donor files, and ensuring compliance with internal policies and donor regulations. Monitor donor reporting requirements and support timely, high‑quality narrative and financial submissions. Maintain an up‑to‑date tracking system for proposals, active grants, and reporting schedules, ensuring relevant teams are regularly updated.
• Partnership Development and Due Diligence: Assist in identifying, assessing, and onboarding new implementing and funding partners through structured due diligence and screening processes. Maintain and improve AFH’s partner database, ensuring accuracy of documentation related to MoUs, assessments, and compliance checklists. Support the development of tools and guidelines to enhance partner engagement and capacity strengthening.
• Knowledge Management and Learning: Contribute to after‑action reviews and ensure lessons learned from proposal development and donor feedback are documented and shared across teams. Coordinate with Programmes and MEAL teams to integrate evidence, learning, and innovation into proposal and programme design. Participate in team learning initiatives and support the refinement of BD tools, templates, and processes.
• Cross‑Team Collaboration and Reporting: Work closely with Finance, Programmes, and MEAL teams to ensure coordinated inputs on donor budgets, compliance, and programmatic strategy. Contribute to departmental reports, including grant updates, performance summaries, and Board/trustee reports. Participate in internal planning meetings and support additional assignments as required by the Head of Business Development and Partnerships or Senior Management. Contribute to cross‑organisational initiatives and undertake additional duties as required, particularly in support of AFH’s strategic direction, partnership development, and institutional fundraising goals.

What we are looking for in our Business Development & Partnerships Officer:

• Education: Bachelor’s or master’s degree in development studies, Business Administration, or related field. Desirable: Certification in proposal writing, project management (e.g., PMD Pro, PRINCE2), or institutional fundraising.
• Experience: 3 years of experience within a charity or similar role. Experience developing proposals for public and private donors (desirable). Experience in grant lifecycle management, including proposal writing, donor reporting, and compliance monitoring. Exposure to donors such as FCDO, ECHO, USAID, UN agencies, and major foundations. Familiarity with project design methods and tools (including assessments, logical frameworks, and work planning). Knowledge of effective budgetary control and grant management.
• Skills & Attributes: Excellent verbal and written communication skills and the ability to organise and present information in a compelling way. Strong coordination and interpersonal skills, especially in multicultural and remote teams. Strong and well‑developed analytical skills coupled with experience of writing quality proposals and reports. Ability to translate technical content into persuasive donor language. Knowledge of donor compliance regulations, particularly on partnership management. Excellent critical thinking skills in order to problem‑solve independently; ability to address complex business challenges, adhere to tight deadlines, and adapt to changing variables. Team player with a positive, can‑do attitude; comfortable with continuously changing priorities in a fast‑paced environment. Communicate complex projects within demanding deadlines. Strong commercial intelligence and a result‑driven mind‑set. Able to think strategically and communicate to project teams/sponsors effectively. Strong IT skills including: Excel and Outlook. A willingness to work variable hours, with occasional weekend and evening work and to travel both nationally and internationally. An energetic, flexible and proactive approach with the ability to work both independently and cooperatively within a team setting.
• Languages: Fluent in English, verbal and written. Knowledge of Arabic, Urdu, French are desirable.

Benefits of joining us include:

• A salary of £26,000 to £29,000 per year depending on experience.
• 25 days’ holiday allowance plus your birthday off plus bank holidays.
• Hybrid and flexible working arrangements possible.
• Enhanced sick, maternity/paternity pay.
• Modern office in a central location with free parking, prayer space, breakout area, etc.
• Opportunities to travel on field visits/deployments after 2 years of service.
• Structured annual performance development review process, which informs annual salary reviews and involves training and development provision.
• EAP which includes access to free 24/7 helpline, counselling, and legal and financial advice.
• Hundreds of discounts and special offers, for shopping, dining out, joining a gym, and more.
• Annual away days/retreats involving training, team‑building, outdoor and social activities.
• Subsidised on‑site food.
• Subsidised sports and social activities.

This would be an ideal role for a Partnerships professional who is passionate about AFH’s causes. We are looking to appoint this role ASAP and will be reviewing applications on a rolling basis, so for the best chance of success please apply today – we would love to hear from you.

All offers of employment will be subject to satisfactory references and appropriate screening checks, which can include criminal records and terrorism finance checks. Action For Humanity also participates in the Inter‑Agency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme. In line with this Scheme, we will request information from job applicants’ previous employers about any findings of sexual exploitation, sexual abuse and/or sexual harassment during employment, or incidents under investigation when the applicant left employment. By submitting an application, the job applicant confirms their understanding of these recruitment procedures.