Major Gifts Officer

Your principal duties and responsibilities will include:

• Supporting the delivery of the Major Gifts Strategy, improving Major Gifts performance.
• Supporting the Major Gifts cultivation/stewardship programme to grow the number of supporters financially contributing mid-value and major gifts.
• Managing, supporting and attending Major Gifts stewardship and cultivation meetings and events, including supplier liaison, supporter invite lists, follow-ups and budgets.
• Securing, managing and stewarding a portfolio of active mid-value donors and charitable trusts, delivering compelling bids and donor reports, forging and maintaining strong and enduring relationships.
• Researching current and potential major and mid-value donors to enable a donor-centric approach.
• Delivering and reporting on agreed development and stewardship projects, fundraising targets and KPIs.
• Maintaining accurate and up-to-date donor information on our CRM system.

These are ambitious times for the Charity as we have recently launched a new strategy that sees us growing our impact across the world exponentially. We now have an exciting opportunity for a proactive team player with outstanding decision-making skills and a strong customer service ethic to join our dedicated Fundraising Department.

As Major Gifts Officer, you will support delivery of agreed activity within the Major Gifts Team, successfully cultivating and stewarding a portfolio of mid-value individuals and trusts and delivering a range of agreed projects. Working closely with the Major Gifts Managers, you will evolve and continuously improve our supporter stewardship and cultivation activity in line with their capacity and propensity to donate, continuously evaluating performance.

Demonstrable experience of strong administrative and organisational support within a busy, fast-paced environment is required. Strong project management skills, with the ability to plan, organise, and prioritise workloads effectively and to coordinate and manage inputs from multiple stakeholders through to completion are essential. Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to draft clear, engaging, and professional communications are necessary. A confident verbal communicator, able to build positive relationships and engage with a range of internal and external stakeholders is important. Strong data management skills, and experience of working with databases or CRM systems are also required. Experience of managing multiple priorities and meeting deadlines, often across competing demands, whilst maintaining a high degree of accuracy and attention to detail is crucial. You should be able to support the planning and delivery of activities or events, including administrative and logistical coordination.

The Donkey Sanctuary is an international animal welfare organisation, offering care and protection to donkeys worldwide. Our vision is a world where every donkey has a good quality of life, and our mission is to improve the lives of donkeys every day. We will achieve this by transforming the lives of donkeys in need worldwide by fostering greater understanding, collaboration and support, and by promoting lasting, mutually life-enhancing relationships.

This is a full-time, permanent contract starting as soon as possible, working 35 hours per week, 08.30-16.30, Monday-Friday. This role is nominally based at our site in Sidmouth, Devon - an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty. We offer hybrid working, with the current requirement for site attendance estimated to be one day per week. We are keen to make the role work for you, and will consider flexibility if necessary (by agreement with the line manager).

Benefits include a competitive pension, 31 days holiday (including Bank holidays), rising to 34 with each full year of service, a wellbeing team, recorded Pilates and Yoga classes, long service awards, a Healthshield plan, free parking, and a subsidised restaurant and shop.