Head of Fundraising & Communications

The successful candidate will be responsible for the fundraising pipeline and oversight of key communications channels across the Republic of Ireland.

This is a critical senior leadership role, responsible for developing and implementing a Fundraising and Communications strategy for the organisation in Ireland. The strategy will support income growth, strengthen brand awareness and engagement, and ensure communications are aligned with the organisation's identity, values and objectives.

Key Responsibilities

• Develop and deliver a Fundraising and Communications strategy designed to grow future income from its current base.
• Develop a robust donor pipeline to support sustainable income growth and increase brand awareness and engagement across ROI and NI.
• Lead and unite the Fundraising and Communications teams, taking responsibility for strategy, workplans, development and continuous learning.
• Ensure the Fundraising and Communications functions work collaboratively, sharing knowledge and identifying opportunities to create efficiencies.
• Represent Fundraising and Communications across the wider organisation, developing strong relationships with colleagues and ensuring the functions are involved in relevant projects and initiatives where they can add value or generate income.
• Monitor and manage performance against agreed financial and other KPIs and objectives.
• Develop business cases for investment, assess staff capacity, monitor income and expenditure budgets, and oversee forecasting and risk management.
• Operate as a senior leader, supporting the delivery of the fundraising and communications strategy, driving change and identifying opportunities for cross-team growth.
• Ensure all fundraising and communications activity complies with relevant legislation, regulation and industry best practice.
• Manage supplier and agency relationships, including contract negotiations and service-level agreements, ensuring optimum value.
• Ensure the organisation's communications strategy, creative messaging and brand identity are compelling, distinctive and appropriate for its audiences.
• Promote the organisation's fundraising programme and wider fundraising function within the voluntary and non-profit sector.
• Maintain strong awareness of fundraising trends, market developments and wider sector activity.

Experience & Skills

The successful candidate will have:

• Extensive expertise across fundraising, alongside a strong understanding of communications.
• Strong performance analysis skills.
• A proven track record of using communications to enhance fundraising performance and brand awareness.
• Extensive experience applying fundraising principles and techniques within a multi-channel, multi-disciplinary environment to deliver significant financial returns and excellent supporter stewardship.
• Excellent interpersonal skills, with the ability to influence at senior level and build strong, collaborative relationships across an organisation.
• Substantial experience in strategic planning and development, statistical and data analysis, and deploying investment based on robust performance projections.
• A critical and analytical approach, with a demonstrated ability to identify solutions and improve existing processes to positively influence performance and outcomes.
• Excellent leadership and people management skills, including experience leading teams through change and building a high-performance culture.
• Strong stakeholder management and influencing skills.
• Strong financial management experience, including managing budgets, developing spending plans and delivering financial reporting.
• The ability to communicate an organisation's brand values in powerful and engaging ways to increase understanding, deepen engagement and inspire support across a range of audiences.