Prospects Research Officer

Job Reference tbigc/TP/5126/130

This job has been closed.

Number of Positions:
1
Contract Type:
Fixed Term/Full Time
Contract Details:
1 Year
Salary:
Competitive
Working Hours:
35 Hours per week
Location:
London
Closing Date:
23/05/2020
Seniority level:
External Relations
Company Industry:
Generation Global
Job Function:
United Kingdom

Focus of the Role

With an exciting agenda in place, the Institute aims to strengthen its fundraising operation so that it can support its ongoing development, growth and expanding influence. We are looking to recruit an Officer to join our small and dynamic team in London to support this effort and diversify our donor base to include a broad range of supporters including Individuals, Foundations, Corporates, Government Agencies and other Institutions. As a member of the Institute, you will be joining an international staff community of c.200 people, based in 4 continents.

Job Introduction

The Prospect Research Officer will support the Institute’s fundraising efforts by growing and evaluating the pool of potential and current donors and partners. The prospect development work will contribute to our ability to make strategic decisions regarding fundraising initiatives and in pursuing opportunity leads. The role will play a pivotal role in allowing fundraisers and project teams to focus on building strong relationships with current and potential funding partners.

Key Responsibilities

The duties of this post-holder and any other duties assigned by the Development Operations Manager are:

  1. Prospect Research and Donor Intelligence (60%)
  • Utilise direct engagement and desktop research to collect, analyse and evaluate data across various donor categories.
  • Identify and inform donor engagement strategies including Foundations, Corporate, Government Agencies (e.g. USAID, DFID) and research funders.
  • Conduct prospect research towards developing a healthy and robust pipeline for the Institute and its programmes.
  1. Prospect and Opportunity Management Support (20%)
  • Work with the Development Operations Manager and Stakeholder Manager to deliver regular data cleansing activities.
  • Support the Development Operations Manager and Stakeholder Manager to develop and embed a system for prospect and opportunity evaluation, supporting templates and work with others to ensure the process goes live.
  • Work with the Stakeholder Manager,fundraisers and program teams to implement and manage a process for monitoring prospects and donor activity in the media for capture and action (stewardship).
  1. Prospect/Opportunity Analysis (20%)
  • Through direct engagement and desk research, monitor trends with prospective and partner organisations including those bidding for opportunities of interest.
  • Present prospect/opportunity development data in an engaging and accessible way to increase comprehension and usability.

              Know-How

  • Apply expertise to develop a workflow of donor-client and prospect research to ensure timely delivery of materials to decision-makers and front-line fundraisers.
  • Utilizing donor modeling techniques to identify and qualify new prospects.
  • Support the collation and development of a data bank of donor intelligence from the field.

Accountability

  • Support the development of new prospects processes, including the prospect research, assignments, and qualification period for programmes.
  • Track pipeline movements and updates from fundraisers and programme staff.
  • Support the embedding of an opportunity capture system for project teams.
  • Actively collaborate with fundraising and programme staff to review the accuracy of systems that manage portfolios and pipelines.

Responsibility

  • Produce well-researched prospect profiles and opportunity briefs; support fundraising Heads to devise donor engagement strategies for priority donors.
  • Coordinate Moves Management or Opportunity Stage meetings and ensure information is fed back into appropriate areas such as pipelines and fundraising meetings.
  • Utilise internal and external data to support and inform organizational priorities and priority donor engagement strategies.
  • Contribute to the development of strong and meaningful funding partnerships.

Judgement

  • Evaluate prospecting and qualification activities to propose improvements.
  • Assess the potential and risk of funding opportunities. 
  • Support a canvasser model through recommendations for the assignment of prospects to appropriate fundraising and programme staff members.​
  • Develop best practice guidelines for prospect research and donor intelligence gathering systems.
  • Empower teams through briefings and research profiles.

Apply and develop lessons learned approaches across the organisation

Person Specification

The Prospect Research Officer will support the Institute’s donor acquisition strategy and retention programme. The Officer will work with project heads and fundraising teams on two continents towards ensuring we build strong and meaningful funding partnerships around the world.

Therefore the successful candidate for the role should be able to display the majority of the following:

  • Demonstratable research and analytical skills preferably at Bachelor and/or Masters level
  • A minimum of two years’ experience in prospect research and analysis or market intelligence.
  • Expertise in prospect research, proactive prospecting methodologies, and deep understanding of capacity/affinity indicators. Knowledge of trends of donor strategies, desired.
  • Knowledge of the donor landscape, particularly for one or more of these donor groups: foundations, corporate clients, government donors such as USAID and research funders. Understanding of the research role in shaping donor engagement strategies would be highly valued. 
  • Strong analytical skills, expertise in predictive modelling and data analysis and the relevant tools for undertaking such work including translating such information to prospect ratings
  • Experience in working with CRM and Databases is essential (Salesforce, Microsoft Dynamics and SharePoint desirable)
  • Strong interpersonal and communication skills, problem-solving attitude, and ability to work both independently and as a collaborative team player

About The Institute

The Tony Blair Institute for Global Change (TBI) aims to equip political leaders and governments to build open, inclusive and prosperous societies in an interconnected world. We do this through our Policy Futures ideas and our Government Advisory Practice.  What we believe in as an organisation:

  • Open and Progressive – you’ll believe in the value of teamwork
  • Bold and Pragmatic – you’ll approach everything you do with integrity and authenticity
  • Optimistic Changemakers – you’ll be focused on results

TBI believes embracing diversity and inclusion make us a better place to work.  It’s our goal to reflect everyone in society and we actively welcome applications from individuals and groups who are under-represented in the workplace. We celebrate difference be it ethnicity, religion, age, gender or gender identity, sexual orientation or disability.

We’ll only ever asses you on your abilities and fit for a role. We’re happy to discuss any adjustments you need to ensure a level playing field during recruitment and, if you're successful, discuss any adjustments you might need to thrive in your role.