Development Manager at Strathmore University

Basic job summary:

The primary responsibility will be to plan and implement a comprehensive fundraising program to raise significant incomes towards the University’s fundraising needs. The task of the Development Manager is to prospect, cultivate, solicit, and achieve individual, corporate and institutional gifts of significant size for the different university programs, projects and priority areas by personal and intensive relationship outreach.

Duties & Responsibilities:

Project Development

• Facilitate participatory project identification, prioritization, conceptualization and development into a fundable proposal, assist in formulation of fundraising strategies and put in place systems for measuring impact 

Individual Giving

• The function is to prospect, cultivate, solicit, and achieve individual gifts of significant size through personal and intensive relationship outreach.
• The job holder will manage the entire process of individual giving, including prospect research, capacity determination, prospect cultivation, donation project conceptualization, proposal writing, periodic outreach, donation achievement, and donor relationship management.

Institutional Giving

• The incumbent will manage the entire process of institutional giving by researching, identifying, cultivating, and completing philanthropic possibilities with companies, foundations, and other philanthropic institutions.

Planning & Coordination

• The Manager will be responsible for planning and coordination of donor visits, communication among university units, and collaboration between faculty, donor round tables, networking
• meetings and capacity building initiatives. This will be done in close liaison with communications unit and other university offices.

Corporate Development and External Relations

• Assist the Development Director in promoting the University and enhance the brand affection amongst students, parents, and friends. This will also include fundraising and soliciting for sponsorship of facilities and events.

Assisting Volunteer Fundraisers

• To assist senior members of staff, Management Board and University Council member’s in fundraising activities to ensure that all prospects and donors are taken care of.

Other tasks

• May temporarily perform other duties assigned by the Director of Development including decision making responsibilities as appropriate in his/her absence to maintain operations and services at a high level performance.

Minimum Academic Qualifications:

• A relevant Bachelor’s degree from a recognized institution.
• Desirable: – Management qualification, Marketing or sales qualification, Public relations or Fundraising qualification/certification
• Master’s degree will be an added advantage.

Required Experience:

• At least five years’ relevant experience, in a senior position ideally in an alumni relation, fundraising environment; or, exceptionally, in a sales or marketing environment.
• Experience in an institution of higher learning is an added advantage.

 Competencies and Attributes

• Intuitive, Research and process skills
• Excellent writing and presenting skills
• Understanding of motivations for giving.
• Willingness and ability to work in the evening and at weekends when necessary.
• Extensive work outside office and frequent travel.
• Strong organizational and planning skills.
• Project management skills.
• Strong leadership skills.
• High ethical standards and professionalism
• Ability to handle confidential information.
• Excellent communication skills – engage and influence multiple stakeholders to build strong working relationships, with ability to galvanize teams and get buy in across departments.
• Innovative – creative and comfortable challenging status quo, brings creativity to problem-solving through the use of innovative frameworks and technological solutions.