| Detail | For this role |
|---|---|
| Department | NGO and Social Sector |
| Level | Manager |
| Reports to | Executive Director |
| Direct reports | Grant Writer, Resource Mobilisation Officer, Fundraising Executive |
| Experience | 6 to 10 years in fundraising or resource mobilisation |
Fundraising Manager job description template
Copy this job description, replace the text in square brackets and post it on your careers page or a job portal.
Job title: Fundraising Manager
Department: NGO and Social Sector
Reports to: Executive Director
Location: [City], [office, branch or site]
About the role
A Fundraising Manager leads how an NGO raises money, across grants, CSR, institutional and individual donors and digital campaigns. They build the fundraising plan, own the donor pipeline, lead proposals and reporting, and steward existing donors so they give again. The role reports to the Executive Director. A good fundraising manager keeps the organisation funded against its budget, grows a mix of reliable income sources, and keeps donors informed and confident enough to renew.
Key responsibilities
- Build the annual fundraising plan with income targets by source and a donor pipeline.
- Identify grant, CSR and institutional opportunities that fit the organisation's programmes.
- Lead proposal development with programme and finance teams and submit on time.
- Steward existing donors with reports, updates and visits so they renew and increase support.
- Run individual giving and digital campaigns and track response and conversion.
- Negotiate grant terms and budgets and make sure conditions are deliverable.
- Track the pipeline, income against target, and reporting deadlines for every donor.
- Coordinate timely, accurate donor reports with programme and finance colleagues.
- Build the fundraising team's skills in proposal writing and donor relations.
- Keep donor records and consent up to date and handle donor queries and complaints.
Requirements
- Postgraduate in development, management or communications
- MBA or MA is an advantage
- Proven fundraising track record
- 6 to 10 years in fundraising or resource mobilisation
KRAs and KPIs for a Fundraising Manager
Key result areas for the appraisal form, each with a KPI you can measure every month or quarter.
| Key result area | How to measure it |
|---|---|
| Income target | Annual fundraising target achieved across grants, CSR and individual giving |
| Donor retention | Renewal rate of existing institutional donors above the annual target |
| Pipeline | Qualified pipeline kept at the level needed to cover next year's budget |
| Proposal success | Proposal win rate at or above the agreed benchmark |
| Reporting | Every donor report submitted on time and accepted without major revision |
| Compliance | Donor conditions and consent records met with no breach in the year |
Skills and tools
Tools used day to day: Donor CRM, MS Excel and PowerPoint, Proposal templates, Email marketing tools, Payment gateway dashboards.
Reporting line and career path
Next roles: Head of Fundraising, Deputy Director, Executive Director
Interview questions for a Fundraising Manager
- How do you build a fundraising plan that does not depend on a single large donor?
- How do you research and qualify a new institutional funding opportunity?
- How do you steward a donor so they renew and increase their grant?
- What makes a proposal stand out to a foundation or CSR funder?
- How do you handle a donor report that must show a target was missed?
- Tell me about the largest grant you raised and how you won it.
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What does a fundraising manager do in an NGO?
A fundraising manager leads how an NGO raises money across grants, CSR, institutional and individual donors and digital campaigns. They build the fundraising plan, manage the donor pipeline, lead proposals, and steward donors so they renew. Their job is to keep the organisation funded against its budget with a mix of reliable income sources.
What is the difference between a fundraising manager and a grant writer?
A fundraising manager owns the whole fundraising strategy, the donor pipeline and relationships, and the income target. A grant writer focuses on researching opportunities and writing strong proposals. The grant writer often reports to the fundraising manager, who decides which opportunities to pursue and manages the donors after the grant is won.
What qualifications do you need to be a fundraising manager?
Most fundraising managers hold a postgraduate degree in development, management or communications, and an MBA or MA helps. Employers value a proven fundraising track record, skill in proposal writing and donor relations, an understanding of grant conditions and budgets, and the ability to build a diverse and reliable funding mix.