Title: Manager, Philanthropic Partnerships

Reports To: Director of Development (DoD)

Location: Cambridge, MA (This can be a remote position, based in the U.S. Preference given to candidates on the East Coast or candidates who can work East Coast hours)
 

Classification: Full time, salaried (exempt)

Starting Salary: $80-85k

Agency Overview:

Founded in 2005, RefugePoint is a leading innovator in the refugee solutions space—identifying pathways to safety and self-reliance for refugees and building collaborative efforts to embed our insights more broadly into global humanitarian response. RefugePoint has core, cross-cutting principles, and values that define our work. We use a protection lens—prioritizing the most at-risk refugees and vulnerability over volume. We seek to be refugee-centered and anti-racist—with a priority to elevate and amplify refugee voices, increase refugee client involvement in our work through an advisory board, and build the capacity of refugee-led organizations in East Africa. We are committed to monitoring, evaluation, and learning—building an evidence base of what works. And we focus on building collaborations—understanding that change does not happen with one organization alone.

You will be joining a growing organization (115+ staff globally) that is spearheading new initiatives that are changing the face of humanitarian response, and we would be excited to have you as part of our team!

Position Overview:

Reporting to RefugePoint’s Director of Development (DOD), the Manager of Philanthropic Partnerships (MPP) manages RefugePoint’s portfolio of institutional funders (private and institutional foundations, government, corporate foundations) through all phases of donor development: identification, qualification/research, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship. The MPP will work closely with the DOD and CEO, as well as program staff in Kenya, Geneva, and elsewhere.

The MPP identifies opportunities to engage with new institutional funders (foundation, corporate, government), continues to build/grow relationships with existing institutional funders, and works with the DOD to develop a strategy around acquiring and managing a balanced portfolio of institutional grants. As the agency advances its strategic priorities, the MPP works closely with all members of the Development and Communications Team to ensure alignment of messaging and overall integration with established procedures.

The MPP researches institutional funding opportunities and assumes overall responsibility for developing and submitting all materials required by prospective institutional funders, including concept notes, proposals, program narratives, and budget documents (in coordination with the finance team). This will require a strong understanding of monitoring and evaluation, and applicants who have experience with MEL are preferred. The MPP will manage the overall proposal process, interfacing with other staff and consultants as appropriate to build organizational capacity for successfully securing and managing institutional awards.

The ideal candidate will be proactive, confident, and a self-starter that thrives in a fast-paced environment. S/he is persistent and driven to succeed in leading efforts to grow a robust pipeline of institutional philanthropic support and in setting and exceeding goals.

Primary Responsibilities:

• Create and refine an annual strategy for institutional donors (in partnership with the DOD), including managing the pipeline of prospects, conducting research, and managing all stages of the donor development cycle. This includes identification of new prospects, qualification of prospects, cultivation, solicitation and stewardship.
• Develop an annual funder cultivation plan for each institutional funder (prospects and current);
• Develop, write, and submit grant proposals and reports, including budgets, in coordination with relevant program and finance staff;
• Facilitate calls with prospective, new, and current donors—effectively and succinctly sharing about RefugePoint’s programs;
• Act as the organizational focal point for grants/grant management—advising on internal and donor policies, ensuring compliance with requisite regulations/policies, and identifying opportunities for growth and process improvements;
• Maintain internal communication with appropriate staff regarding grant activity and reporting requirements;
• Work closely with granting agencies to clarify policies, procedures, guidelines, and interpretation of application instructions;
• Oversee the development and submission of grant reports;
• Refine and apply go/no-go standard operating procedures to strategically determine whether to pursue grant opportunities;
• Manage grant writer(s) or independent contractors as needed; and
• Complete other duties as assigned to support the Development and Communications department

Qualities of the Successful Philanthropic Partnerships Manager:

• Excellent relationship skills and ability to maintain/grow relationships with key donors;
• Strategic thinking with the ability to develop a strong work plan
• Grasps new concepts and program ideas quickly, synthesizes complex information and articulates it for various audiences; experience doing context analysis and crafting need/problem statements is vital!
• Proactiveness, confidence, ambition;
• Highly organized, detailed oriented, time-efficient, and flexible able to prioritize competing assignments;
• Ability to translate an organization's strategy/objectives into operational delivery;
• Independent and collaborative with a team and staff across time zones

Qualifications:

• 5-7 years experience in a similar position desired;
• Excellent writing, editing, and proofreading skills, including experience drafting narratives that are compelling and persuasive while still technically sound; as well as superior verbal communication skills;
• At least two years of demonstrated experience in effectively researching institutional funding opportunities;
• Familiarity with managing a funder relationship in all stages of the donor management cycle: from the identification phase, cultivation, solicitation, stewardship;
• Demonstrated experience securing large, multi-year funding commitments from institutional funders (please include examples in your application);
• Experience managing application processes for preparing and submitting high-quality materials to meet grant application requirements;
• Excellent project, grant, and time management skills;
• Must be professional, personable, and able to maintain positive working relationships with all staff and stakeholders;
• Ability to travel, including internationally
• Knowledge of refugee issues is strongly preferred.
• Familiarity with the international development and/or refugee-focused philanthropy field required
• Strong understanding of Monitoring, Evaluation, and Learning (MEL) activities; Experience working with quantitative and qualitative data sets, with the ability to summarize and communicate key points and assumptions from the information

The position will remain open until filled, though the first round of shortlisting will begin December 1, 2021.

A cover letter is required. In the cover letter, please share your experience in the international development/refugee sector, as well as a story of one of your biggest accomplishments related to procuring institutional funding.

Requirements:

• Two writing samples from grant proposals or reports
• Sample list of successful grants/funding (Funder, Amount)

Benefits:

• 32 days of PTO (combined sick and vacation) in addition to 12 major holidays
• Flexible working schedule (4 or 5 day work week); potential for some remote work
• 8 weeks of paid parental leave and 4 weeks of unpaid parental leave
• Pre-tax flexible spending accounts
• Comprehensive health and dental benefits with a significant portion of the premiums paid by the organization
• Short-term and long-term disability and life insurance
• 401k plan with match up to 6% after 1 year of service

Compensation:

At RefugePoint, we strive to reward our employees equitably and transparently. This means that we pay our employees based on a clear and consistent methodology and without regard to identity or personal relationships. The starting salary range for this position is $80,000 - $85,000.

A diverse workforce helps RefugePoint realize its fullest potential. RefugePoint is committed to providing equality of opportunity for all persons in all aspects of employment without regard to race, religion, color, creed, national origin, sex, age, veteran status, sexual orientation, disability, ancestry, or any other factor unrelated to job performance.

Additionally, RefugePoint is aware that the pursuit of our vision, mission, and values is strengthened by integrating anti-racist principles in all that we do. Therefore, we are committed to being an anti-racist organization, and realize that doing so involves making a sustained commitment. Candidates from historically underrepresented group(s) are encouraged to apply.