Fundraising and Donor Relations Executive job description
A Fundraising and Donor Relations Executive finds new donors, looks after existing ones and helps an NGO raise funds from individuals, companies and foundations. The role supports the organisation's financial stability.
Why the role exists
NGOs rely on a mix of individual donors, corporate social responsibility budgets, foundations and events. The Fundraising and Donor Relations Executive builds and maintains these relationships, writes proposals and thanks, and keeps donor records. The role reports to the head of fundraising or the director.
What the person does
- Identify prospective individual, corporate and foundation donors that match the organisation's cause and geography.
- Draft proposals, concept notes and pitch emails with programme and finance teams, and follow up with prospects.
- Meet corporate CSR teams and foundation officers to explain programmes and understand their funding priorities.
- Run donation campaigns around festivals, giving days and appeals using email, WhatsApp, social media and events.
- Send prompt acknowledgements, receipts and impact updates to every donor through the right channel.
- Maintain the donor database with gift history, contact preferences and relationship notes.
- Plan donor visits to project sites and brief programme staff on what the donors want to see.
- Report fundraising progress and pipeline to the head of fundraising and flag cases that need senior attention.
Skills and tools
- Donor prospecting and relationship building
- Proposal and concept note writing
- Corporate CSR pitching and follow-up
- Digital fundraising on email, WhatsApp, social media and payment links
- Donor database use in a CRM, Excel or an NGO tool
- Event planning for appeals, galas and donor visits
- Spoken and written English and local languages
- Honesty and careful handling of donor information
Education and experience
Preferred, never a bar: equivalent experience counts.
- Graduate degree in communications, management, social work or any stream is preferred, or equivalent experience.
- Experience in fundraising, sales or corporate partnerships for a non-profit is preferred.
- Evidence of writing proposals or running campaigns is useful.
- Comfort with meeting donors and travelling to events and project sites is preferred.
How the work is judged
- Funds raised from individuals, companies and foundations against the organisation's plan
- New donor relationships opened and existing ones retained
- Proposals are submitted on time and are of consistent quality
- Donors receive timely thanks, receipts and updates
- Donor records are accurate and used well for follow-up
Where the role can lead
- Senior Fundraising Executive or Manager of Corporate Partnerships
- Head of Fundraising or Director of Resource Mobilisation
- Moves into grants, communications or programme leadership with donor expertise
Interview questions to ask
Ask every candidate the same questions in the same order and score them against written anchors, so the decision rests on the work and not the impression.
- Tell us about a campaign or pitch that raised money for a cause. What did you do and what did you learn?
- A corporate donor wants quick visible results that the programme cannot deliver. How do you respond?
- How would you approach a first meeting with a CSR head at a company you have never worked with?
- An individual donor stops giving after two years. What do you do?
- How do you keep your pipeline honest when a promised gift does not come?
- A donor asks for details about how their gift was spent. How do you get and share the answer?
Hiring tips for this role
- Ask for specific results the candidate has helped raise and what their part was. Team credit can hide weak individual contribution.
- Test writing with a short donor update or pitch email based on a real programme summary.
- A common mistake is paying more for a polished talker than for someone who follows up and keeps accurate records.
- Be clear about what the person may promise donors. Check with your adviser what rules apply to gifts, receipts and foreign funds in your organisation.
Questions about hiring a fundraising and donor relations executive
The person finds donors, writes proposals, runs campaigns, meets CSR and foundation contacts, and keeps donors informed. They also maintain the donor database and report on the pipeline.
Fundraising focuses on winning new gifts and grants. Donor relations focuses on thanking, updating and keeping existing donors. In many small NGOs one person does both, so the job description should say so.
Often yes, but the employer sets them. Judge the person on results, relationship quality and honest reporting rather than pushing donors too hard. Agree how targets are set before the offer.
Yes. GullyHR helps with permanent hiring: it agrees the job description with you, finds and screens candidates with non-profit fundraising or partnership experience, and supports the offer stage. The decision stays with you.
Hiring a fundraising and donor relations executive?
GullyHR runs talent acquisition for permanent roles. We agree the job description with you, find and screen candidates against it, and support the offer through to joining. We recruit permanent employees. We do not supply contract or temporary staff.