Founded in 2004, the Centre for Social Justice (CSJ) is one of the UK’s most influential cross-party think tanks. We’re here to challenge conventional thinking and put social justice at the heart of politics. Our goal is to break the cycle of poverty by tackling its root causes, not just managing the symptoms.

Over the last 20+ years, we have shaped some of the most significant welfare and justice reforms in a generation. Our work has historically focused on the ‘five pathways to poverty’: educational failure; family breakdown; worklessness; addiction; and serious personal debt. Faced with emerging social challenges, we are now increasingly looking at long-term social and cultural challenges – including our award-winning Lost Boys work.

The CSJ Foundation was established to magnify and amplify the crucial role played by charities and social enterprises around the country. We are committed to ensuring the voices of these grassroots organisations are elevated to national decision-makers, bringing a much-needed frontline experience into national policymaking. Utilising local networks and a philanthropic platform to guide investment, the CSJ Foundation ensures that charities who are fighting the root causes of poverty receive the right support, both in policymaking and funding.

The CSJ Foundation is looking for a Development Manager to join its team to help grow and develop the range of funders we work with. The successful candidate will support the CSJF’s income and fundraising activity working closely with colleagues to devise strategies to engage with new prospects and develop fresh business opportunities. 

The CSJ Foundation has big ambitions to grow its work over the next three years, central to this work is our growing network of supporters. The post-holder will be responsible for managing processes that lead to securing support from existing funders while developing strategies to approach new ones. The role requires first class organisation skills mixed with a flair for identifying new opportunities and trying new approaches. We are looking for someone equally comfortable with office-based work and external-facing business development. A background in fundraising and/or donor stewardship is desirable. 

The Development Manager will work closely with the CSJ’s established Development Team alongside the CSJF’s Managing Director. The role will leverage the CSJ’s proven expertise in business development/fundraising and apply it to the CSJ Foundation. The role will be wide-ranging covering all stages of the donor journey from new business prospecting to stewardship of existing supporters. 

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES 

·       Oversee the CSJF’s internal income reporting process and fundraising activity including regular reporting and internal presentations 

·       Use CRM systems including Salesforce to maintain accurate record keeping 

·       Track income-generating activities and monitor actions 

·       Create prospecting material for new funders, focused on winning new supporters 

·       Be an ambassador for CSJF at external events and receptions 

·       Proactively identify new stakeholders and prioritise getting ‘out there’ to meet them 

·       Generate leads for new supporters through a mix of desk-based and outward-facing engagement 

·       Create pitch documents for new CSJF programmes and activities 

·       Manage donor communications to ensure current CSJF supporters are kept up to date on major developments and activities 

·       Hold responsibility to generate new income for the CSJ Foundation against specific targets 

·       Organise internal process and record keeping ensuring work runs smoothly 

·       Arrange and support donor events from time to time 

·       Work with colleagues to create fundraising and marketing docs covering all aspects of CSJF’s work 

·       Generate PR materials to showcase the CSJ Foundation’s growing activity 

·       Support the CSJF’s Managing Director in a verity of tasks that contribute towards the organisation’s goals

·       Highly organised and professional, a self-starter who can work independently and in a small team 

·       Comfortable being both ‘front of house’ and ‘behind the scenes’ – an ambassador with a willingness to undertake essential back-office functions 

·       Background in business development and/or fundraising would be helpful 

·       Experience of providing order and structure to a team or office 

·       Happy working across multiple projects at fast pace against deadlines 

·       A strong appreciation of the need for accuracy, quality control and process control

·       Ability to build relationships, utilising a high degree of social intelligence 

·       Possessing the skills and aptitude to engage new clients and establish rapport with existing ones 

·       The ability to engage with senior stakeholders including business leaders, HNWs, and CEOs 

·       An understanding of the UK charity/philanthropy environment is desirable 

·       The ability to work independently and plan programmes of work and manage agreed timelines 

·       Ability to analyse, understand and synthesise complex information, and to present this in a concise and engaging way 

·       Ability to communicate well and explain complex information to internal and external audiences 

·       An interest in managing processes, driving business change, and developing the use of new technologies in business practice 

·       Strong understanding of UK charities, the issues faced by the sector, and the policy landscape that affects the voluntary sector 

·       A commitment to the CSJ Foundation & CSJ’s vision, mission and values

·       An interest in current affairs, politics and the social justice agenda

·       Meticulous attention to detail, highly organised, calm under pressure and with a high degree of personal integrity

A collaborative team player with initiative and a positive “can do” attitude