Head of Fundraising and Business Development

International Institute for Environment and Development

Hours
35 hours per week

About the Organisation

IIED is an international policy and research organisation working to build a fairer, more sustainable world, in partnership with others across the globe. We stand up challenging the systems and structures that perpetuate economic, social, and environmental injustice, acknowledging our own role in this. We speak out, calling out the big blockers that prevent progress for communities and working to amplify voices, redistribute power, and strengthen rights.

We innovate by developing, co-producing, and supporting evidence-based ideas to drive progress towards a thriving world for all. We collaborate: building connections at local, national, and international levels, to support diverse partners to tackle the climate, nature, and inequality crises so that people and the planet can thrive. Come and be part of this exciting journey with us! 

About the role

As our Head of Fundraising & Business Development, you will lead efforts to secure and diversify funding, building a sustainable resource base to support our global mission. Leading the Fundraising and Business Development Team, you will drive the implementation of our resource mobilisation strategy, focusing on increasing non-ODA income and expanding flexible and programmatic funding.

Working closely with colleagues across fundraising, finance, research, and impact teams, you will help close funding gaps by developing strong donor relationships, negotiating funding agreements, and shaping compelling funding propositions. Alongside collaborating with the Director of Fundraising and Communications and supporting engagement with the Board of Trustees, you will manage systems, data, and internal processes that strengthen fundraising performance and ensure effective delivery.

Responsibilities

Direct Fundraising and External Relations:

• Lead the development of strong relationships with key targets for future income, through direct interaction with contacts, sharing tailored information on IIED’s work and expertise, and organisation of meetings and presentations to build awareness of IIED and our broader networks of partners. Developing strong personal networks and contacts will be critical. This also involves helping IIED colleagues to liaise directly with key funder contacts.
• Take direct responsibility for negotiation and successful completion of funding agreements.
• Develop and deploy a strong narrative on IIED’s areas of focus, comparative advantages and our mission based on a clear understanding of how IIED works. To include regular interaction with IIED’s Directors, leadership teams, Task Teams, Major Initiatives and strategic projects to build knowledge and awareness of funding requirements and priorities.
• Gather and disseminate intelligence on the funding landscape to ensure IIED staff and trustees are aware of significant trends and developments, and work with the Director of Fundraising and Communications to prompt action to address these changes where necessary.
• Generate new ideas and innovative solutions for fundraising at IIED, both opportunities to expand funding from existing funders, and potential to access new income sources, drawing on networks, donor intelligence and landscape scanning

Internal Relations and Systems:

• Support the team to work with Task Teams, Major Initiatives and strategic projects to develop their fundraising plans and donor scoping, providing strategic advice and assessment of opportunities.
• Support the Director of Fundraising and Communications to engage with the Board of Trustees, providing them with information and support as required and giving regular updates on fundraising progress to trustee meetings.
• Review and analyse relevant data to inform ideas and plans to generate income for IIED
• Work closely with the Head of Fundraising and Communications to ensure that key fundraising metrics are captured in organisation-wide processes, including in annual business planning and reporting.
• Design, implement and manage internal fundraising support processes, including: maintaining IIED collateral and boilerplate text; increasing efficiency and exploring how technologies like AI can reduce transaction costs.
• Develop IIED’s fundraising and business development strategy, in collaboration with the Director of Fundraising and Communications, and lead its implementation
• Support the Fundraising and Business Development Team to ensure availability of effective and timely support to IIED staff in the development of high-quality funding bids and in directly attracting funding for IIED’s reserves, institutional/core funding, and flexible and programmatic resources.
• Manage team budget.

People Management:

• Line manages the fundraising and business development team. Ensure the sound application of IIED human resources policies for the recruitment, performance management, development and retention of direct reports.
• Fulfil IIED’s people manager expectations. These outline our commitment to valuing our people and developing inclusive, impactful leaders. This includes promoting wellbeing, supporting professional development, enabling high performance, and creating a safe and inclusive working environment. For full details, please refer to the People Manager Expectations document.
• Ensure team members have clear goals and targets that deliver the fundraising and business development goals, and regularly monitor progress.

Contributions to Institutional Life:

• Contribute to broader leadership and capacity development of the organisation, as required – including mentoring and skills development for staff and IIED partners, and participating in organisation-wide projects, initiatives or working groups.
• Engage with IIED’s internal governance bodies as required.
• Participate in organisation-wide projects, processes, initiatives or working groups.

Skills, Competencies, Experience & Attributes

Essential Requirement:

• A ‘can do’, ‘how might we’ approach, combined with a clear commitment to IIED’s organisational purpose, evidenced by a supportive, constructive approach to working with leadership and peers,
• Significant experience leading fundraising functions in an international NGO or charity, with a proven ability to design and deliver income-generation strategies across multiple streams, including institutional funding, philanthropic foundations, major donors, and strategic corporate partnerships.
• A proven, impressive track record in fundraising, including securing income from public sector funding agencies, private foundations/individuals and an outstanding network on which to draw for leads.
• Strong understanding of the evolving landscape of finance and resource mobilisation for sustainable development, including the growth in values-aligned private and philanthropic capital, in regulatory and compliance factors, and in the use of digital tools like AI to maximise efficiency and success.
• Demonstrated experience in building strategic relationships and partnerships, with strong influencing, negotiating, stakeholder engagement and diplomacy skills across different geographies and sectors.
• Ability and strong experience of forging strong personal relationships, carrying warmth and trust, to support the achievement of fundraising partnerships and goals.
• Strong understanding of policy and research related to sustainable development at the international level, with particular relevance to Africa, Asia and/or Latin America
• Proven experience in partnership and consortium development, including creating, managing and working within consortia, networks, alliances, partnerships and international teams
• Commitment to IIED’s mission and core values, particularly around diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI), and sustainability
• Great team manager and able to coordinate, support, motivate, energise and develop others in diverse teams. Commitment to coaching, mentoring and teamwork.
• Adaptive and open-minded, with a willingness to learn and evolve in a dynamic organisational context
• High level of competence in office and digital tools (ex. Microsoft 365), including word processing, spreadsheets, presentation software, databases, communication platforms and relevant specialist software.
• An entrepreneurial, self-starting approach, with the ability to identify opportunities and act on them effectively
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to communicate effectively with a wide range of audiences
• Strong interpersonal skills, with a proven ability to work collaboratively with colleagues, partners and stakeholders from diverse cultural and professional backgrounds.
• Fluency in English (spoken and written)
• Willingness and ability to travel internationally, as required by the role and readiness to represent IIED in high-profile external meetings and forums.
• Excellent organisational skills for self, others and teams.

Desirable Requirements:

• Membership of relevant national and/or international professional bodies.
• Working knowledge of another language relevant to the position, for example, French, Spanish or Portuguese.

Required Qualifications

• Degree in a relevant discipline or equivalent work experience

Compensation & Benefits

• 25 days' annual leave per year, plus bank holidays and additional leave over Christmas
• Employer pension contributions 7.5%
• Enhanced maternity, paternity, and adoption pay
• Cycle-to-work scheme
• Employee protection scheme (life, critical illness, income protection)

Working locations

• Hybrid model, working in the London office and remotely

How to apply

• Apply to our website
• Please let us during the application process so that we can fully support you. If you need this application in a different format, please contact [email protected]

Policies

At IIED, we are fully committed to safeguarding and maintaining a zero-tolerance approach to all forms of exploitation, abuse, and harassment, including sexual exploitation, abuse and harassment (SEAH), as well as to any failure to act when such harm occurs. Safeguarding is central to our work, and we actively seek to strengthen our safeguarding capacity across all areas of our operations.

We participate in the Inter-Agency Misconduct Disclosure Scheme. In line with this Scheme, we will request information from applicants’ previous employers regarding any findings of sexual exploitation, abuse, and/or harassment during their employment, as well as any ongoing investigations at the time of their departure. By submitting an application, applicants acknowledge and consent to these recruitment procedures. As part of our safeguarding commitment, we carry out appropriate Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) checks in line with the DBS Code of Practice and our Recruitment and Selection Policy. This role requires a Basic DBS check.

We encourage applications from all qualified candidates. Having a spent or unspent conviction does not automatically disqualify an applicant. If a conditional offer of employment is made, we will engage in a fair, confidential, and balanced discussion to assess the relevance of any disclosed convictions in relation to the role. IIED is a Global organisation that serves the Global Majority. We are committed to equity of opportunity, to being fair and inclusive, and to being a place where all belong.

We therefore particularly encourage applications from candidates who are likely to be underrepresented in IIED’s workforce, including members of minority groups and those with lived experience of the work we do. Even if you don't satisfy all the criteria, we still encourage you to apply, as we will offer support to upskill the right candidate for the role.

We are also a Disability Confident employer and offer a guaranteed interview for any disabled applicant who may wish to take up this offer, where they meet the minimum requirements for the role. Therefore, if you have any accessibility requirements or would like to take up IIED's Disability Confident guaranteed interview scheme,

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