Philanthropy Development Manager

We support peace and prosperity by fostering meaningful connections, understanding, and trust between people in the UK and countries worldwide.

By working directly with individuals, we empower them to gain essential skills, confidence, and connections that enable them to transform their lives and contribute to shaping a better world in partnership with the UK. We provide them with opportunities to build networks, explore innovative ideas, learn English, access high-quality education, and acquire internationally recognised qualifications.

With operations spanning over 200 countries and territories, we maintain a presence in more than 100 countries. In our latest cycle, we reached 650 million people.

About this role:

• To support the growth of our Hong Kong Patrons Circle, you will be responsible for all aspects of donor acquisition and stewardship within the country, working closely with our volunteer leadership, Director British Council Hong Kong, and Head of Individual Giving to meet annual income targets and expand our supporter circle in Hong Kong.
• You will collaborate with global teams to ensure prospects and donors align with the organisation's values and ethics; donor engagement programmes are designed and delivered to leverage our portfolio of global programmes in the UK and internationally; targets are met, and due diligence, financial, and data management processes are maintained accurately and shared with the wider corporate, pillar, and partnerships teams.
• This role will contribute to the development of the British Council's fundraising strategy and advise on the philanthropic potential of our portfolio of Global Programmes and the design of specific elements to ensure maximum opportunities for support.

Main Accountabilities:

Strategy and Planning

• Support the Head of Individual Giving to increase our support from individual philanthropy.
• Work with Development team to shape our fundraising strategy, ensuring activities to increase our support from Hong Kong-based individuals are integral to our plans.
• Contribute to the integration of development plans into the design of Global Programmes, helping to establish medium- and long-term sustainable development plans with agreed SMART objectives and KPIs as part of the wider CE development implementation plan.
• Analyse and assimilate multiple commercial data sets and indicators (e.g., profitability, market undercurrents, fundraising/sponsorship/partnership targets) to produce tailored reports on performance and trends enabling further development of British Council fundraising.
• In collaboration with the Head of Individual Giving and programme leads, devise and implement strategies for acquisition and retention of Hong Kong Patrons to ensure we grow overall membership to at least 50 by 2025.

Sector/Subject Expertise

• Proactively build and maintain a sound working knowledge of major developments in the fundraising market to develop intelligence that can be fed into future planning and decision-making for British Council fundraising.
• Provide leadership and expert guidance on individual giving for the teams.
• Contribute to the development and delivery of thought leadership strategy for development for the team so that the British Council is recognised by external stakeholders and audiences as a respected, credible partner with regard to philanthropic giving to support arts and cultural relations programmes.

Relationship & Stakeholder Management

• Lead on the planning, establishment, and account management of all British Council relationships with Hong Kong-based individual donors in line with the relationship strategy and objectives established through the fundraising strategy. Ensure there is a research, cultivation, and stewardship implementation plan with SMART KPIs in place and that relationships are maintained and nurtured to the highest standards.
• Work with the Director, Hong Kong, to identify and prioritise prospects and coordinate approaches.
• Develop and manage key patron relationships.
• Design and deliver an annual cultivation and engagement programme, leveraging the Council's international arts activities across art form disciplines to solicit, steward, and engage donors as part of the annual regular individual giving schemes.
• Build and maintain excellent relationships with pillar leads and other internal partners and associates in the UK and across the global network to ensure effective, integrated, and joined-up delivery of agreed programme objectives in a complex matrix environment.
• Draft and submit project reports in line with donor requirements, providing other written and verbal updates as required. Liaise with colleagues to ensure information for reports is gathered promptly and efficiently.
• Ensure all contact with prospect, current, and past donors is logged on the British Council's central database (or interim Development pipeline) to build institution-wide knowledge of the Council's history with individual donors.

Business Development

• Undertake research and identify new prospects and creatively identify and secure new patrons who share the British Council's values and ethics. Work with global colleagues to map current and potential stakeholders and donors as appropriate.
• Work closely with programme leads to ensure the British Council's multi-disciplinary programme is leveraged to maximise philanthropic income.
• Organise the production of high-quality submission materials for proposals, ensuring timely and appropriate input from all necessary internal stakeholders, experts, functional advisors. Ensure compliance with agreed internal governance, review, sign-off arrangements.
• Represent the British Council at presentations and negotiations, ensuring the strategic interests and professional reputation of the organisation are protected and promoted.

Programme Management

• Manage the UK element of our individual giving income strand as part of the wider British Council development plan to support the arts portfolio of Global Programmes which includes the priority flagship projects of the Collection and the Venice Biennale.
• Develop and deliver cultivation and stewardship activities that are in line with British Council processes and resources, ensuring the programme is designed to engage donors by leveraging the Council's arts activities across art forms both in the UK and internationally, as well as major external cultural events worldwide.
• Support the effective and consistent monitoring of programmes and projects across the global network with regular management checks to ensure programmes are effectively responding to KPIs and other targets.
• Create contracts and agreements in line with British Council quality standards and Project Management methodologies, including adherence to all process and procedures, governance requirements, communication procedures.
• Identify and mitigate risk related to potential and current patron and corporate sponsor partners, including ethical and reputational risk, and due diligence.

Leadership & Management

• Lead the day-to-day management and delivery of the Development team activity, working closely with programme colleagues and colleagues across the global arts network.
• Deputise for the Head of Individual Giving.
• Set and oversee comprehensive work plans to meet income targets as part of the wider Development implementation plan, created in collaboration with the Head of Individual Giving and Development Director.
• May provide formal line management to one or more staff, which might consist of staff both within and beyond the local office base.
• Advocate on behalf of development to internal stakeholders, especially at the highest level within the organisation, ensuring fundraising is fully supported and integrated throughout the British Council, thereby contributing to the British Council's future sustainability.
• Collaborate with the Development Director to develop working relationships with the Board of Trustees, Senior Volunteer Advocates, Chairman, and CEO to enable peer-to-peer philanthropic approaches to be undertaken and to leverage the Board of Trustees' networks.
• Actively contribute to an inclusive and anti-racist organisational culture, being aware of own biases, and taking action to mitigate against these, ensuring people feel valued and are treated equitably, with support for people's well-being and mental health.
• Understand the British Council's approach to equality, diversity, and inclusion and how it applies to this role, making time for learning and development relating to EDI and anti-racism.

Commercial, Financial & Resource Management

• Draw up and manage philanthropic income and expenditure budgets as part of the wider Development Budget, working in collaboration with the Head of Individual Giving and Development Director and with programme teams to ensure that income and expenditure targets for projects are realistic and achievable.
• Negotiate and administer pledges, donations, and tax-efficient giving for UK & USA taxpayers, working in collaboration with the British Council's finance team.
• Ensure excellent record management and conduct monthly and year-end reporting on income, profitability, and risk.
• Ensure all work is carried out within the operating governance framework and that risks are dealt with efficiently.