Lead - Innovative and Institutional Fundraising/ Partnerships

Smile Foundation

Reporting: Chief Resource Officer with a matrix to Head - Empowering Grassroots

About Smile Foundation:

Smile Foundation works for the welfare of underprivileged children and their families through intensive programmes focused on education, healthcare, skilling and women empowerment and Empowering Grassroots. Started in 2002 by a group of young corporate professionals, today Smile has evolved into a national level development organization impacting lives of over 1.5 million underprivileged children and their families with projectpresence in 25 states across India, 10 offices in strategic locations and over 650 employees, besides countless volunteers, well-wishers and supporters.

The organization also holds Special Consultative Status with United Nation’s Economic & Social Council(ECOSOC), accredited with global organizations like GuideStar, United Way, CAF America, Give2Asia and many more. Furthermore, continuously for past three years Smile is a Great Place to Work © Certified organization and is considered ‘Gold Standard’ in identifying and recognizing Great Workplace Cultures.

Currently SF is implementing projects across India directly and also with the help of grassroots organizations. Smile Foundation’s projects are primarily CSR funded projects of varied scale and across diverse thematic, bothin urban slums and rural settings, with an increasing focus on aspirational districts and blocks.

About the Role 

Lead - Institutional Partnerships would be responsible for conceptualizing, developing and executing the implementation of fundraising which shall include a diverse range of funding streams, with primacy to institutional– domestic, international and multilaterals, innovative financing models, blended finance, corporate foundations, UHNIs inter alia.

Design and execution of business development activities, partnering with thematic leads for the development of pitches and proposals and programme design, including and not limited to donor reporting, nurturing and management are key components of this critical role. 

Key Responsibilities 

• Responsible for the business development/fundraising for the programs from a diverse stream of donors. This stream shall be an evolving one, and shall include the following, without remaining restricted to the aboveInstitutional Agencies, Multi-Lateral Organizations, consulting firms, ESG donors, HNIs, Philanthropists, corporate and family foundations etc.
• Develop and manage relationships with potential funders. Seeding of Smile Foundation with large international funders and prime donees of multilateral organistions. Attending localization seminars and other industry eventsto establish the presence of Smile Foundation as a partner of choice.
• Identify and track funding prospects as they arise and maintain the appropriate tracking tools such as Salesforce.
• Play a key role in the development of databases of potential funders and partners for business development.
• Develop and support new and current partnership engagements including identifying and building relationships with prospective collaborative partners on RFPs.
• Oversee and support the development of concept notes and proposals as appropriate in liaison with programmeteams.
• Develop and maintain key resources to support proposals including standing documents, databases of activity costs and other relevant policies.
• Represent Smile Foundation at various events and networking forums.
• Maintain and update knowledge of the programs and service offerings with good evidential detailing and developing periodic project briefs of the project for wider sharing.
• Oversee grant management by ensuring donor due diligence, donor engagement and submission of high-quality reports.
• Develop Annual Business Plan and ensure its achievement. 

       Skills, Qualification & Experience 

1. Post-graduate qualification in Business Development/Management with demonstrable experience of fundraising.
2. Demonstrated success of a minimum of 10-15 years in Fundraising with Institutional Donors. Demonstrated experience with proposals/pitches for USAID/European Union/Co-Impact/ADB/SIDA or similar would be positive.
3. Establish industry connections with institutional donors, corporate foundations, family foundations and other new and innovative sources of funding.
4. Strong proven ability in the proposal development process and financial proposals.
5. Excellent writing skills to formulate fundraising strategies, Logical Framework and Theory of Change.
6. Should be open for travel for building relationships, exploring partnership opportunities 

    Competencies 

1. Persuasive Communication: Strong written and verbal communication skills. When writing or speaking across as persuasive, credible, and polished with excellent interpersonal skills.
2. Creates External Strategic Alliances: Develops and uses collaborative relationships to facilitate theaccomplishment of work goals.
3. Contributes to Team Performance: Is an engaged and integral member of a group, recognizing the need for group collaboration, empathy, consensual decision-making and respect for others.
4. Negotiation: Effectively exploring alternatives and positions to reach outcomes that gain the support andacceptance of all parties.
5. Creates Internal Partnerships: Works to achieve business goals by identifying and building strategicrelationships between areas, teams, departments, units, and organizations.
6. Effective Presentations: Effectively presents ideas (including nonverbal communication and use of visual aids) to individuals or groups when given time to prepare; delivers presentations that are adapted to the specificneeds and characteristics of the audience.
7. Decision Making: Identifying and understanding issues, problems, and opportunities; comparing data from different sources to draw conclusions; using effective approaches for choosing a course of action or developing appropriate solutions; taking action that is consistent with available facts, constraints, and probable consequences

       How to Apply:

Smile Foundation is an Equal Opportunity Employer 

Please Note: Only shortlisted candidates would be contacted by the Human Resources Team