This role is offered on a hybrid contract giving you the opportunity to also work from home three days a week.

Purpose of job:

The Individual Giving Manager will play a critical role in advancing our organisation's mission through leading the planning and delivery of our year round Individual Giving (IG) portfolio.  Responsible for the strategic development, implementation and delivery of the IG portfolio, this role will grow the volume and value of our individual giving audience, through a management of a diverse portfolio of products and propositions including, but not limited to, cash, regular giving, legacy, and mid value.

This role will drive innovation and continuous improvement across our IG programme, identifying opportunities for growth, refining our relational fundraising approach and ensuring that we understand and are responsive to the needs of our audiences, evolving with the ever-changing external environment. We’re rapidly growing both our campaign and 365 activity so this is the perfect opportunity for the right candidate to make their mark, capitalising on the unique USP of Comic Relief as a disruptor brand offering joyful giving experiences.

Join us at the heart of Comic Relief's mission to leverage the power of popular culture to enable people help others and create a just world, free from poverty.

Key responsibilities:

Plan and deliver strategically aligned Individual Giving acquisition and retention activity, focussed for the relevant target audiences by:

• Leading the development of the IG strategy and plans, proactively identifying growth opportunities and mitigating against risk to prioritise activities, setting clear and realistic objectives, KPIs and budgets based on capacity, expertise, insight and team aspirations to deliver a balanced IG portfolio including:

• Championing and taking a data insight led approach to IG activity, critically analysing data and use insight to inform strategy and campaign optimisations

• Proactively seeking insight and learnings for the IG audience, using this to inform strategic and operational activity development, and sharing with wider colleagues as relevant.

• End-to-end project management of IG appeals, activations and campaigns, from initial planning and stakeholder engagement through to implementation, reporting and analysis.

• Collaborating with internal teams to ensure that projects are delivered on time, within budget, comply with all relevant best practice and are delivered to the highest standard including:

o   Working with digital fundraising experts (e.g. in paid media, email) and delivery experts (e.g. in content production or third parties) to implement agreed plans and ensure they effectively deliver alongside other fundraising priorities and agendas for Comic Relief.

o   Working with colleagues to identify suitable stories and content to be used to for the delivery of assets across IG campaign and 365 activity.

• Building relationships with and managing external partners (including media agencies, fulfilment, print & production houses etc) to ensure timely, effective and efficient campaign delivery.

• Playing an active part in the wider success of our fundraising and engagement strategy by:

·       Contributing to the development of team wide annual plans and budgets, using learning and insight to make recommendations that facilitate income growth.

• Proactively participating in, and as required, leading aspects of wider team planning activities.

• Keeping abreast of the fundraising marketplace and wider legislative and regulatory landscape to identify opportunities to enhance Comic Relief’s fundraising campaigns and ensure compliance of our IG programme.

• Playing an active role in the Fundraising Team, working collaboratively to enable inclusivity and diversity in order to drive high performance and an action-oriented culture.

• Delivering ad-hoc projects as required.

• People Management – this role does not currently have line management responsibility but this could change in the future as we grow and develop the portfolio.

Person specification

Essential criteria

• Extensive experience of managing online and offline direct marketing campaigns across acquisition, retention and stewardship, maximising lifetime value.

• Proven experience of managing at least two of the following products: regular giving, cash, legacy.

• Proven use of data to inform decisions and deliver growth and evolution of individual giving fundraising campaigns.

• Excellent project management experience including proven use of project management methodology and tools.  

• Strategic expertise:

o   Experience in annual planning and year-round budget management, including ability to set detailed budgets and KPIs, provided detailed reforecast and proactively manage campaign budgets.

o   Experience and capable of briefing and analysing complex data and insight information; to produce clear briefs and effective marketing plans.

o   Experience of marketing planning and tracking, including media planning KPIs and metrics across online and offline channels.

o   Experience of creating campaign alignment and channel alignment to optimise campaigns with a focus on income generation.

• Effective relationship builder with strong stakeholder management and communication skills, and the ability to adapt to different styles and ways of working, including:

o   Experience of working collaboratively with a range of team members.

o   Experience of managing external parties such as creative and media agencies.

• Communication:

o   Excellent oral, written communication, attention to detail, and presentation skills with the ability to inspire and influence stakeholders.

o   Strong interpersonal skills.

• Knowledge and experience in developing and rolling out activity specific activations as part of a wider integrated campaign, actively opportunity spotting and fostering collaboration and adapting in response to wider factors.

• A self-starter with proven ability to work independently, managing own work plan to deliver against set goals and objectives.

• Experience of New Product Development (NPD), taking new products to minimum viable product (MVP).

• Ability to understand risks, issues and dependencies within a project / campaign and to use this information to inform decision making in a timely and accurate way.

• Understanding of and experience of using a CRM system and related analysis or marketing tools. 

• Able to demonstrate willingness to learn and develop in a fluid, high impact environment. 

Desirable criteria

• Line management experience

• Experience of fundraising for both international and national charity causes

• Accredited fundraising or marketing qualification

• Experience of working with SalesForce CRM and Marketing Cloud would be an advantage

Don’t meet every single requirement? Studies have shown that women and people of colour are less likely to apply to jobs unless they meet every single qualification. At Comic Relief we are dedicated to building a diverse, inclusive, and authentic workplace, so if you’re excited about this role but your past experience doesn’t align perfectly with every qualification in the job description, we encourage you to apply anyways. You may be just the right candidate for this or other roles.

Why work at Comic Relief

There are lots of good reasons to join us at Comic Relief. You can read more about our employee benefits, such as our commitment to flexible and hybrid working. We ask staff to come to the office twice a week, normally on agreed team days, so that we can do all those things that are difficult to do online. Our office is based in Whitechapel, London, There are lots of opportunities to develop your skills and experience at Comic Relief, including opportunities to become a Mental Health First Aider or to participate in our Employee Network Groups that focus on making Comic Relief a more inclusive place to work.

Disability Confident employer

As part of the Disability Confident scheme, we take positive action by providing first-round interviews to candidates who have a registered disability, provided they meet the minimum criteria for the role, as demonstrated on their CV.

We ask that candidates that wish to be considered for this scheme email Recruitment@comicrelief.com to discuss further. Please do not email CV's/cover letters.