Head of Philanthropic Development - Upsall International

Head of Philanthropic Development

The deadline for applications is Sunday 26^th of November 2023.

Location:                           UK/Europe

Location type:                Remote

Reporting to:             Co-Executive Directors

Annual salary:            £90K GBP/€90K EUR

Contract type:            Fixed term one year contract

Working hours:          Full-time, 37.5 hours a week

Candidate level:              Senior Executive

Background

Doc Society, an innovative non-profit organization established in 2005, is dedicated to fostering exceptional documentary films and forging global connections with audiences. We firmly believe in the transformative potential of documentaries as a powerful art form, capable of inspiring, educating, and reshaping perceptions of individuals and societies. Doc Society’s mission is to unite people, harness the transformative power of independent documentary films, and support artist-driven works with a societal impact. We strive to contribute to a more interconnected and sustainable global media landscape. The Doc Society team comprises 28 individuals based in the UK, US, The Netherlands, Belgium, Colombia, Mexico, Kenya, and Australia.

Doc Society receives support from the Ford Foundation, in addition to other American and European foundations across its various programs. At the heart of our mission are regranting portfolios, which provide crucial backing to hundreds of award-winning documentary films worldwide, offering development, production, and impact funds. To date, Doc Society has played a pivotal role in funding more than 450 acclaimed documentary films, including CITIZENFOUR, An Insignificant Man, Hale County This Morning, This Evening, Edge of Democracy, The Look of Silence, The White Helmets, Whose Streets, Virunga, Softie, Roll Red Roll, and The Silence of Others. These efforts have resulted in the distribution of over $19 million to artists and storytellers worldwide.

Purpose of role

Doc Society is currently seeking an experienced Head of Philanthropic Development to spearhead the development of the organization's fundraising strategy. This critical role involves supporting Doc Society's twin priorities of democracy and climate, while also devising a more ambitious fundraising strategy to bolster independent storytelling across the Global Majority. Our goal is to raise $3M USD over the next 3 years in unrestricted funding to support the core team plus an additional $6M USD to supercharge the Climate and Democracy Units. The successful candidate will play a pivotal role in cultivating new relationships and managing existing key partners. They will work collaboratively within a globally distributed team, closely coordinating efforts with Doc Society's Co-Executive Directors, programmatic leads, and the Internal Affairs teams. If you have a passion for advancing documentary filmmaking and a proven track record in fundraising, we invite you to explore this opportunity to make a meaningful impact with Doc Society.

Primary responsibilities

Collaborating closely with Doc Society’s Co Executive Directors to translate organizational strategic priorities into development strategy, fundraising targets and external facing documents.
Engage new funders and strengthen existing funder relationships.
Leading Doc Society wide team fundraising meetings.
Drafting grant applications and reports in collaboration with relevant team members.
Hosting and presenting at relevant events such as funder forums.
Developing relevant internal systems to support funder relations and grants management.

Profile
Doc Society is a small and dynamic organization known for its ability to pivot swiftly and gracefully in response to the needs of the filmmakers and communities it serves. This adaptability allows the organization to readily embrace new ideas, roll up its sleeves, and deliver with intelligence, rigor, and perfectionism. Doc Society often employs improvisation, prioritizing efficient action over formal processes and set policies, with a firm commitment to getting the job done right under all circumstances.

The organization is steadfast in its pursuit of boldness, energy, and entrepreneurial spirit, all while upholding its core values. Doc Society takes pride in creating a friendly, inclusive, open, and collaborative work environment, nurturing deep loyalty towards those it collaborates with, both inside and outside the office.

Doc Society acknowledges that not everyone thrives in structured environments with fixed job descriptions and clear future plans. The organization, therefore, offers a more flexible, changeable workplace where individuals are encouraged to take initiative and drive progress.

This distinctive approach to work may not be suitable for everyone but if it sounds exciting and liberating, we may be just the place you are looking for. We encourage individuals who thrive in an environment of constant adaptation and creative freedom to consider joining our team.

Experience/Qualifications

Knowledge of Doc Society’s work and an ability to embody the values of the Doc Society mission statement.
An understanding of the field of cultural strategy and love for nonfiction storytelling.
Minimum 7 years’ experience working in fundraising.
Proven expertise and experience of developing and delivering income growth across international markets, ideally in the European and North American markets.
Proficient in the art of storytelling, with a talent for weaving narratives that effectively communicate the impact of our organization's initiatives and inspire donor engagement.
Well networked in a combination of human rights, climate, democracy, journalism, and culture fundraising sectors.
Substantial experience cultivating donor and stakeholder relationships, recruitment and retention, and proactive lifecycle management
Highly proactive and organized, able to manage and prioritize a busy workload and stakeholders to deadline with consistent quality.
Team player, establishes good working relationships and works confidently with more and less experienced colleagues.
Demonstrable experience of project assessment, and an ability to identify opportunities and challenges in written and visual work.
Very strong interpersonal and communication skills (including written and verbal), a collaborative way of working, and an ability to manage a high volume of daily phone and digital communications.
Attention to detail and skilled at managing competing priorities and project management
Knowledge and use of the internet, email, and applications including MS Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Dropbox, Airtable, G-Suite.
Proficient writing skills.
Primarily working during the GMT working hours, but also available to meet outside of those hours for international colleagues when needed.
Fluency in multiple languages is a plus.

We want Doc Society to be the place where a diverse mix of talented people want to come, to stay, and to do their best work. Doc Society’s promotion of diversity and inclusion is clearly reflected in all of our documentaries and across all of our programmes. We are fully focused on equality and believe in diversity of race, gender, sexual orientation, religion, ethnicity, national origin and all the other characteristics that make us who we are. For this reason, we strongly encourage applicants from under-represented groups.

Please contact Ruth Gardner at ruth@darylupsall.com for any queries you may have. Applicant’s pack is available upon request.

The deadline for application is Sunday 26^th November 2023

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Daryl Upsall International actively promotes equality, diversity and inclusion. In recruiting candidates, we seek candidates with the proven skills required; irrespective of race, gender, religion or belief, age, disability or sexual orientation.