Officer, Prospect Research

Requisition ID: req16157

Job Title: Officer, Prospect Research

Sector: Fundraising

Employment Category: Regular

Employment Type: Full-Time

Open to Expatriates: Not Applicable

Location: New York, NY HQ USA

Job Description

The External Relations (ER) department was formed in 2020 and is comprised of 3 areas: Private fundraising, Communications and Advocacy. The department is in the beginning stages of crafting a new, results-oriented strategy that will enhance IRC’s ability to ‘punch above its weight’ in private income, advocacy, and brand awareness.

Supporting this endeavor, and an integral part of ER, is the Global Partnerships and Philanthropic Services (GPPS) Unit. Reporting into the VP Global Partnerships and Philanthropic Services, GPPS consists of functional specialists across a variety of high-value (HV) fundraising functions providing all elements of cultivation, support and stewardship to HV donors, partners, and supporters. This newly formed unit is made up of three pillars: Prospect Research, Program Services, and Partner Engagement and Corporate Affairs, all of which are critical to the advancement of our HV goals and vision. Today, HV income makes up more than two-thirds of IRC’s private-sector revenue. The delivery of outstanding service and niche functions from GPPS specialists across all HV teams globally is crucial to enabling the success of our HV fundraisers.

Job Overview

This exciting opportunity is on the Prospect Research team! Prospect and donor research is the foundation of HV fundraising, providing the insight and recommendations to the fundraisers that allows them to make strategic, data driven and timely decisions; progressing prospects through the donor’s journey in line with organizational priorities. Our work supports IRC’s sustainability by identifying new opportunities for funding, focusing our resources, and protecting its reputation through due diligence. We empower both our fundraisers and our leadership to make effective, donor-centric decision making.

As part of this team, you will provide senior staff, board directors, and ER staff with high-quality donor research and strategic input for board meetings, donor meetings, events and strategy planning. You will study and synthesize internal and external data and information sources to coordinate the HV teams’ understanding of how to deploy global partnership strategies, grounded in our organization’s priorities, in the international arena. You will work closely with HV fundraisers to refine and focus pipeline management methodologies through prospect identification and data analysis, as well as market, sector, and event scans to support portfolio optimization. You will contribute reliable and timely qualitative and quantitative data and trend analysis to support the strategic and vital planning and overall efficiency of the ER operation.

Major Responsibilities

• Identify and qualify individual philanthropists as well as corporate and foundation donors capable of significant financial support;
• Conduct biographical and financial research, utilizing various on-line and electronic sources;
• Write confidential research profiles on individual and/or institutional donors for meetings and tactical planning;
• Collaborate with HV senior staff and fundraisers to successfully integrate data-driven and qualitative analyses of specific clients

and broader trends into tactics and strategies for client management, opportunity development, and maximized revenue;

• Conceptualize projects that result in new domestic and/or international prospects for the organization, including through the analysis of prospects and donor networks and events;
• Rate donors and prospects in terms of capacity and inclination, and develop strategic recommendations in consultation with front-line fundraising colleagues;
• Provide background research on individual and institutional donors to advise the organization’s official due-diligence and risk-assessment processes;
• Utilize a suite of resources, e.g. CRM database, subscription databases, and media tools, to understand and respond to market-led and client-specific opportunities;
• Establish benchmarking to evaluate effectiveness and efficiency of research recommendations and products;
• Promote research support services to colleagues through presentations and reports;
• Develop expertise in institutional programs and develop external resources to monitor and track industry-specific changes

significant to IRC’s mission;

• Coordinate special projects (e.g. electronic screening by vendors, data mining analyses, ad hoc reports, etc.) and conduct pro-active research projects with the mentorship of supervisor.

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience;
• Minimum 3-5 years’ experience in prospect research at organizations with a global focus;
• Demonstrable knowledge of quantitative and qualitative analysis and business intelligence work in support of non-profit fundraising or commercial sales, preferably with familiarity in the regions of MENA, Asia and Europe;
• Proven aptitude for analyzing, interpreting, and synthesizing data;
• Strong track-record of developing proactive prospecting methodologies that support organizational goals including data mining, sophisticated constituent database queries, etc.;
• Highly proficient in internet search engines and advanced search techniques, fundraising software, data retrieval services (e.g. LexisNexis, iWave, Foundation Directory, etc.), MS Office (Word, Outlook and Excel, in particular);
• Experience working with a relational database a necessity, preferably Salesforce;
• Ability to act with sensitivity and discretion while working with highly confidential information;
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills and an overall ability to be clear and concise; attention to detail a must.

Preferred Experience & Skills

• Master’s degree preferred;
• Keen understanding of the international business sector and familiarity with corporate research and resources;
• Knowledge of and interest in emerging concepts and practices in the fields of strategic philanthropy, corporate social responsibility, public private partnerships, and impact investing, particularly as they relate to non-U.S. entities;
• Strong organizational, interpersonal, and time-management skills; documented ability to prioritize and deliver on time;
• Prior experience working at an international organization outside the U.S.;
• Working proficiency (written and spoken) of Arabic, Mandarin and/or Russian.

Working Environment: Requires remote/flex-time work.

The IRC and IRC workers must adhere to the values and principles outlined in IRC Way – Standards for Professional Conduct. These are Integrity, Service, Equality and Accountability. In accordance with these values, the IRC operates and enforces policies on Beneficiary Protection from Exploitation and Abuse, Child Safeguarding, Anti Workplace Harassment, Fiscal Integrity, and Anti-Retaliation.

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