Head - Strategic Partnerships & Fundraising

About this role

About the Organisation
Our partner organisation is a mission-driven nonprofit working to strengthen Indias public education system and ensure every child has access to high-quality learning opportunities. The organisation collaborates closely with government systems to support leadership development, teacher capacity building, and systemic improvements in government schools.
They are looking for a dynamic and experienced Head of Fundraising to establish and lead its organization-wide fundraising function.
This is a senior leadership opportunity for someone who enjoys building functions, developing fundraising strategy, and cultivating long-term institutional partnerships. The role requires a hands-on leader who can independently drive fundraising efforts while building systems, processes, and a high-performing team to support the organization's long-term growth.
The successful candidate will lead fundraising across domestic and international funding channels, including CSR partnerships, philanthropic foundations, family offices, and institutional donors.
Key Responsibilities
Fundraising Strategy & Growth

• Develop and execute the organization's annual and long-term fundraising strategy.

• Build and maintain a diversified pipeline of institutional funding opportunities.

• Identify, cultivate, and secure partnerships with CSR partners, philanthropic foundations, family offices, and international donors.

• Drive achievement of annual fundraising targets while building a sustainable funding pipeline.

• Represent the organization at donor meetings, sector forums, and strategic partnership discussions.

Donor Engagement & Resource Mobilisation

• Lead the complete fundraising lifecycle—from prospect identification and relationship building to proposal development, negotiation, grant closure, and stewardship.

• Build long-term relationships with institutional donors and funding partners.

• Lead the development of compelling concept notes, grant proposals, presentations, and donor reports.

• Monitor donor priorities and funding trends to identify new opportunities for collaboration.

• Ensure timely execution of grant agreements, reporting commitments, and donor communications.

Team Leadership & Function Building

• Lead and mentor a growing fundraising team while fostering a culture of accountability and collaboration.

• Design and implement fundraising systems, processes, dashboards, and pipeline management mechanisms.

• Establish forecasting, CRM, and reporting frameworks to improve fundraising efficiency.

• Recruit, onboard, and build the capabilities of future fundraising team members.

Cross-functional Collaboration

• Partner closely with program and leadership teams to translate organizational impact into compelling funding opportunities.

• Support internal teams in strengthening proposal quality, donor readiness, and strategic positioning.

• Provide regular updates on fundraising performance, pipeline health, and strategic priorities to senior leadership.

Ideal Candidate Profile
We are looking for a fundraising leader who combines strategic thinking with strong execution capabilities.
The ideal candidate will have:

• 12–15+ years of experience in fundraising, resource mobilisation, institutional partnerships, or business development within the social impact sector.

• Demonstrated experience raising significant institutional funding from CSR partners, philanthropic foundations, family offices, and international donors.

• Strong track record of independently managing donor relationships and successfully closing high-value grants.

• Experience designing fundraising strategies and building fundraising functions or systems.

• Excellent proposal writing, grant development, and donor communication skills.

• Prior experience leading and mentoring fundraising teams.

• Strong stakeholder management, negotiation, and relationship-building capabilities.

• Understanding of India's philanthropic, CSR, and institutional funding ecosystem.

• A hands-on, entrepreneurial mindset with the ability to balance strategy and execution.

Originally posted on Himalayas