We are WR Fundraising Recruitment and we are thrilled to be working with the inspirational Northwood African Education Foundation – Searching for a new Chief Executive Officer to lead the UK operations of the charity, focussing on fundraising.

The Northwood African Education Foundation (NAEF) was founded in 2011 and set up St. George’s School in Ethiopia to educate and support orphaned and displaced children in the Amhara region which has been deeply afflicted by the ongoing conflict there. 

NAEF supports over 600 disadvantaged children at St George’s School by providing an education these children would not normally have access to, particularly girls.  NAEF also provides essential nutrition to the children in the form of two daily meals and provides much needed medical and pastoral care.

Following strategic changes at the NGO, the UK operation of NAEF will become purely a fundraising body.  It will manage fundraising, the current funding partners of the charity and seek to evolve these funding sources in the future.  It will also manage the grant giving to St Georges.

As an experienced and dynamic fundraising lead, the CEO will be responsible for developing and implementing a new strategy to increase and diversify the charity’s income. Working closely with the Board, the new Chief Executive will drive forward an exciting new overall strategy and provide governance for the charity’s UK office.

We therefore seek a CEO with a passion and track record in fundraising, possibly also in international development, whose initial role will be to stabilise the charity’s current income streams and to generate new sources of funding from fundraising events (online and offline), grant applications, sourcing new donors and supporters of the charity and an expansion of NAEFs current sponsorship scheme.

Duties will include:

• Provide overall leadership of NAEF ‘s vision, mission, and strategy.
• Oversee the day-to-day operations of the NAEF UK office.
• Work with the Finance Manager to oversee the charity’s financial health, including budgeting, financial planning, and reporting.
• Build a solid working relationship with NAEF’s current funding partners
• Establish a 5-year plan to sustain, grow and evolve the charity’s funding sources and if necessary grow them
• Work with the Fundraising Manager to develop and implement fundraising strategies to secure funding from various sources, including grants, donations, and events.
• Act as the primary spokesperson for NAEF, representing NAEF to the public, media, and key stakeholders.

The ideal candidate will have:

• Senior leadership experience in the non-profit sector, with a proven track record of strategic planning, fundraising, and financial management.
• Strong leadership and management skills
• Excellent strategic thinking and problem-solving skills
• Exceptional communication and interpersonal skills
• Proficiency in financial management
• Ability to build and maintain relationships with diverse stakeholders