External Relations Associate (Full-time) – WITNESS

OVERVIEW:
WITNESS, an international organization that trains and supports people using video in their fight for human rights, is seeking an External Relations Associate (ERA) to work in their Brooklyn office. Reporting to the External Relations Manager, the ERA will supporting all aspects of Individual Philanthropy, from research to donation processing to cultivation events to crafting and tracking communications with giving circle members. The ERA will support the engagement of existing and future donors through all aspects of executing the annual Focus for Change Benefit, the implementation of annual fund campaigns, coordination of events, maintenance of the donor database and the support of other various engagement vehicles, both online and offline.

PRIMARY RESPONSIBILITIES:

Individual Philanthropy, Events, and Corporate Support
• Support the implementation of the overall Individual Philanthropy strategy including tactics, engagement vehicles, events and communication;
• Support the engagement of major donors to ensure a close connection to WITNESS’ mission and programs; help organize ways to engage donors in program-related activities that grow revenue;
• Execute individual donation processing, including database entry, follow up, and timely acknowledgement; track pledges, process donations, and communicate information to Finance;
• Help coordinate all fundraising and cultivation events (dinners, briefings, panels) to raise WITNESS’ visibility and inspire, inform and grow its donor network;
• Support the management of “Executive Producers” and “Changemaker Network” by managing lists and schedule of pledges and communications;
• Support all aspects of the annual Focus for Change Benefit including production, talent, fundraising and messaging;
• Coordinate annual fund and peer-to-peer fundraising campaigns, including End of Year, the Marathon and Bike Tour;
• Manage and expand existing network of monthly donors;
• Handle and oversee major donor and corporate research;
• Support the cultivation of corporate partnership and sponsorship outreach and strategies.

Institutional Content and Messaging
• Assist in the creation of compelling messaging based on WITNESS’ work and stories to inform, engage and inspire donors with a focus on cultivation emails; draft correspondence for ED and ERM for cultivation of major donors, especially the “Executive Producers” and “Changemaker Network”;
• Support the website content and distribution of External Relations materials.

Departmental Support
• Coordinate all aspects of pro bono support tracking, coding and acknowledgments;
• Create, analyze and maintain donor lists;
• Hire, train and supervise External Relations interns as needed;
• Support Finance with the management payment portals as related to revenue;
• Provide departmental and administrative support to External Relations team.

POSITION REQUIREMENTS:
The ideal candidate will have the following professional skills, experience and characteristics:

• Work Experience and Education: You have a minimum of two years of professional experience in non-profit development, public relations, fundraising, or event management and Bachelor’s Degree or Associate’s Degree plus additional work experience.

• Communications: You are an excellent creative writer with strong copy-editing skill. You are comfortable communicating with external audiences and have strong interpersonal communication skills.

• Systems: You have a mastery of relevant databases and spreadsheet management.

• People and Project Management: You are a highly organized and effective project manager and an effective team leader, able to execute on strategy, and guide, prioritize and motivate a team.

• Work Habits: You are highly organized with superb attention to detail. You thrive in a face-paced, high-performance culture and have the ability to multi-task and even troubleshoot when projects shift unexpectedly. You are reliable, energetic and motivated. You have good judgment and consistently meet deadlines.

• Skills: You are an expert in Microsoft Office applications (Word, Excel, PowerPoint) and have experience working with Salesforce or another CRM. You have excellent project management and organizational skills with an eagle eye to detail. You have the ability to work autonomously and self-motivated; experience with event planning and management; strong analytical and budgeting skills and familiarity with managing websites and html.

• Human Rights/Advocacy: You are genuinely enthusiastic about WITNESS’ mission and have a basic understanding of human rights and/or video advocacy.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS:
The candidate will preferably have the following skills, experience and characteristics:
• Familiarity with WordPress;
• Graphic design skills and familiarity with Adobe Create Suite is a plus.

Location: New York, USA

Application deadline: Applications accepted on a rolling basis until the position is filled.

Read more and apply here.