SUMMER ASSOCIATE – BUSINESS DEVELOPMENT & FUNDRAISING
Acumen is looking for a full-time Summer Associate to support the work of our Global Business Development team. This is an excellent opportunity for someone with strong research skills, exceptional energy, and an enthusiastic commitment to global development.
Acumen
Acumen is changing the way the world tackles poverty by investing in companies, leaders, and ideas. We invest patient capital in businesses whose products and services help people living in poverty to transform their lives. To date, Acumen has positively impacted more than 300 million lives by investing $132M in 136 innovative, early-stage companies in Africa, Latin America, South Asia, and the United States. But investment isn’t just about capital, we’ve been investing in relationships for years, connecting with emerging leaders in their own countries and engaging them in extended collective dialogue, moral inquiry, and skill building.
Business Development
We are a small and mighty team where everyone rolls up their sleeves together to get the job done. We sit at the nexus of philanthropy and capitalism. The successful candidate will walk in both worlds with equal agility and be a results-driven performer. Given our entrepreneurial culture, the candidate must be a self-starter, curious and analytical, and comfortable managing both up and across teams.
Position Summary
The Fundraising Research Summer Associate will be responsible for conducting prospect research, collecting, evaluating, and verifying data on prospects and existing donors, and translating this information into concise and timely profiles in support of the fundraising activities of the Global Business Development team at Acumen.
The Associate may also be called on to assist with specific analysis projects aimed at helping Acumen to better understand our donor community and to provide administrative and logistical support to events aimed at engaging or expanding our donor community.
More specifically, you will work with the Global BD team to:
- Identify and research prospects based on criteria and/or lists provided by the BD team--using publicly available sources, databases, information from staff, supporters, and contacts, as well as any other sources as appropriate.
- Help design prospect outreach touchpoints/events with the BD team.
- Use findings to create quality research profiles to include a brief biographical overview, an assessment of prospects’ wealth and propensity to give, and their affinity with Acumen’s mission.
- Draft correspondence to introduce Acumen to new prospects and follow up over the phone when necessary.
- Optimize and maintain a process for collecting major donor leads and associated research using CRM tools.
- Analyze our existing donor database to identify opportunities both prospects and increased donations from existing donors.
- Verify and update profiles of existing donors using prospect research tools to ensure a more accurate understanding of Acumen’s donor community.
- Assist in the lead-building process by identifying and creating summary reports on sector-wide fundraising trends and local philanthropic events
- Support the creation and execution of virtual events sharing Acumen’s work with our global partners.
- Explore changes to fundraising trends and events due to COVID and what is working well in terms of virtual engagements (by Acumen theme, region, segment etc.).
Skills and Qualifications:
Essential
- Experience with web-based research and ability to find pertinent information and distill large volumes of information into a concise format
- Ability to learn new skills, procedures, and systems quickly without being afraid to ask questions
- Excellent writing and editing skills
- Conscientious approach with good attention to detail.
- Proven ability to work efficiently to meet deadlines.
- Ability to deal with confidential information sensitively and appropriately.
- Ability to work effectively within Microsoft Excel.
Desirable
- Demonstrated experience with prospect wealth and relationship research, event management, and CRM tools such as Salesforce.
- Experience with database logic and the ability to find data for donor profiles and reports from existing data sets (SQL experience is helpful).
Additional characteristics we look for in all roles at Acumen:
- Commitment to and enthusiasm for the organization’s mission to change the way the world tackles poverty, and respect for our core values: generosity, accountability, humility, audacity, listening, leadership, integrity, and respect
- Ability to thrive when there is ambiguity, remain cool-headed when there are curveballs, and withstand the tests of a rapidly changing environment with resilience and resolve
Duration:
10-12 weeks
Location
Remote (supporting staff in New York, San Francisco, and London)
Deadline
Candidates are encouraged to apply early, as applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. The deadline for this position is April 15, 2021