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About the Norwegian Refugee Council (NRC)

NRC Germany was established in 2017 to serve as NRC’s representative in Germany vis-à-vis government institutions, private foundations and cooperations, and the general public. NRC is now looking to leverage relationships with the German private sector (foundations, corporations and private philanthropists) to provide funding, skills, and strategic partnerships that improve the lives of people displaced by conflict. 

About the Role

The Private Sector Fundraising Adviser will work with the Director of NRC Germany and the Global Corporate Relations section to develop, monitor, and implement NRC’s private sector policies and strategies in the German market. This includes the responsibility for creating and sustaining relationships with private foundations and corporations based in Germany. To do this, the Private Sector Fundraising Adviser needs to provide the leadership, capacity building and guidance to ensure robust multi-year relationships are created at all levels of the organisation, and that they are safe, impactful and give a good return on investment.

The Private Sector Adviser is responsible for delivering the global strategy in Germany and contributing to the wider Global Corporate Relations section and NRC’s organisational goals. They will work across all of NRC, engaging staff with different competencies, cultures and understandings to develop ideas on ways the German private sector market could provide value to NRC’s work.

They will be part of the NRC Germany Representation Office, which sits within the Partnerships and Policy Department (PnP). The Adviser will be supervised by the Director NRC Germany, with a strong technical reporting line to the Global Corporate Relationships section (global unit lead). The Global Corporate Relations section is part of the External Relations Department. It is responsible for building strong relationships and delivering partnerships with the private sector (private foundations, philanthropists, and corporate partners) that generate resources (cash, skills, joint ventures, innovative finance) which enable NRC to deliver its mission.

Purpose of the Role

Given the significant differences between humanitarian culture and donor grant procedures on the one hand and the way the private foundation sector works on the other hand, the adviser must build and use their experience and knowledge from both worlds to facilitate arriving at a mutual agreement. The adviser should be able to build trust and have a curiosity to understand unrecognised opportunities and translate language and culture between both sides. They should also have the strength of character to explain and make acceptable priorities and redlines for each partner, be resilient and perseverant while looking for a solution, and autonomously find new relationships to leverage.

The Private Sector Adviser is expected to ‘go out’ and find new relationships with German-based foundations, philanthropists and corporations, who often have not heard of NRC. 

Duties and Responsibilities

The Private Sector Fundraising Adviser will operate to identify, map, recruit and manage sources of funding from private organisations (corporations and foundations) and private philanthropists in Germany. They will do this in a way that aligns with NRC’s priorities, follows NRC rules and policies, and gives NRC a significant return on investment. They are also expected to contribute to a wider leadership across NRC to help others develop their thinking and execution around private sector partnerships.

• Develop and maintain a diverse portfolio of unique global fundraising partnerships with different types of private organisations and philanthropists from various industries and cultures.
• Work across NRC to understand global, regional and country strategies and identify ways the private sector could contribute resources to help deliver them.
• Create new and innovative opportunities, identify suitable potential matching partners, and roadmap a way to engage them and get them to commit to funding the organisation.
• Engage with top management and leaders one-on-one to explain NRC’s mission. Get them to see value in partnering with and funding the NRC.
• Work with other teams and leaders in the Head Office, field and representative offices to build their capacity to successfully engage with the private sector and contribute to the broader goals of the Global Corporate Relations Section.
• Deliver a fundraising target for the role.
• Work to promote NRC partnerships, e.g. case studies, talk at events, meetings with leaders and colleagues.
• Influence NRC’s Global Corporate and regional fundraising strategies and strategies for other parts of NRC.
• Bring a level of realism while creating excitement around private sector partnerships to NRC staff.
• Travel for partner meetings, manage existing partnerships and find new partnership funding opportunities.
• Provide leadership across NRC on specific partnerships available in Germany.
• Lead on the development and implementation of a German private-sector fundraising strategy, with support from the NRC Germany Director and the Director of the Global Corporate Relations Section, in line with the global corporate strategy.
• Develop strategies and procedures for fundraising towards new and existing partnerships within specific sectors or donor groups based in Germany.
• Develop expertise on specific NRC needs and competencies.

Skills and Experience

• Proven professional experience within business development and sales, corporate partnerships, social impact or other relevant professional qualifications, ideally in Germany. 
• Extensive professional knowledge of corporations, private foundations, or private philanthropists in Germany.
• Capacity for flexible thinking and innovation to find win-win solutions between NRC and the private sector.
• Demonstrated experience creating new partnerships – including identifying partnership opportunities, designing projects, brokering, cultivating relationships, negotiating, designing and formalising partnership structures.  
• Proven experience and ability to engage with top management and senior levels in business and development sector contexts, and to build trust-based relationships with senior-level executives.
• Fluency in English and German, both written and verbal.
• Communication skills to build bridges between private organisations and individuals and the humanitarian sector. 
• Proven experience working with stakeholders across the public, private, and non-profit sectors in Germany, and if possible, an existing network of contacts to draw upon.
• Ability to multi-task and work with short deadlines.
• Proven experience in project planning and management.
• Demonstrated excellent communication skills.
• Ability to work independently and proactively.
• Willingness and ability to work outside normal work hours to accommodate different time zones.

Behavioural competencies

These are personal qualities that influence how successful people are in their jobs. NRC’s Competency Framework states 12 behavioural competencies, and the following are essential for this position:

• Planning and delivering results
• Working with people
• Communicating with impact and respect
• Coping with change