Director of External Relations (focusing on fundraising & communications) Full Time

Ada, National College for Digital Skills
Welcome to Ada! Ada is a ground-breaking college and charity focused on using tech as a tool for social mobility and addressing the diversity and gender gaps in the tech sector and providing our industry partners with a new pipeline of diverse digital talent. We have fantastic corporate partners such as Salesforce, King, Deloitte, Bank of America and Workday and you would be responsible for these relationships as well as others. Ada works with partners in a variety of ways from hiring and training their apprentices to volunteering through to philanthropic giving to support and scale our impact. As Director of External Relations you would be responsible for these partnerships from prospect stage through to stewardship. We’ve had great success with fundraising and broader stakeholder engagement, raising over £7m since opening in September 2016 to support the College’s establishment, growth and to provide additional services and support for our learners. We are now entering an exciting new phase of growth as evidenced by our new hub campuses in London (August ’23) and Manchester (Spring ’24). With over £8m of funding from DfE we are transforming two buildings into state-of-the-art tech education and skills hubs and need you to come into the role and bring them to life for our stakeholders! We want to shout about the work we are doing and we want you to champion what we are doing. Your communication skills, your commitment to our mission and your mindset will be vital in helping us grow and will give you the chance to fundamentally impact the diversity and access gaps in the tech sector. As Director of External Relations you will work with your team, peers and Board Members to shape and then implement the College’s External Relations strategy and implementation. On a day-to-day basis that will consist of: Managing and growing Ada’s existing portfolio of philanthropy partners who give in excess of £500k per annum of core funding plus significant additional one-off donations for specific projects, programmes or capital projects. The portfolio currently includes corporate philanthropy foundations (Ie.g. Bank of America and Workday Foundations), trusts and foundations (e.g. the Impetus Foundation) and a number of HNW worth donors. Grant management for specific programmatic grants. For example our short course programme in conjunction with the Salesforce Foundation Facilitating and managing the extensive volunteering opportunities for industry partners across Ada’s sixth form and apprenticeship programme. Raising the profile of the college including marketing, communications (in-house) and public relations management (agency collaboration) Developing, managing and maintaining the College’s online presence including website development and management, PR, e-prospectuses, SEO/SEM, e-forums and similar channels Ensuring the deployment of brand guidelines, including visual identity, imagery and key messages Managing and developing all printed marketing and information materials and displays such as prospectuses, presentations, banners and publications Initiating, leading and managing all market, customer and competitor research on behalf of the College, including developing appropriate feedback channels Defining and successfully implementing Ada’s alumni engagement and support strategy Line management of the External Relations Team The Director of External Relations also sits on Ada’s Executive Leadership Team (ELT) and is part of the decision making and direction setting for the College as a whole. About You Ada is looking for a talented external relations professional with experience of income generation, stakeholder management and communications, who is ready to take the next step in their career as a strategic leader. Working with senior colleagues you will build on the solid partnerships and funding to date and grow our communications activities so that we raise our public profile, supporting our ambitious Growth and Impact plan for the next decade. Are you: Experienced at initiating, building and maintaining strategic partnerships? A great communicator? Skilled at generating income through fundraising? Passionate about tech and the opportunities tech can offer to transform lives? A leader with a track record of building, developing and managing high performing teams? Excited to work in a small, fast-paced College, engaging with our learners daily and shaping the opportunities that could transform their lives through exciting tech jobs? A more detailed list of the main duties and responsibilities of the role can be found in the attached Job Description alongside the Person Specification. Safeguarding Ada, National College for Digital Skill is committed to safeguarding and promoting the welfare of children and young people and expects all staff and volunteers to share in this commitment. The successful candidate will be required to have an Enhanced Disclosure and Barring Service (DBS) check and references will be sought from previous employers prior to commencing employment. Other related pre-employment checks appropriate to the post will also be carried out. Equal Opportunities Ada. National College for Digital Skills recognises that equality of opportunity and the recognition and promotion of diversity are integral to its strengths. The following principles apply in respect of the College’s commitment to equality and diversity: To provide and promote equality of opportunity in all areas of its work and activity; To recognise and develop the diversity of skills and talent within its current and potential community; To ensure that all employees and prospective employees of the College are treated solely on the basis of their merits, abilities and potential without receiving any unjustified discrimination or unfavourable treatment on grounds such as age, disability, marital or civil partner status, pregnancy or maternity, race, religion or belief, sex, sexual orientation, gender, gender reassignment, trans status, socio- economic status or any other irrelevant distinction; To provide and promote a positive working, learning, and social environment which is free from prejudice, discrimination and any forms of harassment, bullying or victimisation; and To promote good relations between individuals from different groups. Applicants with disabilities Ada. National College for Digital Skills is keen to increase the number of disabled people it employs. We therefore encourage applications from individuals with a disability who are able to carry out the duties of the post. If you have special needs in relation to your application please contact us. Sponsorship Sadly, we are unable to offer sponsorship for this role so can only accept applications from candidates who have the legal right to work and remain in the United Kingdom. How to apply for the role Please send a CV and brief covering letter to us outlining your suitability for the role In the subject field please write “Application for Director of External Relations” followed by your name. Interested parties who seek further information on the role or Ada, are invited to submit a CV, in the first instance, and request a phone call with a member of ELT before submitting a formal application. Start date: TBD. Ideally during May 2023 The job description is designed to outline a range of main duties that may be encountered. It is not designed to be an exhaustive listing of tasks and can be varied in consultation with the post holder in order to reflect changes in the role or needs of the organisation. Thank you for your interest in the role and good luck with your application!