The benefits and sense of fulfillment on offer for those working in the charity sector means that competition for charity jobs – particularity fundraising roles – is high.

If you’re looking to progress your career in fundraising, it’s vital that you adopt the right strategy for your job search to maxmimise your chance of success.

To help ensure you’re on the right track, we’ve provided some handy tips.

Determine your career goals and preferences for your next role

• Decide what your long-term career goals are:
  • Where do you want to be in 5 or 10 years’ time? Do you see yourself working for a well established international organisation, specialising in a particular fundraising function; or perhaps you’d prefer to work for a small, lesser known charity, heading up the fundraising division to develop and establish the brand?
  • How will you work towards that goal as you progress your career - what path do you need to take and what experience will you need to gain to get there?
• Make your search as targeted as possible and consider your job preferences:
  • Think about the size and type of charity you want to work for;
  • Pull together a list of charities (5-10 at the most) in which you would want to progress your career;
  • Do some research on what type of fundraising role/function would best suit you and your career goals.
• The key is to be specific - but also realistic - when setting your preferences for your next job.

Maintain an up-to-date CV

• You should aim to review your CV at least every 2 months, ensuring that you add any new skills, experience and achievements as appropriate, as well as any volunteer/charity work performed outside of work;
• Register with Morgan Hunt, upload an up to date CV to and sign up for job alerts to notify you of any new fundraising jobs;
• Register your CV on specialist charity job boards (such as Third Sector and Charity Job) and set up job alerts specific to your search;
• Make sure your CV is publicly visible via these sites if you are openly job seeking.

Enhance your online profile

• Maintaining your online profile and enhancing your online brand should be a key part of your job search;
• Manage and conduct regular spot checks of all your social media profiles to ensure you maintain a professional, positive presence;
• Read our guide on how to maximise the potential of your online brand for more tips on how to get ahead of the competition in the fundraising market.

Don’t be overly ambitious – adopt a targeted approach to job applications

• Don’t waste precious time applying for jobs you are not qualified for – be realistic about your career level;
• Analyse the job description and essential requirements of the role and assess whether or not your skills and experience are a good match before applying.

Adapt your CV and cover letter to the role

• Job applications can be a lengthy process, so it’s important to get it right;
• Tailor your CV and cover letter (or supporting statement) to the job and the charity;
  • Highlight relevant experience and key achievements high up on your CV so that the hiring manager is able to see this information clearly;
  • Do your research on the charity to which you are applying and emphasise your passion for the cause, your career ambitions and how you would ‘fit’ the culture of the charity.

Get on the radar of your employers of choice

• Your Morgan Hunt consultant can approach the charities you want to pursue on your behalf on a speculative basis so it’s important you brief your consultant thoroughly;
• This will demonstrate your desire to work for the charity and will put you on their radar to be considered for current and future opportunities.

Ask for feedback on unsuccessful applications and interviews

• Always ask the recruiter or employer for feedback if you have interviewed for a particular role and were unsuccessful as this will help you hone your interview skills and technique;
• If you have applied for a role that you feel matched very closely with your skills and experience but were not shortlisted for interview, don’t be afraid to ask the recruiter or HR contact/hiring manager for feedback on why you were unsuccessful.

Regularly evaluate your progress and review your job search

• If you’ve been conducting your job search for a while but feel as though you haven’t made any progress, don’t keep ‘plugging away’ and hope for the best; stop and take some time to review your current strategy to identify what may be impeding your progress;
• Speak to your recruitment consultant and ask for advice on how you can improve your CV and job search strategy to increase your chances of securing the right job for you. They can advise on market trends/conditions, what type of roles and charities would suit you and what their clients are looking for in terms of stand-out skills and experience for fundraising posts;
• Aim to review your job search strategy every few months or so at least and continue to do your research and update your CV and online profiles regularly.

Stay motivated and keep that end goal in mind

• Securing the ideal job and making that next career move takes time and perseverance – it doesn’t happen overnight. Keep that end goal in mind to stay motivated;
• The important thing is to make the right move – don’t settle for a job that won’t provide that all important stepping stone to help you reach your career goals.

It’s official – apprenticeships are on the rise. The number of young people applying for apprenticeship schemes is at a record high in the UK, according to recently released figures from the National Apprenticeship Service.

Apprenticeships provide an alternative route to employment and career development through paid on-the-job training. With unemployment amongst 16-17 and 18-24 year olds at 36.4% and 18.6% respectively – coupled with rising university fees, it’s hardly surprising that this route has become increasingly popular. 

You can’t ignore an increase of 32% in online apprenticeship applications year-on-year. The  government continue to invest heavily to ensure that employers - especially small to medium sized businesses - are encouraged and incentivised to provide apprenticeships with the aim of helping to get NEET young people into employment.
 

On your marks for new ‘pre-apprenticeship’ programme

In August 2013 the government will be launching a traineeship (or pre-apprenticeship) programme, initially for 16-19 year olds (and young people with learning disability assessments up to academic age 25) to help prepare young people for apprenticeships and other employment.

With more and more young people choosing the apprenticeship path, and with plans to extend the traineeship programme to be delivered to young people up to the age of 24 in due course, demand for enrolment on the programme is expected to be high.

The new scheme will include three key elements:

• a work placement with a minimum duration of six weeks
• educational support to improve English and Maths skills
• work skills training  with flexible training available dependent on the individual's needs.

With the relatively short implementation period for the traineeship programme, further education colleges set to deliver the programme will need to be prepared for the impact.

Morgan Hunt recruitment agency has been the recruitment partner of choice for much of the further education and employability and skills sector since 2005.

We have an established education division with dedicated teams across the UK that specialise in the recruitment of qualified functional skills and employability tutors and PSD mentors across the further education and employability and skills sectors.

Get in touch to find out more about how our expert teams are equipped to help clients prepare to deliver the new traineeship programme by email education@morganhunt.com or contact your relevant Morgan Hunt office.

For further information on the traineeship programme visit http://www.education.gov.uk/.

For more statistics on the increase in online apprenticeship applications, visit http://www.apprenticeships.org.uk/.

* Unemployment stats provided by Parliament Youth unemployment statistics, 12 June 2013

Why finance has gone from being the number crunchers to partners in strategy

A number of key events over the last 5 years have led financial professionals to re-examine their roles. What is different now?

Since the global financial crisis the importance of the CFO has risen dramatically, but it’s not just this event that has propelled them and their functional department into the limelight – finance professionals have gone from being the principle number crunchers to partners in strategy.

The finance function makes two essential contributions to the business; understanding costs and how these translate into outputs that turn profits. This isn’t just about doing the maths, the soul of the challenge lies along a continuum of thinking from; quantifying the value of using alternative delivery models and understanding the dynamics of the business through to ensuring that the organisation has the right structure and skills in place, and that the truth on how to report value is balanced and rigorously upheld in one place. The finance function not only plays a critical role in supporting the business but asks the right questions armed with the right information in order to create it.

In recent months we’ve seen a major retailer wipe billions off their share price following the discovery that its profits had been artificially inflated by some £250m due to a discrepancy between when profits were accounted for from deals with suppliers and when costs were paid. Yet it wasn’t just the accounting errors that raised eyebrows but the sheer way in which eventually the story unfolded. It’s hard to understand why a whistle blower accountant should have to go through a protracted route and through many actors that eventually involved in-house counsel to report concerns; a true indication that all was not well with the culture and structure of the business.

This event, although being a high profile is just one of a number of other types of events that have changed the face of finance for good, not necessarily as a result of misdemeanours, but global incidents, structural change, tax and regulation that conspire together to make the finance function a strategic pin that not only holds everything in place but takes decisions from having better information in a wider context. Commercial deals may not be that commercial if they are not structured in the right way, operational success only comes from efficient and effective delivery of service and products and leadership rewarded from having the right contextual information…the banks may learn a lesson or two from here.

In many businesses today finance has a leading role in innovation that can be financed from tax credits with business strategy that uses finance to create additional and increased value from new business models and playing a critical part in the structures that will deliver this. All this and more finance managers are embracing a more strategic role. They are no longer the number crunchers but delivering the right balance of stability for a sustainable future.  This new dawn has an impact on skills where the qualification is just the foundation. Finance professionals are destined for a very creative and commercial career where nurturing the right attributes can lead to one of the most important roles in the organisation.

Morgan Hunt is a specialist recruiter in the finance sector and offer a consultative service to help you and your organisation find the kind of finance skills that will ensure the continuity of your mission. For more information call 020 7419 8900 or email us.