John Green & Faye Marshall: Mission impossible – fundraiser recruitment in Europe

Recruitment is a challenge for nonprofits throughout Europe, and the problem has only intensified since COVID. This month, John Green, fundraising manager at the Jesuits, and Faye Marshall, deputy CEO of UK charity recruitment specialists Harris Hill, take a look at some of the issues and a few of the ways they’re being addressed.

For many nonprofits, recruiting fundraisers is not easy, but depending on where you are in Europe, the reasons can differ. Salaries that can’t compete with the commercial sector is one common reason, but what else is going on? Here are some insights into the challenges in five countries and how nonprofits are addressing them.

What’s in a name? Quite a lot as it turns out in Ireland, where a charity professional explains that candidates with the right skills are often put off by the term ‘fundraiser’, which they see as someone collecting donations in the street. As a result, some charities advertise for a ‘communications’ post instead, but they must be very clear on what’s required or risk failing to bring in the income ­­– rather a conundrum in such a crucial charity role.

There’s no such baggage attached to the term in Lithuania, but perhaps because it’s rarely used, with Gražvydas Bareišis, regional development director for the Central European Jesuit Province, noting that only 21% of NGOs in the country have a dedicated fundraiser.

Charities usually recruit ‘project managers’ or a ‘director of communication’ who will also manage campaigns, write grants, and coordinate projects at the same time. Individual giving and corporate fundraising are a low priority meaning that charities simply do not hire staff such as gift officers or database managers, and the profession of ‘fundraiser’, she says, is not a well-established niche in the Lithuanian job market.

To address this, some networks of NGOs and Christian charities are coming together to discuss fundraising skills, competencies and capacities, while it’s also a good sign that some colleges and universities have organised informal fundraising courses in recent years, for charity leaders and managers.

Stéphanie Gonand, director of development for the Jesuits in France, knows how effective this can be, having seen a landscape devoid of fundraising training in the early 2000s transformed by the French Association of Fundraisers (AFF) into something far more supportive, where experience is shared.

In recent years as public funding has decreased, more and more private and public organisations are recruiting fundraisers. Currently, the easiest way to recruit a fundraiser in France is through informal networks.

Thanks to the AFF training courses, there are increasing numbers of entry level candidates who have the basics of fundraising even if they don’t have fundraising experience. The fact that fundraising is currently ‘fashionable’ in France is also helping to boost the number of applicants, although as salaries are not very high, retention is an issue.

Meanwhile the problem with recruiting experienced fundraisers in Germany, according to Birgit Bidell, head of fundraising at the Friends of the Society of Jesus, is simply that there aren’t enough of them in the market.

Birgit advertises on LinkedIn and many well-known online recruitment platforms, as well as reaching out to her personal fundraising network, an approach that has brought her three new colleagues recently, albeit for administration rather than fundraising positions.

However, she’s also facing a new challenge from a different quarter: a rise in applications from migrants to the country who are often well-educated and well-qualified, but lack the necessary competence in the German language which is so vital for fundraising roles.

A shortage of numbers in the sector is the big challenge for the UK too, although more for a lack of entry-level openings than interest. Organisations invariably want candidates who are already trained in fundraising, but very few are prepared to invest in that training themselves, making it very difficult for anyone to get a foothold in the sector.

What’s more, training requirements have only increased since the Covid-19 pandemic, with many younger people having known little but working from home, meaning they not only need to learn about fundraising, but also many of the basics of working in an office, as a team, and within an organisation.

And while flexible or remote working is now expected as a matter of course, this can make it challenging for younger fundraisers in particular to get to know the organisation and integrate with their team, so it’s become more necessary than ever to make the office as attractive as possible with perks, motivation and a bit of fun.

To help the recruitment process, here are some steps we recommend:

• Join fundraising networks and start making contacts well before you need to recruit.
• Discuss salaries with your board before you need to recruit, so there’s no delay when you do.
• Take candidates through the interview process quickly and make an offer before they’re snapped up elsewhere.
• Regularly compare your job descriptions against competitors to keep them up to date and as attractive as possible.
• Detail your induction plan in your recruitment pack and stick to it, making space and time to support new fundraisers.
• Support new starters with training: they’ll appreciate it for their CV but it will also upskill your team and attract new talent.

About John Green & Faye Marshall

John Green

John Green has worked in the voluntary sector for over 20 years. After 17 years at seafarers’ charity Stella Maris as their director of development, he is now fundraising manager at the Jesuits and has a Masters in Voluntary Administration. He founded the networking forum ‘Catholics in Fundraising’ and has been a trustee at Field Lane and Aberdeen Seafarers’ Centre and has served on the grant making body of the Plater Trust.

Faye Marshall

Faye Marshall is the deputy CEO of charity recruitment specialists Harris Hill and a certified member of the Recruitment and Employment Federation (REC). Having joined Harris Hill in 2005 she has exceptional experience in recruitment for charities and not-for-profit organisations of all kinds throughout the sector, including successful campaigns for charities such as The Prince’s Trust, English-Speaking Union, London Youth, Cruse Bereavement Support, Place2Be, FareShare and Prostate Cancer UK.

Main picture by Resume Genius on Pexels