Development Officer, Partnerships and Events

Friends of Ruby is dedicated to the journey and well-being of 2SLGBTQIA+ youth, aged 16-29 through mental health services, social services, and housing. Friends of Ruby offers Youth Mental Health services, a Youth Drop-In Centre, and a Transitional Home. The Centre provides access to barrier-free counselling and therapeutic groups, case management and a drop-in space with hot meals, community, and comprehensive programming. The Home provides transitional and emergency housing, mental health, and life-skills to support youth moving towards independent living.

Friends of Ruby recognize that a diverse work force is critical to accomplishing our mission. Our goal is to attract and develop incredibly talented individuals from diverse backgrounds, allowing us to benefit from a wide variety of experiences and perspectives. We strongly encourage applicants from the 2SLGBTQIA+, Allies, BIPOC and ACB communities, and diverse backgrounds that meet the requirements of the role.

**Position Summary**

The Development Officer, Partnerships and Events (DO) will be a vital member of the Development and Communications team. This role currently reports to the Director, Development and Communications, with possible changes in the future as the team grows. The role requires close collaboration with diverse internal teams, including Finance, People & Culture, Marketing, and other stakeholder groups. Contributing to the overall fundraising goals, the DO will be leading all corporate and community partnership relations and Friends of Ruby events, including but not limited to, donor cultivation and stewardship events, internal staff events, corporate partnership development, private business support, and CRM activities.

**Duties and Responsibilities**

Partnership Relations
- Develop and manage a portfolio of corporate donors and prospects to achieve or exceed personal and team fundraising goals, focusing on revenue generation opportunities.
- Cultivate and maintain positive relationships with corporate partners and private businesses, leveraging existing connections and establishing new partnerships to optimize fundraising outcomes, increase participation levels, and enhance Friends of Ruby visibility.
- Develop partnership offerings and customized strategies that meet partner’s business objectives, while representing the impact of Friends of Ruby’s priorities, core programs and service offerings.
- Deepen individual and collective relationships within various corporate Employee Resource Groups.
- Guide and support partnership execution to ensure brand alignment.
- Liaison with Marketing social media cross posting and partnership promotions.
- Ensure the delivery of exceptional stewardship activities and reporting to all partners.
- Represent Friends of Ruby at corporate partner events, meetings and presentations.
- Develop opportunities for a Cause Related Marketing program.

Event Management:

- Lead, plan, and execute all Friends of Ruby partnership, internal and sector wide events.
- Plan, manage and execute donor cultivation and stewardship events-including but not limited to venue bookings, creating and sending invitations, coordinating catering requirements, event agendas/programs, booking speakers, requesting speaking notes, creation/organization of donor gifts/take aways.
- Manage on-site event logistics.
- Develop critical paths, speaking notes, run sheets, and source event-related merchandise and promotional materials to ensure seamless execution of events.
- Proactively seek new ideas and trends in event management, continuously exploring innovative approaches to enhance fundraising effectiveness, engage donors, and elevate the overall event experience.
- Adept at leveraging technology and digital platforms to enhance event marketing, ticket sales, and donor outreach, driving increased participation and revenue generation.
- Liaison with Marketing and Communications on event branding and social media outreach.
- Strategically focus on soliciting corporate prospects for sponsorship and support, maximizing fundraising potential and enhancing corporate partnerships.
- Develop a sponsorship matrix and benefits package.
- Generate comprehensive reports on events and financial contributions, providing insights to inform future planning and decision-making.

Stakeholder Engagement:

- Work collaboratively with internal and external stakeholders from diverse backgrounds in multicultural settings to deliver engaging events.
- Liaison with People & Culture team to help support internal and staff events
- Manage event committee volunteers by preparing meeting agendas, materials, meeting notes and coordinating all event committee meetings.
- Liaise with the Volunteer program for the recruitment and supervision of event volunteers.
- Share knowledge and skills, fostering a culture of cross-departmental collaboration.

**Qualifications**

Experience, Knowledge, and Skills:

- Post-secondary education in a related field or add