Job Description

Philanthropy Events Senior Executive

£31,000 - £33,000 plus benefits

Reports to: Philanthropy Events Senior Manager
Directorate: ​Strategy & Philanthropy​
Contract: ​Permanent
Hours: ​Full time 35 hours per week​
Location: ​Stratford, London​ ​Office-based with high flexibility (1-2 days per week in the office)​
Additional information: Occasional travel required for visiting stakeholders, suppliers, event locations and for delivery of the event. This may sometimes involve working unsociable hours and rare overnight stays where required. 
Closing date: 2nd June 23:55pm
Recruitment process: One stage competency-based interview, with potential second stage.
Interview date: 9th / 10th June

Visa sponsorship: You must be eligible to work in the UK to apply for this vacancy. Cancer Research UK is not able to offer visa sponsorship

At Cancer Research UK, we exist to beat cancer.

Our sector leading Philanthropy team have an exciting new opportunity to join as a Philanthropy Events Senior Executive You will be joining our newly formed Philanthropy Events team, which brings together the existing engagement and high value fundraising events teams.

As a part of the wider CRUK fundraising efforts, the Philanthropy Directorate is one of the largest and most successful fundraising teams in the UK. An ambitious and innovative team of 60 talented philanthropy professionals, our focus is the £400m ‘ More Research, Less Cancer’ (MRLC) campaign which has four key priorities: the Francis Crick Institute, Cancer Grand Challenges, Translation & Innovation, and our Future Leaders’ programme. We’ve recently reached the milestone of £200m.  

Our events team brings in almost £2m pounds a year for our cause, through delivering relationship-building events which offer meaningful engagement for high-value audiences, connecting them to Cancer Research UK’s vision, cause and pioneering research. Our programme delivers identification, cultivation, stewardship and fundraising events including unique money-can’t-buy experiences, science talks, dinners and drinks receptions. Each event is tailored to our high-value audience, which includes philanthropists, trusts, foundations and corporate partners.

This is a unique opportunity to play a vital role in project managing and delivering a variety of high-profile events for Cancer Research UK’s philanthropy audience. You will manage relationships with high-net-worth supporters, internal stakeholders, and third-party suppliers to ensure events are delivered to the highest standards, maximising opportunities to raise funds and long-term support for our life saving research.

Experience of high value event delivery is beneficial but not essential; we are looking for someone with transferrable skills who is excited to develop professionally. You will be someone who enjoys taking ownership of their work, is proactive and goes the extra mile to solve problems. You will be a strong communicator and have experience of building relationships with key stakeholders and delivering complex projects end to end.

What will I be doing?

• Professionally and efficiently delivering several events each year, ensuring that events are delivered to a high standard, within budget and reach the fundraising target where applicable.  Responsibilities include event marketing, guest list management, sponsorship acquisition, volunteer management, booking of entertainment, liaising with key internal and external stakeholders and managing event fundraising streams such as securing auction items.

• You may be leading on small projects end-to-end and/or working closely with an Event Manager and project team with areas of the event that you are responsible for.

• Creating effective marketing materials and event collateral in partnership with our in-house design Studio, with careful consideration of our wider branding, to ensure that materials are as impactful and engaging as possible.

• Sourcing high value auction prizes and managing innovative event income streams through raffles, auctions, pledges and fundraising games to ensure that all on-the-night fundraising opportunities are maximised to reach the fundraising target.

• Managing key supplier relationships to ensure that the best value is being driven for the charity without compromising on outstanding quality and understanding how to secure gift in kind support (donated products/services) to reduce expenditure costs.

• Managing event budgets and finances ensuring all income and expenditure is accurately tracked and reconciled to your events.

• Day to day account management to drive and develop strong relationships with supporters and stakeholders in your portfolio, maximising their contribution and retaining their support. Support the Event Manager on additional events/relationships as required.

• Managing contact with partners and committee members as required for your events and relationships, handling queries, updates, requests for support. Ensure these contacts are stewarded to a high standard to drive retention and satisfaction.

• Working in collaboration with the Senior Manager and the Philanthropy team to identify new philanthropy prospects and ensure they are appropriately transitioned to drive additional value to CRUK through seeking to engage with event attendees after the event.

• Accountable for the income and expenditure of events, informing the event manager or senior manager of potential risks and identify opportunities to mitigate these. This includes ensuring timely payments of event suppliers and co-managing event banking processes to ensure all income and expenditure is tracked and relationships with suppliers are maintained.

• Support the wider Philanthropy Events team and portfolio as required, spotting opportunities to help improve our ways of working and achieve the wider goals of the Philanthropy Directorate.

• Be a role model for the two other executives in the team, providing guidance and support where needed.

What skills are we looking for?

• A proven track record of successful project management and delivery of fundraising events.

• Experience of nurturing supporter relationships and delivering an efficient, high quality and personable level of account management at all times.

• Experience of working on multiple projects at one time and managing your own workload (often with tight deadlines).

• Experience of working across internal teams and building good relationships with colleagues.

• Experience of managing external suppliers, negotiating and securing contracts.

• Excellent written and oral communication skills – with the ability to flex communication styles where appropriate.

• Excellent problem-solving skills – with the ability to think on feet, adapt to changing situations and remain calm and professional under pressure.

• Excellent administrative and organisational skills with excellent attention to detail and strong IT skills.

• Can confidently engage with and influence stakeholders of all levels

• Ambitious and analytical – always striving to achieve the best out of our partnerships and events.

• Plenty of enthusiasm and the ability to respond proactively to new opportunities and challenges.

Our organisation values are designed to guide all that we do.

Bold: Act with ambition, courage and determination  

Credible: Act with rigour and professionalism   

Human Act to have a positive impact on people  

Together: Act inclusively and collaboratively

We’re looking for people who can believe in and embody these organisation values and can use them to drive forward progress against our mission to beat cancer.

If you’re interested in applying and excited about working with us but are unsure if you have the right skills and experience, we’d still love to hear from you.

What will I gain?

We create a working environment that supports your wellbeing and provide a generous benefits package, a wide range of career and personal development opportunities and high-quality tools. Our policies and processes enable you to improve your work-life balance, take positive steps in your career and achieve your personal wellbeing goals.

You can explore our benefits by visiting our careers web page

How do I apply?

We operate an anonymised shortlisting process in our commitment to equality, diversity and inclusion. CVs are required for all applications; but we won’t be able to view them until we invite you for an interview. Instead, we ask you to complete the work history section of the online application form for us to be able to assess you fairly and objectively.

For more information on this career opportunity please visit our website or contact us at recruitment@cancer.org.uk  

For more updates on our work and careers, follow us on: Linked In, Facebook, Instagram, X and YouTube

Our vision is to create a charity where everyone feels like they belong, benefits from and participates in, the work we do. We actively encourage applications from people of all backgrounds and cultures, in particular those from ethnic minority backgrounds who are currently under-represented.

We want to see every candidate performing at their best throughout the job application process, interview process and whilst at work. We therefore ask you to inform us of any concerns you have or any adjustments you might need to enable this to happen. Please contact recruitment@cancer.org.uk or 020 3469 8400 as soon as possible.

Unfortunately, we are unable to recruit anyone below the age of 18, so that we can protect young people from health & safety and safeguarding risks.