About Centre for Microfinance and Livelihood (CML):
Centre for Microfinance and Livelihood (CML) an initiative of TATA TRSUST is a not-for-profit development organization established in 2012 and headquartered in Guwahati, Assam. CML works to improve the livelihoods and socio-economic well-being of underserved communities, with a focus on sustainable development, community empowerment, and development interventions across Northeast India.CML collaborates with institutional donors, philanthropic organizations, corporate partners, government agencies, and development institutions to implement impactful and sustainable development programmes.
Position Summary:
The Fundraising & Partnerships Manager will lead CML’s resource mobilization strategy, donor engagement, strategic partnerships building, and institutional fundraising initiatives. The position will be responsible for identifying new funding opportunities, developing high-quality proposals, cultivating relationships with CSR foundations and institutional donors, and securing financial and technical resources to support CML’s existing and emerging development programmes.
Position: Fundraising & Partnerships Manager
Organization: Centre for Microfinance and Livelihood (CML) An Initiative of TATA TRUSTS
Location: Guwahati, Assam, with travel across to Pan India
Reporting To: Executive Director (ED)
Employment Type: FTE
Compensation: Compensation will be determined based on the candidate’s qualifications, experience, and mutual understanding between the candidate and CML, subject to CML’s approved HR budget
Key Roles and Responsibilities
A. Resource Mobilization
•Develop and implement CML’s annual and long-term fundraising and resource mobilization strategy.
• Search, identify, assess, and pursue funding opportunities from CSR foundations, corporate houses, philanthropic institutions, national and international donors, multilateral agencies, government programmes, High Net worth Individuals (HNI) and other eligible funding sources.
• Build and maintain a structured funding pipeline, donor database, and opportunity-tracking system.
• Lead the preparation and submission of funding proposals, concept notes, expressions of interest (EOIs), and grant applications.
• Develop strategies to expand and diversify CML’s funding sources and reduce dependence on a limited number of donors.
• Track fundraising performance against annual targets and periodically report progress to senior management.
B. Donor and Corporate Partnerships
• Establish and maintain relationships with CSR heads, corporate foundations, philanthropic organizations, funding agencies, HNI and other development partners.
• Identify potential corporate partners whose CSR priorities align with CML’s thematic areas and geographical presence.
• Organize donor meetings, partnership discussions, field visits, presentations, and organizational briefings.
• Develop customized partnership proposals, presentations, organizational profiles, and impact narratives for prospective donors.
• Maintain updated organizational documents required for due diliginces.
• Negotiate partnership arrangements in coordination with the Executive Director and authorized organizational representatives.
• Build long-term relationships that encourage repeat funding, programme expansion, and strategic collaboration.
C. Proposal Development and Programme Design
• Work with programme teams to identify community needs, development challenges, potential programme opportunities and strategic vision of CML.
• Translate field-level requirements and organizational expertise into compelling, evidence-based project concepts.
• Lead the preparation of project proposals, logical frameworks, results frameworks, budgets, monitoring indicators, and implementation plans in collaboration with relevant colleagues.
• Ensure proposals demonstrate clear development outcomes, measurable impact, sustainability, scalability, and value for money.
• Coordinate the preparation of supporting documents, organizational credentials, registrations, audited financial statements, and compliance declarations required for funding applications.
• Ensure all submissions meet donor-specific eligibility criteria, technical requirements, formats, and deadlines.
D. Donor Relationship Management and Grant Stewardship
• Maintain regular communication with existing donors and funding partners.
• Coordinate with programme and finance teams to ensure timely submission of progress reports, utilization certificates, financial statements, and other donor deliverables.
• Monitor donor commitments, grant milestones, reporting schedules, and renewal opportunities.
• Identify opportunities for programme continuation, expansion, and additional funding.
• Support donor visits, review meetings, impact presentations, and field-level interactions.
• Ensure donor engagement is transparent, professional, and aligned with CML’s organizational policies.
E. Strategic Partnerships and Networking
• Build partnerships with NGOs, civil society organizations, academic institutions, research organizations, technical agencies, government departments, and development networks.
• Explore consortium-based funding opportunities and collaborative programme implementation.
• Represent CML at relevant development-sector events, CSR forums, fundraising platforms, conferences, and networking meetings, as authorized.
• Develop strategic collaborations that strengthen CML’s technical capacity, institutional visibility, and access to funding opportunities.
• Identify opportunities for knowledge sharing, technical assistance, and non-financial partnerships.
F. Fundraising Intelligence and Market Research
• Conduct regular research on donor priorities, CSR expenditure patterns, funding trends, grant announcements, and emerging development themes.
• Monitor relevant CSR regulations, philanthropic funding priorities, donor strategies, and grant-making guidelines.
• Maintain a calendar of funding opportunities, proposal deadlines, donor meetings, and renewal dates.
• Prepare donor mapping reports, competitor and sector analysis, funding opportunity briefs, and periodic resource mobilization updates.
• Recommend new thematic areas, geographies, and partnership models based on funding trends and CML’s organizational strengths.
G. Internal Coordination and Compliance
• Coordinate with HR, Finance & Accounts, Programme, Monitoring & Evaluation, and Administration teams for fundraising-related requirements.
• Ensure fundraising commitments are realistic, properly costed, and aligned with CML’s operational capacity.
• Support due diligence, donor assessments, organizational audits, and grant compliance reviews.
• Ensure funding proposals and partnership agreements are reviewed and approved by the appropriate organizational authorities.
• Maintain accurate records of proposals, donor correspondence, agreements, commitments, and fundraising outcomes.
• Adhere to CML’s Code of Conduct, financial policies, safeguarding standards, anti-fraud requirements, and applicable statutory and donor compliance requirements.
Key Performance Indicators (KPIs)
The performance of the Fundraising & Partnerships Manager will be assessed against mutually agreed annual targets, including:
1. Resource Mobilization: Amount of funding secured against the approved annual target.
2. Funding Pipeline: Value and quality of qualified funding opportunities identified and developed.
3. Proposal Development: Number, quality, and timeliness of proposals and concept notes submitted.
4. Conversion Rate: Percentage of submitted proposals that result in funding commitments.
5. Donor Diversification: Number of new institutional donors and CSR partners engaged and successfully onboarded.
6. Partnership Development: Number and quality of strategic partnerships established.
7. Donor Retention: Renewal of existing grants and development of repeat funding opportunities.
8. Compliance and Reporting: Timely submission of donor documentation and coordination of reporting requirements.
9. Strategic Contribution: Contribution to CML’s long-term sustainability, organizational visibility, and programme expansion.
Specific annual fundraising targets and KPI weightages will be finalized by the Executive Director based on CML’s funding requirements, organizational priorities, and available opportunities.
Educational Qualifications
• Postgraduate degree or equivalent in any discipline from a reputed institution.
• A postgraduate qualification in Development Management, CSR, Fundraising, or Non-Profit Management will be an added advantage.
Experience
• Minimum 3 to 5 years of relevant experience in fundraising, institutional partnerships, CSR engagement, resource mobilization, proposal development, or donor relationship management within the NGO, development, CSR, or social impact sector.
• Demonstrated experience in developing proposals and securing funding from institutional donors, corporate CSR foundations, philanthropic organizations, or development agencies.
• Experience in working with development programmes related to livelihoods, water and sanitation (WaSH), education, agriculture, financial inclusion, climate resilience, rural development, or community empowerment will be preferred.
• Experience working in Northeast India or with organizations implementing programmes in underserved and geographically challenging areas will be an advantage.
• A proven track record of building donor relationships, managing funding pipelines, and contributing to successful resource mobilization will be highly desirable.
Required Skills and Competencies
• Strong understanding of NGO fundraising, CSR partnerships, institutional grants, and resource mobilization.
• Excellent proposal writing, concept note development, budgeting, and presentation skills.
• Strong relationship-building, networking, negotiation, and stakeholder management abilities.
• Ability to analyse donor priorities and match them with organizational capabilities.
• Good understanding of project design, logical frameworks, results-based management, and impact measurement.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills in English.
• Proficiency in MS Office, particularly Word, Excel, and PowerPoint, along with online donor research and proposal management tools.
• Ability to manage multiple funding opportunities, deadlines, and stakeholder expectations simultaneously.
• Strong analytical thinking, initiative, professional integrity, and a results-oriented approach.
• Willingness to travel across Assam, Tripura, and other locations as required.
Key Working Relationships
Internal: Executive Director, Programme Heads, Area Managers, Finance & Accounts, Monitoring & Evaluation, HR, and Administration teams.
External: Corporate CSR departments, corporate foundations, institutional donors, philanthropic organizations, government agencies, development partners, civil society organizations, and technical institutions.
Authority and Decision-Making
• Lead the identification, assessment, and development of fundraising opportunities within approved organizational priorities.
• Proposal preparation and donor engagement across relevant departments.
• Recommend funding priorities, partnership opportunities, and resource mobilization strategies to senior management.
• Financial commitments, grant agreements, MoUs, and other binding partnership arrangements shall be subject to CML’s approved delegation of authority and authorization procedures.
Expected Outcomes
• A diversified and sustainable funding portfolio for CML.
• A strong pipeline of qualified funding opportunities.
• Increased engagement with corporate CSR partners and institutional donors.
• High-quality, timely, and competitive funding proposals.
• Stronger donor retention and strategic partnerships.
• Improved financial sustainability and greater programme reach and development impact across Northeast India.
How to Apply:
Please email your updated resume and cover letter to:
Subject: Application for Fundraising & Partnerships Manager
Email: Admin@cmlnortheast.com
Please note: Only shortlisted candidates will be contacted.