Supporter Relations Officer

Overview

About the Institute. Located on the lands of the Bidiagal Clan of the Dharawal Nation (Randwick, NSW), Black Dog Institute is the only Medical Research Institute in Australia to investigate mental health across the lifespan. Our aim is to create a mentally healthier world for everyone. For the past 20 years, we have been at the forefront of mental health research, connecting research answers, expert knowledge, and the voices of lived experience to deliver solutions that impact and boost the health care system for patients and practitioners alike.

Hybrid work options are available : 1-2 days per week in the office (choose your days, with consistent team collaboration days where possible). 35 hour work week with flexible hours and 9-day fortnights. Salary Packaging is available ($15,900 of base salary tax free and up to $2,650 for meal & entertainment). We support a family-first, people-first culture and are actively embedding reconciliation into our workplace culture. This is a pet-friendly workplace with leave benefits including public holiday swap, gifted annual leave, and wellbeing leave. Employee discounts and gym membership benefits are available.

Job Description

The Role

Reporting to the Supporter Relationships Manager, the Supporter Relationships Officer focuses on donor retention and provides customer service through phone, email, mail, SMS and other channels to deepen donor engagement. This includes responsive customer care for inbound enquiries and proactive outbound donor engagement initiatives, such as writing personalised notes, making calls to deepen donor relationships, and communicating about Black Dog Institute’s mental health impact to inspire new and re-inspired donors.

The role is responsible for processing donations received by mail and via electronic funds transfer in a timely and accurate way, including correct database coding of funds and accurate receipting to ensure a seamless donor experience. Administrative activities related to mail and EFT donation processing support regular financial reconciliation. This is a highly valued role within the team, providing general administrative, fundraising, and customer service support for the wider Philanthropy, Partnerships & Fundraising (PPF) team.

Duties & Responsibilities

Donations Processing and Administration

• Ensure the Black Dog Institute fundraising post office box is checked, emptied and actioned regularly throughout the month, and more frequently during appeal and campaign periods.
• Process and receipt all mail donations in a timely and accurate manner.
• Weekly : check the PPF safe and process cheques or correspondence received.
• Download EFT report daily, enter EFT donations into Raisers Edge, code donations, and follow up with appropriate team members to ensure correct processing.
• Process return-to-sender mail weekly, and more frequently during peak campaigns.
• Relocate donations to correct coding in the database when requested.
• Liaise with all F&P teams to ensure receipt templates are up to date and support the Supporter Relationships Manager to improve receipting efficiency.
• Ensure donation receipts are produced and sent to donors within agreed service levels.
• Regularly liaise with the finance team to deposit cheques and cash into the Donations Bank Account at NAB.
• Process refunds of donations with approval from the Supporter Relationships Manager.
• Create donation invoices for team members as requested.
• Fulfil outbound donor communications as directed.
• Ensure all Supporter Relationships team procedures are documented, up-to-date and accessible to collaborators.
• Support Black Dog’s overarching Philanthropy, Partnerships & Fundraising strategy.

Supporter Relationships

• Update supporter information, including contact details and donor records.
• Promptly triage and manage all inbound donor enquiries by email, mail, phone and SMS to reduce escalations and ensure a positive donor experience.
• Assist the wider PPF team with proactive supporter engagement activities, including regular outbound calls to welcome, thank and inspire donors, and donor correspondence by mail.
• Provide appropriate resolution to donor queries regarding donations and receipts.
• Inspire existing donors to retain or increase their financial support using a range of telemarketing techniques to meet financial targets.
• Inspire new donors to support Black Dog Institute through regular donations, single gifts, community events, gifts in wills, corporate support, volunteering and other opportunities.
• Administrate SMS communications such as return-to-sender mail follow-up and timely donor engagement updates.
• Complete administrative duties associated with appeals and donor care, including handwriting thank you notes and including “with compliments” slips.
• Triaging complaints and requests for mental health referrals and escalating when necessary.
• Identify opportunities to improve donor relationships and efficiency in donor communications.
• Provide high levels of customer service and build strong working relationships with internal and external stakeholders.
• Continue expanding fundraising knowledge to support best-practice delivery of giving programs and donor lifetime value.

Database Administration

• Enter supporter information accurately and keep records updated.
• Keep process documents accurate and up to date; identify improvements to database procedures to capture donor interactions.
• Comply with data protocols, privacy policy, and data collection and storage procedures.
• Develop strong knowledge of the database and continuously improve CRM usage.
• Collaborate with the finance team monthly on financial reconciliation of donation-related bank accounts.

Work, Health and Safety (WHS)

• Ensure self and all staff comply with WHS legislation and policies.
• Report WHS hazards and significant issues to the Director of Finance and Governance or delegate.
• Work safely and apply a duty of care.
• Train new staff and coach existing staff in WHS practices.

Skills & Experience Required

Selection Criteria

• Previous experience in donor services or member care, preferably in the NFP sector.
• Experience with accurate and timely data entry and processing, preferably with Raisers Edge / NXT.
• Experience processing financial transactions such as credit cards, direct debits, EFTs, cash and cheques.
• Excellent attention to detail with strong organizational and relationship-building skills.
• Ability to build strong working relationships within a team and use initiative.
• Ability to manage challenging conversations with empathy and professionalism.
• High computer literacy, including Microsoft Office and Excel.
• Experience resolving customer enquiries, complaints, and feedback professionally and promptly.
• Strong interpersonal skills with a warm telephone manner.
• Strong problem-solving ability.
• Proven time management and the ability to juggle competing deadlines without compromising quality.

Desirable Criteria

• Experience using third-party donation platforms.
• Negotiation and sales skills to meet financial targets.
• Proficiency with SMS and email marketing platforms.
• Alignment to mental health and wellbeing.

EEO Statement

Black Dog Institute is committed to achieving a diverse and inclusive workforce that reflects our wider community. We ensure equal employment opportunity for all, regardless of age, appearance, carer status, cultural and / or racial background, disability, gender identity, lived experience, religion or sexual orientation.

How to Apply

To become a part of the Black Dog Institute team, follow the link to ELMO to apply and submit your most up-to-date resume. If you are shortlisted, we will call you to let you know you are successful. Please do not respond to any suspicious emails requesting you to upload your ID or personal details. We are a 2022 Circle Back Initiative Employer and commit to respond to every applicant.

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