Contact Support officer
Merseyside Dogs Home is recruiting!
And we’re excited about it because we’ve just restructured as a charity and created a brand new role of Centre Support Officer (CSO). Our CSO will help our Centre fundraise locally, raise our local profile and recruit and support our volunteers.
We need someone brilliant to join us – you’ll be a champion of our Centre, working with the supporters who keep us going and making sure everyone in the local area who loves dogs knows we’re here and what we do!
You will spend your days communicating with our friends, building and managing a team of volunteers, raising Merseyside Dogs Home’s profile and reputation in the local community. Most importantly though – raising that all important ‘dollar’. You will need to know how to deliver great customer service, with our visitors and on the ol’ dog & bone; you will understand the importance of social media for appeals and promoting our dogs and you’ll be brave enough to go for the most innovative and quirky ways you can dream up. You’ll happily speak to all kinds of people about all kinds of dogs, and you won’t mind asking for money, things and time from them – you’ll do anything you can to help us help our dogs
And that’s what is really great - you will do all of this with a rescue dog by your side – so it is crucial that you are passionate about dogs!
Closing date for all – Monday 25th Jan.
Merseyside Dogs Home Dog Rescue
Centre Support Officer Job Description
Job Title: Centre Support Officer
Responsible to: Centre Manager
Responsible for: Fundraising & Communications Co-ordinator
Salary: £24,000 - £28,000
Main Purpose of the Job: To promote our mission, vision and values, ensuring that all dogs get the best chance of being successfully rehomed by supporting the Centre to fundraise, raise local profile and recruit and support volunteers. To provide support to Centre Management in all areas relating to fundraising, communications, and volunteer recruitment, including ensuring that the Centre website pages are up to date and our dog database is up to date as well.
Key Tasks and Responsibilities:
• Contribute to our fundraising strategy to maximise income and develop donor loyalty;
• Work in close collaboration with the Centre manager on joint fundraising targets and planning and maintain excellent communications with the Communications & Fundraising Co-ordinator, liaising on fundraising and marketing issues through the Network;
• Support the Centre Manager in building relationships with local community groups (including schools) and local businesses, ensuring that all supporters are well taken care of to encourage donor retention and repeat support;
• Support the Centre Manager with the development of new recruitment strategies to maximise the number of supporters and volunteers taking part in community based events, education and awareness raising activities;
• Recruit community fundraisers and support them through regular contact, training and advice and ensure activities and events planned by volunteers are well-resourced, effectively organised and volunteers are supported in their role;
• Plan and manage community events, including promoting them and supporting volunteers including supporting the Centre Manager to plan and implement the Centre Shows;
• Take responsibility for the Centre's attendance at events each year, increasing targets year on year;
• Be a positive front of house presence, raising the bar in terms customer care both in the Centre as well in the wider community and maintain positive engagement with customers including collating customer feedback;
• Contribute to newsletters, publications, PR, education and marketing objectives and keep the Centre website page and social media presence up to date to increase our engagement with adopters, supporters and donors online;
• Ensure accurate donor management data is provided and help ensure efficient Centre administration processes are in place, including managing the Centre Dog Database and respond to all enquiries regarding volunteering;
• Work with the Centre manager to increase consistency of messages;
• Contribute to business, marketing and communications plans to support existing and instigate new cost-effective events and community fundraising initiatives, new services and business;
• Make sure all the legal requirements for events and community fundraising is in place;
• Undertake other reasonable duties as required;
Person Specification
Qualifications & Training
• Good education to A Level standard;
• Vocational qualifications in Media, Sales and Marketing, Accounting (desirable);
• Graduate (desirable);
Understanding of the importance of ensuring good dog welfare
• Passionate about the welfare of dogs;
• Understands the spirit and intent behind dogs in the office ?home??;
• Prepared to be trained as a Green Dog handler
Organisational Development
• Events organisation;
• Effectively use IT applications including social media;
• Maintains accurate information (databases, record keeping);
• Marketing experience;
• Ability to understand Gift Aid processes;
• Knowledge of print and online production processes;
• Basic knowledge of the marketing mix including branding and PR;
• Understanding of volunteer recruitment;
Building Profile & Reputation
• Understands the importance of brand recognition;
• Ability to coordinate multiple projects concurrently;
• Strong organisation, prioritisation and evaluation skills;
• Ability to work quickly, accurately and efficiently;
• Good communication skills e.g. keeping suppliers, other teams and manager up-to-date;
• Good I.T. skills including data entry, web programmes Excel, Word and Outlook;
• Ability to develop and maintain effective and collaborative internal and external relationships;
• Ability to pick up new processes and tasks quickly and work independently;
• Positively challenge the accepted way of doing things;
• Negotiating and influencing skills.
Funding, Finance & Enterprise
• Project managing/assisting a project manager to plan and deliver campaigns;
• Using personal contact, media and events and presentations to recruit, retain and develop supporters and volunteers;
Aptitude & Behaviours
• Loves dogs!
• Self-motivated, hardworking;
• Shows integrity and is reliable and trustworthy, going that extra mile when necessary;
• Ability to develop strong and positive relationships across the organisation. Ability to multitask, prioritise workload and meet deadlines at own initiative and with minimal supervision;
• Positive mental attitude – recognising that good mouthing is an antidote to bad mouthing.