Global Supporter Acquisition Lead

DEADLINE FOR APPLICATIONS

WFP celebrates and embraces diversity. It is committed to the principle of equal employment opportunity for all its employees and encourages qualified candidates to apply irrespective of race, colour, national origin, ethnic or social background, genetic information, gender, gender identity and/or expression, sexual orientation, religion or belief, HIV status or disability.

ABOUT WFP

The World Food Programme is the world’s largest humanitarian organization saving lives in emergencies and using food assistance to build a pathway to peace, stability and prosperity, for people recovering from conflict, disasters and the impact of climate change.

At WFP, people are at the heart of everything we do and the vision of the future WFP workforce is one of diverse, committed, skilled, and high performing teams, selected on merit, operating in a healthy and inclusive work environment, living WFP's values (Integrity, Collaboration, Commitment, Humanity, and Inclusion) and working with partners to save and change the lives of those WFP serves.

To learn more about WFP, visit our website: https://www.wfp.org and follow us on social media to keep up with our latest news: YouTube, LinkedIn, Instagram, Facebook, Twitter, TikTok.

WHY JOIN WFP? 

• WFP is a 2020 Nobel Peace Prize Laureate.

• WFP offers a highly inclusive, diverse, and multicultural working environment.

• WFP invests in the personal & professional development of its employees through a range of training, accreditation, coaching, mentorship, and other programs as well as through internal mobility opportunities.

• A career path in WFP provides an exciting opportunity to work across the various country, regional and global offices around the world, and with passionate colleagues who work tirelessly to ensure that effective humanitarian assistance reaches millions of people across the globe.

• We offer an attractive compensation package (please refer to the Terms and Conditions section of this vacancy announcement).

JOB TITLE: Global Supporter Acquisition Lead
UNIT/DIVISION: Private Partnerships Division (PSP)
DUTY STATION: Remote
CONTRACT TYPE: Short-Term, Regular Consultant
DURATION: 11 months
LINE MANAGER/SUPERVISOR: Head of Individual Giving

ORGANIZATIONAL CONTEXT
The Private Partnerships Division (PSP) is responsible for mobilizing resources from the private sector. PSP has developed an ambitious five-year strategy and our ambition is based on need. The World Food Programme (WFP) is the leading humanitarian organization saving lives and changing lives, delivering food assistance in emergencies, and working with communities to improve nutrition and build resilience. Every day 5,000 WFP-chartered trucks are on the road; 80 planes are in the air and 20 ships are at sea.
Work as hard as we might, through drought and floods, conflict and peace, disasters natural or man-made, the needs are immense and growing. 318 million people in the world are acutely food insure. To get to a world with Zero Hunger faster, WFP has significantly increased resources in recent years from donor governments. We are now investing in and grow private sector fundraising to reach more people. WFP’s private sector strategy (2025 – 2030) proposes to dramatically increase income from individuals to help reach more people and get to Zero Hunger faster, using digital engagement tools to reach audiences across the globe in a flexible and cost-effective way.
Traditional individual fundraising in our sector was primarily conducted through offline channels and implemented through national fundraising operations. The individual fundraising market now looks vastly different, with many potential donors having a digital presence and comfort with transacting online. WFP has a unique opportunity to define its approach amid this digital change, and leapfrog peers through its creation of a digital-led fundraising strategy that engages people worldwide from one centralized team. Our digital focus elevates the importance of an agile approach to delivering opportunities to engage.

INDIVIDUAL FUNDRAISING
In the first year of the new growth strategy the IG team recruited 100k new regular givers supporters, from over 190 countries primarily through digital advertising (Social and Search). Annual income has grown from $3m in FY19 to $56m in FY25 with growth ambitions going far beyond this.
Our focus is a digital-first strategy, working through a centralized global team recruiting supporters primarily through digital channels and building an outstanding supporter experience through a multi-channel loyalty programme that delivers a best-in-class donor experience.

PURPOSE OF THE ASSIGNMENT
The purpose of this role is to lead the global acquisition team and deliver on the core requirements of the IG strategy pertaining to the recruitment of new supporters. The successful candidate will be responsible for a multi-million-dollar paid media and creative development budget aimed at significantly growing the acquisition of new supporters globally, through the development of data-driven digital marketing strategies and building a sector leading team of campaign managers. In FY25 you will recruit at least 50,000 new regular givers to generate sustainable funding, while also acquiring new single gifts to deliver more immediate positive returns on a $16.5 million ad spend across digital channels.

ACCOUNTABILITIES / RESPONSIBILITIES
1. Engage with senior leadership in Partnerships and Advocacy (PA) and beyond
• Liaise with senior management in PA, Regional Bureaus and Global Offices to build trust and support in key areas i.e., creative clearance, celebrity/influencer relationships and earned media coverage.
• Build partnerships across ShareTheMeal and WFP Friends organizations to foster collaboration and knowledge sharing that transcends team boundaries, to grow fundraising from individuals across the board.
• Lead on the presentation of acquisition results and insights to senior stakeholders across PA, ensuring that the impact of the acquisition strategy is well-communicated.
2. Lead the acquisition strategy to deliver on PSP’s Strategic Plan (2025-2030)
• Develop and refine the acquisition strategy, continually drawing on channel and market performance data, testing, audience insights and creative learnings.
• Produce regular financial forecasting for all acquisition activities to determine fundraising targets, guide media buying and provide estimates to finance and procurement teams.
• Facilitate the execution of the acquisition strategy by regularly communicating and promoting its key elements to ensure it is understood and supported at all levels, internally and externally.
3. Manage a team of 6x international consultants to execute the acquisition strategy
• Recruit for, structure, and manage a team of 9 paid media specialists to execute the global acquisition strategy.
• Coach, train, and mentor the team in all areas of digital campaign management – planning, content, creative, paid media, testing, analysis – as needed to ensure the highest levels of campaign performance.
• Promote team wellbeing and work-life balance by fostering a supporting and collaborative team culture, with a focus on data-driven prioritization to manage workloads.
• Protect the sustainability of Individual Fundraising by ensuring campaign alignment with WFP brand/image guidelines and Media Messaging to internal and external risks.
4. Manage multimillion-dollar acquisition budgets and external agencies
• Manage the allocation of a $16.5 million media budget across channels and global markets, setting the overall acquisition testing and campaign priorities to ensure spending is allocated most efficiently.
• Manage external media agencies to ensure the efficiency of paid search investment, overseeing the strategic activity plan for search and ensuring a high standard of agency service.
• Manage an internal media investment across Paid Social, working closely with Campaign Managers to deliver on the twin objectives of giving regular volumes and in-year returns.
• Manage external creative agencies to ensure a high standard of service and manage the acquisition creative budget to ensure that creative risks are calculated and balanced to maintain performance.
5. Drive sustainable income for PSP via the strategic diversification of channels and markets
• Research new channels, language markets and countries, performing cost-benefit analyses to determine the growth potential for, and feasibility of, strategic expansion.
• Launch and grow new acquisition channels by understanding their role in the channel mix and testing new creative approaches as required for each channel.
• Launch and grow new language markets for acquisition by recruiting suitable campaign managers and working with them to test and, if needed, localize campaign strategies and creative approaches.

DELIVERABLES AT THE END OF THE CONTRACT

supporter acquisition growth that drives sustainable income as per the PSP Strategic Plan (2025-2030).

QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE REQUIRED
Education
 University degree in a relevant field e.g., International Development, International Relations, Political Science, Economics, Marketing, Communications.
Work history
 At least five years of experience in managing digital marketing campaigns for acquisition, including at least three years in digital fundraising. Must have digital fundraising experience at the international level and experience in managing a digital fundraising team.
Hard skills
 Expertise in all areas of digital campaign management (planning, strategy, creative production, paid media, testing, analysis)
 Proven ability to lead a digital fundraising team at the international level
 Expert understanding of digital marketing and fundraising metrics, with a proven ability to draw critical insights from data analysis and develop financial forecasts
 Expertise in managing external media and creative agencies
 Platform knowledge (Facebook Ad Manager, Tableau, Google Ads, Asana, Photoshop)
 Demonstrated understanding of different the diverse cultures and languages of the audiences we target (especially Europe, Australia, and Latin America)
 Strong understanding of humanitarian issues and international development
 Proven ability to present to, influence, and effectively engage with, senior leaders within a large international organization
Soft skills
 Excellent organization and prioritization skills
 Analytical skills and high attention to detail
 Highly data-driven and results-driven
 People-oriented: a collaborative and supportive team player
 Excellent strategic and creative thinking skills
 Solutions-oriented, with excellent problem-solving skills
 Strong stakeholder management and influencing skills
 Proven success in an international environment
 Available to work out of hours when required
Language(s)
 C2-level English
 Knowledge of the team’s other fundraising languages (French, Arabic, German, and Spanish) would be a strong plus.

WFP LEADERSHIP FRAMEWORK

WFP Leadership Framework guides to the common standards of behavior that guide HOW we work together to accomplish our mission.

Click here to access WFP Leadership Framework

REASONABLE ACCOMMODATION

WFP is committed to supporting individuals with disabilities by providing reasonable accommodations throughout the recruitment process. If you require a reasonable accommodation, please contact:  [email protected]

NO FEE DISCLAIMER

The United Nations does not charge any application, processing, training, interviewing, testing or other fee in connection with the application or recruitment process. Should you receive a solicitation for the payment of a fee, please disregard it. Furthermore, please note that emblems, logos, names and addresses are easily copied and reproduced. Therefore, you are advised to apply particular care when submitting personal information on the web.

REMINDERS BEFORE YOU SUBMIT YOUR APPLICATION

• All applications must be submitted exclusively through our online recruitment system. We do not accept CVs or spontaneous applications by email.

• If you experience challenges while submitting your online application, please contact us at [email protected] for technical support only.

• Please note that applications sent to this email address cannot be considered.

• We strongly recommend that your profile is accurate, complete, and includes your employment records, academic qualifications, language skills and UN Grade (if applicable).

• Once your profile is completed, please apply, and submit your application.

• Kindly note the only documents you will need to submit at this time are your CV and Cover Letter

• Additional documents such as passport, recommendation letters, academic certificates, etc. may potentially be requested at a future time

• Only shortlisted candidates will be notified

All employment decisions are made on the basis of organizational needs, job requirements, merit, and individual qualifications. WFP is committed to providing an inclusive work environment free of sexual exploitation and abuse, all forms of discrimination, any kind of harassment, sexual harassment, and abuse of authority. Therefore, all selected candidates will undergo rigorous reference and background checks.

No appointment under any kind of contract will be offered to members of the UN Advisory Committee on Administrative and Budgetary Questions (ACABQ), International Civil Service Commission (ICSC), FAO Finance Committee, WFP External Auditor, WFP Audit Committee, Joint Inspection Unit (JIU) and other similar bodies within the United Nations system with oversight responsibilities over WFP, both during their service and within three years of ceasing that service.