Director of Major Gifts

Job Description

The Role

Shape the future of a world‑leading business school through transformational philanthropy

London Business School (LBS) is seeking an experienced and ambitious Director of Major Giving to lead one of the most significant major gifts programmes in UK higher education. This is a rare opportunity to play a pivotal leadership role in delivering a £200m+ fundraising ambition and to build enduring relationships that will shape the School’s global impact for generations to come.

Reporting to the Executive Director, Giving, and working closely with the Associate Dean, Advancement, the Director of Major Giving will be accountable for leading and delivering the major giving strategy over the next phase of the School’s fundraising journey.

You will lead and develop a high-performing team of major gift fundraisers, overseeing philanthropy from £50k to £1m+, and hold a personal portfolio of senior international prospects and donors. You will play a critical role in building a sustainable pipeline to support a £200m campaign, while embedding a donor‑centred, collaborative and ambitious fundraising culture across Advancement

Main Responsibilities

• Lead, inspire and develop a team of major gift fundraisers to deliver exceptional results
• Drive execution of the School’s major giving and campaign strategy
• Build and manage a strong pipeline of high value prospects to support long term fundraising growth
• Personally cultivate, solicit and steward senior donors and prospects globally
• Partner closely with senior stakeholders including the Dean, faculty, alumni leaders and campaign boards
• Set, monitor and report against KPIs, financial targets and multi year plans
• Champion best practice in major giving, donor experience and fundraising innovation
• Act as a visible, credible leader and role model across Advancement and the wider School

Who we are looking for

• Significant experience leading and managing high performing teams
• A strong personal track record of securing major gifts
• Excellent relationship building skills with senior level stakeholders and donors
• Strategic thinking combined with the ability to execute at pace
• Strong financial acumen and experience reporting against ambitious targets
• Outstanding communication, influencing and negotiation skills
• A collaborative, values led leadership style and commitment to continuous improvement

Why London Business School

London Business School; a global and vibrant business community based in two of the world’s most dynamic cities, London and Dubai. It’s where extraordinary minds and diverse perspectives connect, to have a profound impact on the way the world does business and the way business impacts the world. We offer best in class hybrid learning to our students and participants, whilst creating a flexible, supportive and dynamic working environment for our people to excel in, whatever their location.

What you can expect from us

• Generous annual leave of 27 days PLUS extra between Christmas and New Year!
• Generous pension package, 14.5% employer contribution (in return for employee enrolment and contribution)
• Free onsite gym and swimming pool
• Amazing range of professional development to support your career path
• Enhanced cycle to work scheme
• Wellbeing offering to support your physical, mental and financial health
• Up to 5 days paid emergency leave for staff who have caring responsibilities for a family member, dependent or friend who is ill.

At London Business School, we support Smart Working - a hybrid approach designed to help you achieve a healthy work-life balance while delivering the best outcomes for your role and the needs of our customers. All roles require a minimum of two days on campus each week to foster a vibrant, collaborative community.

For this role specifically, you will be expected to be on campus 2 days per week.

We operate with ‘core hours’ – 10:00-15:00 – to maximise opportunities for connection and collaboration across teams during the working day. Outside of these hours, you may still be required for meetings or collaboration based on your role and customer needs. Additionally, we offer Protected Time - a flexible, one-hour slot, within the working week dedicated to your learning and development, wellbeing, or focused, quiet work

Our commitment to driving inclusion and belonging

We are a globally reaching institution, committed to creating tangible and sustainable change in driving inclusion & belonging within our School, education and society at large. We are dedicated to creating an environment where everyone in our community feels they belong and thrive. This is a key school priority, and we want everyone who joins LBS to feel respected, welcomed, and heard.

Candidates needing sponsorship should assess their eligibility for a Certificate of Sponsorship by evaluating their circumstances against the relevant criteria before applying

Please note we start screening CVs and interviewing candidates from the start of a campaign. A successful candidate could progress to offer before the advertised closing date. We encourage you to apply as soon as possible if you are interested in any roles.