Director, Fundraising

About Udhyam:

Udhyam Learning Foundation (Udhyam) is on a mission towards Making Bharat Entrepreneurial. We believe that entrepreneurship is a powerful way to channelize an individual's potential. Entrepreneurship enables agency and allows an individual to work on their strengths while creating value for the world.

Our programs:

• Udhyam Shiksha works on developing entrepreneurial mindsets among the youth and enabling them to achieve their potential, having impacted 40,00,000 learners across 12 Indian states.

• Udhyam Vyapaar focuses on nano businesses in India, and solving large problems faced by them, at scale; having already enabled up to a 27% income uplift for 5000+ entrepreneurs.

The goal for Udhyam is to build a thriving and supportive ecosystem, where every individual feels empowered to define their own path.

Shiksha Fundraising:

Udhyam Shiksha has rapidly scaled by embedding entrepreneurship education into government school systems, unlocking youth mindsets across Bharat. Today, the program spans 10 states, reaching 2 million learners annually. To drive impact at scale, Shiksha has invested deeply in curriculum, technology, data, research, and impact measurement—earning recognition through Global HundrED (two consecutive years) and awards for its pioneering use of AI in the development sector.

With a strong foundation in place, Shiksha is now entering its next phase: institutionalizing and mainstreaming entrepreneurship education nationwide. This transition demands a robust in-house fundraising engine to power scale and sustainability.

Udhyam Shiksha is looking for a Director of Fundraising to provide strategic leadership and oversee the entire fundraising unit, driving growth across CSR, HNIs, Foundations and Global Institutional Donors.

About the Role - Director of Fundraising

Responsibilities:

Develop and Lead Fundraising Strategy: Design and execute a comprehensive, multi-year resource mobilization strategy to meet Shiksha's ambitious scaling goals, ensuring diversification of the funding base.

Strategic Donor Management: Personally cultivate, solicit, and steward high-value relationships with CSRs, Foundations (domestic and global), and ultra-HNIs to secure long-term partnerships.

Market Positioning and Analysis: Drive competitive analysis and clearly articulate Udhyam Shiksha's unique value proposition against organizations in the school education, vocational skilling, entrepreneurial development and youth development spaces.

Oversee Proposals and Narratives: Guide the strategic direction of major proposals and pitches to ensure they compellingly articulate Shiksha's vision, ensuring high conversion rates.

Institutionalize Systems & Compliance: Set up and oversee robust pipeline management systems, knowledge management processes, and ensure 100% compliance with donor reporting and regulatory requirements.

Executive Collaboration: Work closely with the Shiksha program leaders, Finance, and Udhyam Leadership to align fundraising targets with programmatic needs, budgeting, and long-term financial sustainability.

Funder Ecosystem Representation: Represent Udhyam Shiksha at high-level industry forums, conferences, and networks to build the organization's brand as a thought leader.

Lead and Mentor the Fundraising Unit: Build, manage, and mentor a high-performing fundraising team, fostering a culture of ownership, excellence, and continuous development for team members.

The ideal candidate will have:

• 10+ years of experience with a proven track record of securing multi-year, large-ticket funding from institutional donors and CSRs in the education sector

• Deep strategic understanding of the Indian education non-profit sector and its donor ecosystem

• Demonstrated ability to design and execute strategic fundraising plans that drive organizational growth

• Deep, active network with decision-makers in the Indian and Global donor community (CSRs, Foundations, HNIs)

• Exceptional communication and narrative-building skills, with the ability to pitch complex programmatic impact to senior stakeholders

• Proven experience of managing and mentoring high-performing fundraising teams

• High level of ethics, integrity, and alignment with the mission of Making Bharat Entrepreneurial

• Strong strategic ownership and results orientation