Bilingual Donor Relations Specialist

Actionforhumanity; Mississauga; On-site; CAD 65,000 - 95,000; Full time

Job summary

Action For Humanity Canada is seeking a Head of Fund Development & Donor Relations to enhance donor experiences and strengthen long‑term relationships across Canada. The role covers donor care, recurring giving, and sponsor communications, with emphasis on accuracy and empathy.

As a bilingual English/French position, you will ensure accessibility and high‑quality service. You will work with Finance, Programs, and international teams to align donor communications with organizational mission.

Qualifications

• Minimum 2–3 years in donor relations, donor care, fundraising administration, or similar role.
• Experience with CRM and maintaining donor records.
• Ability to communicate with empathy, professionalism, discretion, and cultural sensitivity.

Responsibilities

• Serve as primary contact for donors via phone, email, and other channels.
• Manage recurring giving and donor records in the CRM.
• Resolve donor inquiries and donation issues in coordination with Finance and other teams.
• Support the Orphan Sponsorship program administration and communications.
• Provide bilingual donor support in English and French.

Skills

Donor relations

Communication

Empathy

Data accuracy

Organization

Problem-solving

CRM systems

Analytical thinking

Team collaboration

Bilingual (English/French)

Education

Nonprofit management

Tools

CRM systems

Google Workspace

Microsoft Office

Job description

Head of Fund Development & Donor Relations

Contract Type:

Competitive | Full-Time

Job Description

Purpose of Position

The Bilingual Donor Relations Specialist plays a key role in delivering an exceptional donor experience and strengthening long-term relationships between Action For Humanity Canada and its supporters.

The positionis responsible for day-to-day donor relations activities, including responding to donor inquiries, processing donor requests, maintainingaccurate donor records, supporting recurring giving, resolving donation-related issues, and proactively engaging donors to strengthen retention and satisfaction.

T he Specialist will alsobe responsible for supporting the administration and donor-facing components of AFH Canada's Orphan Sponsorship Program , serving as a key point of contact for sponsors and helping ensure sponsorships, donor communications, updates, and records are managed accurately and compassionately.

As a bilingual position, the Specialist will provide donor support and stewardship in both English and French , ensuring AFH Canada provides accessible and high-quality service to donors across Canada.

Key Responsibilities

• 1. Donor Relations & Donor Care
  • Serve as a primary point of contact for donors through phone, email, and other approved communication channels.
  • Assist donors with donation-related requests, including updating contact information, payment methods, recurring donations, communication preferences, and other account information.
  • Investigate and resolve donor concerns, complaints, payment issues, and general inquiries whilemaintaining a positive donor experience.
  • Provide donors withappropriate information regarding AFH Canada programs, campaigns, appeals, and their giving history.
  • Process requests relating to donation confirmations, tax receipts, refunds, cancellations, and account changes in coordination with Finance and other relevant departments.
  • Ensure donor interactions, requests, and outcomes are appropriately documented within the CRM.
  • Identify opportunities to strengthen donor relationships and increase long-term engagement with AFH Canada.
• 2. R egular Giving & Donor Retention
  • Support the administration and stewardship of AFH Canada's monthly and recurring donor portfolio.
  • Monitor recurring giving accounts andidentify failed, declined, or interrupted payments requiring follow-up.
  • Proactively contact donorsregarding failed payments and support them in updating their payment information where appropriate.
  • Conduct donor retention and stewardship outreach, including thank-you calls, welcome communications, renewal conversations, and re-engagement activities.
  • Process recurring gift amendments, cancellations, upgrades, and other donor requests accurately and promptly.
  • Identify recurring donors at risk of lapsing and conduct appropriate retention outreach.
  • Provide regular reporting on recurring giving performance, failed payments, cancellations, retention activity, and donor feedback.
• 3. Orphan Sponsorship
  • Serve as a primary donor relations contact for supportersparticipating in AFH Canada's Orphan Sponsorship Program.
  • Support the onboarding of new orphan sponsors and ensure donors receiveappropriate confirmation and program information.
  • Maintainaccurate sponsorship records within AFH Canada's CRM and relevant orphan sponsorship systems.
  • Respond to sponsor inquiriesregarding their sponsorship, payments, updates, and program processes.
  • Coordinate with relevant internal and international teams to obtain informationrequired to respond to sponsor inquiries.
  • Ensure sponsors receive available orphan updates, reports, correspondence, and other approved program communicationsin a timely manner.
  • Monitor orphan sponsorship payments and identify failed or interrupted sponsorship payments requiring donor follow-up.
  • Contact sponsorsregarding failed payments and work to prevent unnecessary sponsorship cancellations.
  • Process sponsorship cancellations, changes, and other requestsin accordance with AFH Canada policies and procedures.
  • Support the reassignment or transition of sponsorships when an orphan exits theprogram, or sponsorship circumstances change.
  • Work collaboratively with Programs, Finance, Fund Development, and international teams to resolve sponsorship-related issues.
• 4. Donor Stewardship & Engagement
  • Conduct proactive donor stewardship through thank-you calls, emails, welcome communications, and other relationship-building touchpoints.
  • Contact donors following significant gifts or milestones to acknowledge their support and strengthen the relationship.
  • Assist with donor reactivation campaigns targeting lapsed or inactive supporters.
  • Identify recurringdonor and orphan sponsor feedback, concerns, or trends and communicate insights to the Head of Fund Development.
  • Help ensure donors understand the impact of their contributions through approved impact stories, updates, reports, and program information.
  • Identify donors who may requireadditional stewardship or relationship management and elevate opportunities appropriately.
  • Support seasonal donor care requirements during high-volume campaigns such as Ramadan, emergencies, Qurbani, and year-end giving.
• 5. CRM, Data & Administration
  • Maintainaccurate and complete donor records within AFH Canada's CRM.
  • Record donor interactions, preferences, requests, complaints, payment issues, and follow-up activities consistently.
  • Ensuredonor and sponsorship records are updated promptly following interactions or changes.
  • Assist with donor data quality initiatives, including identifying duplicates, incomplete records, incorrect information, and other data issues.
  • Follow established procedures for donation processing, receipting, donor communications, and data management.
  • Support reconciliation and investigation of donation discrepancies in collaboration with Finance and relevant teams.
  • Produce regular reports relating to donor inquiries, recurring giving, failed payments, orphan sponsorship, cancellations, retention, and other donor relations activities.
  • Ensure donor information is handledin accordance with Canadian privacy requirements and AFH Canada policies.
  • Provide professional donor service in both English and French through written and verbal communication.
  • Respond to French-language donor inquiries and ensure French-speaking donors receive the same level of service and stewardship as English-speaking donors.
  • Review and support donor-facing French communications whererequired.
  • Assist with the adaptation of donor communications to ensure they are appropriate for French-speaking Canadian audiences.
  • Support AFH Canada's ability to effectively engage donors across Canada's bilingual communities.

Job Requirements

Education

Post-secondary education in nonprofit management, communications, business administration, international development, customer relations, ora related field is preferred.

Equivalent professional experience within donor relations, customer service, fundraising, or nonprofit administration will also be considered.

Experience

Minimum 2–3 years of experience in donor relations, donor care, customer service, fundraising administration, or a similar relationship-management role.

Experience within the charity or nonprofit sector is strongly preferred.

Experience managing recurring donors, sponsorship programs, or donor retention activities is considered an asset.

Experience working with CRM/database systems andmaintaining detailed constituent records.

Experience handling sensitive donor inquiries and resolving service-related concerns.

Experience working within a humanitarian or international development organization is considered an asset.

Skills

Excellent interpersonal and relationship-building skills with a strong donor-service mindset.

Strong verbal and written communication skills.

Ability to communicate with empathy, professionalism, discretion, and cultural sensitivity.

Strong attention to detail and commitment to data accuracy.

Strong organizational skills with the ability to manage multiple priorities, donor requests, and follow-ups simultaneously.

Ability to handle difficult or sensitive donor conversations professionally.

Strong problem-solving skills and ability to independently resolve routine donor issues.

Comfortable working with CRM systems, databases, Google Workspace/Microsoft Office, and other digital platforms.

Ability to analyze donor information andidentify trends relating to retention, cancellations, failed payments, and donor satisfaction.

Ability to work collaboratively across Fund Development, Finance, Programs, Marketing, and Operations.

Strong alignment with AFH Canada's humanitarian mission and organizational values.

Fluency in written and spoken English – Essential

Fluency in written and spoken French – Essential

Arabic or another language relevant to AFH Canada's donor communities is considered an asset.

Other

Ability tomaintain strict confidentiality when handling donor, financial, and beneficiary information.

Flexible approach to work during high-volume fundraising periods such as Ramadan, emergency appeals, Qurbani, and year-end.

Commitment to AFH Canada's safeguarding, privacy, financial, and donor care policies.