Advisor - Marketing & Communications

Position: Advisor - Marketing & Communications, WGF 

Reports to: VP Outreach, WGF, with a dotted line to the Chief Executive Officer - India

Location: India

Nature of role: Full-time consultancy contract

Compensation: Rs 15 Lakhs per year

About WHEELS Global Foundation

WHEELS Global Foundation is the social impact arm of the PanIIT community and the broader IIT ecosystem. Established in 2006 at the behest of the Late President Dr. A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, WHEELS was founded with the purpose of enhancing the quality of lives by scaling technology-based solutions emerging from the IIT ecosystem. It is a U.S.-based 501(c)(3) non-profit with a Sec. 8 registered entity in India. Leveraging a global network of more than 500,000 IIT alumni—including technology leaders, innovators and social entrepreneurs—WHEELS develops and implements scalable, technology-enabled solutions through public-private partnerships and academic collaborations. Its work spans six focus areas: Water, Health, Energy, Education, Livelihoods and Sustainability. Over the past four to five years, the organisation has significantly expanded its programmes in Mother, Infant and Young Child Nutrition, mental health, watershed restoration, tech-enabled education solutions, etc. across India.

There are four key building blocks of WHEELS – the two legal entities, WGF USA and WGF India, plus the Domain Councils for each of the 6 focus areas and the Regional Chapters. WGF USA is a 501C(3) non-profit entity in the US, and WGF India is a Section 8 NPO in India. These four units collaborate to achieve WHEELS' purpose.

Globally, there are nearly 5 Lakh IIT alumni, with the largest numbers being in India and in the USA. WHEELS aims to provide a platform for these alumni to contribute by offering one or more of their time, talent, and treasure (money) as well as their connections/influence/networks.

WHEELS leverages these contributions to take the technology-based solutions emerging from the IIT ecosystem to scale by combining them with the resources of the government and other donors - corporates, private foundations, and high-net-worth individuals. WHEELS also provides technical and management support for this scaling and where required, oversight during implementation.

 

The Role

This role focuses on increasing engagement with the global alumni community and communicating with other key stakeholder groups – NGO partners, donors and government officials. It will require effective use of multiple channels/routes like in-person & online events, social media and short reports/blogs, etc.

Engaging the alumni involves taking them on a journey from initial awareness to participation to contribution. A key part of these contributions is smaller donations by the alumni community (also called ‘retail’ fundraising). This role is responsible for maximizing these contributions. 

This role involves working with senior WHEELS leaders, especially the leaders of the Regional Chapters, which lead alumni engagement work in WHEELS. It offers huge potential for fulfilment through the impact it can drive and the diverse relationships it involves.

 

Key Tasks & responsibilities

 

Alumni Engagement

●        Define the engagement strategy in consultation with the Regional Chapter Co-chairs and the WHEELS Marketing Group. 

●        Lead development of related action plans - annual and over 3-5 years, with input from relevant WHEELS leaders. 

●        Design in-person & online events in collaboration with Domain Councils and Regional Chapters plus the selected agencies.

●        Design ‘retail fund-raising’ strategies and activities to increase smaller donations from the alumni community.

●        Effectively manage communication agencies for execution of these plans.

 

Stakeholder Communications

●        Redesign and maintain the website.

●        Design & implement communication strategies & plans with partner organisations, donors and other stakeholders.

●        Create content tailored to different audiences - donors of different kinds, government, media, volunteers and beneficiaries. Could include - donor campaigns, CSR presentations, impact reports, annual reports, collaterals.

Others

●        Build consistent messaging across all channels.

●        Define and maintain brand guidelines.

●        Ensure compliance with applicable rules/laws while executing plans.

●        Be an influential ambassador for the organisation.

 

Expected Capabilities & Experience

 

●        Proven track record of engagement role in a membership-type organisation (like Rotary Club, Lions Club), including effective use of digital and non-digital channels.

●        Strategic thinking - ideally for a diverse range of audiences. 

●        Managing relationships with a diverse set of stakeholders/team working.

●        Agency Management - supervising selected agencies 

●        Understanding of the development sector & passion for social impact.

●        Ability & willingness to travel extensively for events & meetings.

 

Additional considerations

1. Expertise in written and oral communication is very important. Definitely English; additional languages will be a plus/desirable.
2. Experience in digital marketing - website strategy, social media management, SEO, email marketing.
3. Familiarity/comfort with tools like Canva, Google Analytics, LinkedIn Campaign Manager, Email marketing platforms (Mailchimp, etc.), CRM for stakeholder communications.

 

Apply with a Cover Letter and CV to:  info@wheelsglobal.org.

Mention "Advisor - Marketing & Communications, WGF" in the Subject Line of your email.

Tags NGO Marketing Communication Fundraising