Director of programme development jobs in Birmingham

We are proud to be supporting the leading independent grant making foundation in the west Midlands and Warwickshire, in their search for a Chief Operating Officer.

They nurture philanthropy, connecting people who care with incredible causes that matter. They help unlock the resources to tackle local issues, and support people and communities to thrive across the region.

They are recruiting for a new position, a Chief Operating Officer, to support the CEO, having overall accountability for the organisation’s operations. The COO will play a pivotal role in implementing their strategy, aimed at improving operational efficiency and diversifying income streams.

Chief Operating Officer 

£60,000-£65,000 + benefits  

Hybrid working, 2 days in the office in Coventry

The COO will ensure that ways of working are as effective as possible, enabling the team to meet their ambitions and modernise their internal operations and governance, freeing up capacity for the CEO to build strong relationships with donors and partners working with communities.

Key responsibilities include: 

• Play a central role as a member of the executive team in the overall leadership, strategic direction and governance of the Foundation. 
• Work with the whole team to implement the organisational strategy and business plan.

• Lead on the development of the grant making strategy, ensuring processes are efficient, compliant and deliver an outstanding experience for applicants and donors.
• Oversee the day-to-day operational management of the Foundation, ensuring systems, policies and processes are appropriate and effective.

• Oversee fundholder relationships, demonstrating value and impact whilst overseeing performance against programme delivery commitments.

• Oversee research, insight and impact inputs and ensure effective horizon scanning for emerging trends and technologies.

• Oversee HR and marketing strategies to strengthen the culture and visibility.

As COO, you will have a strong commitment to the mission and values of the foundation, with a passion for making a difference to the lives of people in the West Midlands and Warwickshire. You will need Senior management experience within a nonprofit, charitable or comparable grant-making organisation, evidenced by successful strategic planning and execution.

How to Apply 

To apply for the role, please upload your CV together with a supporting statement (of no more than 1000 words) onto the Prospectus website via the link below.  
  
Please ensure that you have included a telephone number, as well as any dates when you will not be available or might have difficulty with the recruitment timetable.  
  
If you wish to apply using an alternative format, please contact Prospectus.  
If you would like to have an informal conversation about the role, please contact our retained partners. 
  
At Prospectus we believe passionately that a truly inclusive workplace leads to increased social impact. We are committed to supporting our clients build more inclusive teams. To understand how we are performing, we ask that you kindly complete the brief equal opportunities questionnaire when you submit your application via our website. Please be assured that your responses are kept confidential, separate from your candidate record, are not part of any application you make, and that the consultants never see individual responses to the questionnaire. 

Recruitment Timetable 

Deadline for applications: Sunday 8th Feb (midnight) 

Interviews with Prospectus: 24th Feb – 2nd March

First stage interviews with the foundation: 17th and 19th March

Second stage with the foundation: 24th March

WHO WE ARE

The Humane League (THL) is a global nonprofit ending the abuse of animals raised for food. THL fosters a high-energy culture of teamwork and mission-driven problem solving, and we have earned recognition as Top Charity from Animal Charity Evaluators for all of their rating periods. Over the past few years, we’ve grown to a staff of 100+ talented individuals dispersed around the world. At THL, how animals are treated in the food system is at the forefront of our everyday work. As such, many of our staff are vegan by personal choice, and all of our THL-hosted events offer fully vegan menus. We welcome all mission-aligned candidates to apply, no matter where you are in your journey to end the abuse of animals raised for food.

YOUR OPPORTUNITY

The Open Wing Alliance (OWA), a program of The Humane League, is a global coalition of approximately 90 animal protection organizations across 70+ countries united in a common goal: to end the abuse of chickens worldwide. For the past several years, we have focused our efforts on eliminating cages from the egg industry by securing cage-free policies from major retailers, restaurants, and manufacturers. OWA groups share tactics and resources to secure as many wins for animals as possible, specializing in institutional campaigning that can be tailored to our members’ unique circumstances and challenges.

As Temporary Global Campaigns Coordinator, you will be part of a team responsible for researching, coordinating, and launching hard-hitting global corporate animal welfare campaigns against major multinational companies. These campaigns involve collaboration and coordination with animal protection organizations around the world and directly contribute to The Humane League’s org-wide goal of ending the abuse of animals raised for food by securing global cage-free policies that significantly improve the lives of millions of egg-laying hens. 

As a campaigner, you’ll have the opportunity to develop knowledge of our targets, our primary campaign strategies, and the tools we will use to win. You will assist with the execution of tactics spanning email, social media, advertisements, and other digital spaces, and you’ll also help the team leverage our digital action platform by setting up digital actions with a high degree of accuracy. The ideal candidate will bring determination, creativity, and a collaborative mindset. This position reports directly to the Associate Director of Global Campaigns.

This is a temporary, full-time, remote position, beginning in January 2026 and ending in December 2026. The duration may be extended or shortened at The Humane League’s discretion. The temporary hire will provide coverage while a permanent staff member is on leave. This position provides the opportunity for optional domestic and international travel, equivalent to 2 or more trips per year.

This position can be based in the United States, Canada, Ireland, Portugal, the United Kingdom, Austria, Czechia, Denmark, Hungary, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Sweden, Argentina, Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, or Peru. The successful candidate must be authorized to work in one of these countries and reside in that country while undertaking this role. We are only able to consider candidates who reside in the time zones GMT-6 through GMT+1. Please note that we are not able to consider candidates who reside in Pacific or Mountain Time. To enable collaboration with global team members, the successful candidate must be available to work from 9am-1pm Eastern time on a daily basis.

For priority consideration, please submit your application by December 8, 2025 at 11:59 pm ET.  After this date, we will begin advancing candidates through the hiring process and may close the role. New candidates are welcome to apply as long as this job opening is listed on our website. If you are experiencing technical issues, please contact our careers email, which you can find on our website. Please submit applications and all supporting documents in English. All application questions and materials need to be submitted here through the application submission form; we do not accept applications through our careers email.

CORE RESPONSIBILITIES

• Conduct research to help inform campaign strategies, tactics, project plans, and communications (including slogans and language). Gather and monitor contact information, data, and key details about target companies and their executives. 

• Support Global Corporate Campaigns Leads with the preparation and execution of campaign tactics in line with THL’s overarching strategy, including (but not limited to) email and social media actions, phone calls to corporate employees, petitions, and advertisements. Assist in planning the schedule of campaign tactics and developing campaign materials, including website content, videos, petitions, advertisements, social media actions, and literature language.

• Collaborate with internal teams at THL and external stakeholders in the OWA to align on goals and debrief on the progress of our campaigns.

• Work closely with other members of the Global Campaigns team to plan, design, and monitor impactful digital actions that will advance our cage-free work and secure victories in global campaigns.

• Assist with setup of digital actions within the OWA’s internal platforms for action taking and supporter building. Coordinate with campaigners, OWA groups, and IT teams as needed.

• Support Global Corporate Campaigns Leads in coordinating and motivating OWA members across 90+ organizations to take action. 

In addition to the above essential job duties, other duties may be assigned as business needs arise. These may include non-essential, marginal job duties.

REQUIRED SKILLS

• Experience: Previous professional or non-professional experience in advocacy campaigns, grassroots organizing, or activism within the animal protection movement or another social movement. 

• Tenacity: Dedication to campaigning fast, hard, and where it matters to maximize pressure on campaign targets. Ability to address barriers and persevere through challenging campaigns.

• Research and Data Analysis: Ability to compile and organize information effectively and leverage search engines and online resources to conduct research. Manages data entry and performs basic data analysis.

• Organization: Excellent attention to detail needed to accurately set up and monitor digital actions and manage multiple overlapping projects with different timelines and many moving pieces. Ability to prioritize effectively and accommodate last-minute changes.  

• Strategic Thinking and Problem Solving: Ability to grasp organizational goals, policies, and procedures and understand how they align with broader strategic objectives. Identifies and resolves problems effectively, making use of available resources and consulting other staff members when appropriate. 

• Initiative, Proactivity, and Adaptability: Willingness to adapt to changes and embrace new tasks and tools. Manages workload independently and proactively seeks out additional responsibilities and opportunities for improvement. Ability to pivot quickly and creatively as campaign strategies shift.

• Verbal and Written Communication: Communicates clearly and effectively across verbal and written formats, tailoring communication style to different audiences. Ability to participate in presentations and craft messaging that motivates others to take action.

• Collaboration and Interpersonal Skills: Ability to build and maintain positive relationships and work collaboratively with others. Actively participates in team activities and discussions, contributing ideas and supporting the development of a positive team culture.

• Global Perspective: Approaches work with a global and inclusive mindset, prioritizing global impact and taking into consideration the diverse experiences of colleagues and OWA member groups across many different cultures, languages, and political systems.

Hiring Timeline Details

Once your application has been reviewed, you will be notified via email with further details on the status of your application. If a candidate is moved forward, the interview process will be as follows:

• Recorded Video Interview (submission)

• Work Simulation Exercise (completed remotely)

• Interview (via video call)

For full details of our recruitment process please review the document on our website.

Compensation and Benefits

The annual compensation range for this role is:

• $56,895 - $69,539 USD for candidates based in the United States
• $56,269 - $68,773 CAD for candidates based in Canada
• €36,095 - €44,116 for candidates based in Ireland
• €15,331 - €18,738 for candidates based in Portugal
• £34,086 - £41,661 GBP for candidates based in the United Kingdom
• €43,754 - €53,478 for candidates based in Austria
• 385,174Kč - 470,768Kč for candidates based in Czechia
• kr.407,750 - kr.498,369 for candidates based in Denmark
• Ft562,177 - Ft687,139 for candidates based in Hungary
• €26,580 - €39,870 for candidates based in Italy
• €44,392 - €54,258 for candidates based in the Netherlands
• kr559,693 - kr684,080 for candidates based in Norway
• zł54,668 - zł66,613 for candidates based in Poland
• kr382,579 - kr467,607 for candidates based in Sweden
•  $24,222,487 -  $29,606,233 for candidates based in Argentina
• R$23,200 - R$34,800 for candidates based in Brazil
• CLP $10,265,808 - CLP $12,547,953 for candidates based in Chile
• $34,060,829 - $51,091,243 COP for candidates based in Colombia
• $11,281 - $13,788 for candidates based in Ecuador
• S/.35,157 - S/.42,967 for candidates based in Peru

At The Humane League, we believe in maintaining a fair and nondiscriminatory work environment. As part of our commitment to transparency, we have implemented a job architecture framework, which levels all of our roles according to size and complexity, as well as a compensation step system, which allows us to determine fair salaries for all. We also look at market data for each country that we operate in, to allow us to create specific salary bands per country. In addition, we have adopted a no negotiation policy for salaries. To determine a job's level, we carefully consider a variety of factors, including a job's size and complexity, required experience, knowledge, and/or skills, internal comparability, and market data. Candidates whose experience places them at step 5 or above of their job level within our compensation structure will be awarded a “Senior” title designation. These practices are aligned with our organizational values and will help us ensure we maintain clear, consistent, and transparent HR processes.

THL offers a unique and competitive benefits package. Each country will be provided with benefits that are applicable and relative to the location they are in. Therefore, your exact benefits package will be shared with you at the time of offer. However, as an idea, some of the benefits that are currently offered to our global team are:

• Unlimited paid time off
• The last Friday of every month off as a THL ‘Public Holiday’ called ‘Mend Your Heart Friday’
• Enhanced sick pay
• Generous bereavement leave
• Generous personal emergency leave 
• Sabbatical leave
• Enhanced parental leave
• Health insurance
• Life insurance
• Retirement contributions
• Internet allowance

For candidates outside the United States, The Humane League will not be your direct employer. The successful candidate will enter an employment agreement with a local Employer of Record with whom The Humane League partners.

Equal Employment Opportunity

THL is an equal opportunity employer. THL does not discriminate on the basis of any legally protected classifications, including but not limited to race, color, age, national origin, ethnicity, religious creed or belief, physical or mental disability, marital or familial status, legally protected medical condition, genetic information, military or veteran status, gender, sexual orientation, citizenship status, or any other status or classification protected by applicable federal, state, or local law. THL is committed to the importance of non-discriminatory practices within the nonprofit sector, as well as all workplace environments, and strongly encourages all interested candidates to apply.

Accommodations

The Humane League is committed to fully supporting all qualified individuals. As part of this commitment, THL provides reasonable accommodations for persons with disabilities in accordance with applicable federal, state, and local laws throughout the hiring process and employment if hired. If a reasonable accommodation is needed, please contact the People team (you can find our email in our website) to initiate the interactive process. THL complies with the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, and all other applicable state and local laws.

AI Policy

Original work and thought are essential in the hiring process and allow us to evaluate you based on your own skills and competency. Therefore, the use of artificial intelligence (ChatGPT, Gemini, Rytr, Google Assistant, etc) to generate responses is strictly prohibited. By submitting this application you agree to comply with our AI Policy. Violations of this policy in any part of the recruitment process will result in being dismissed from consideration. If you need a reasonable accommodation to this policy, please see above for more information.

Communications From Greenhouse During Hiring Process

We have occasionally had issues with emails from Greenhouse being captured by spam filters and going to the spam folder. Because we utilize Greenhouse for all notifications regarding your application, please double check your spam folder in case important communications have been routed there.