Fundraising consultant
About Thomson Philanthropy
Doug Thomson
Thomson Philanthropy exists to help major donors and fundraising organisations achieve a greater impact.
A rare blend of experience
Too often the fundraising and grant-making worlds are detached from one another. With a rare blend of experience from both sides of this relationship, Doug Thomson advises major donors and those seeking to work in partnership with them.
Doug works with external teams and individuals to provide a range of services for fundraising organisations and donors, usually over an extended period of time.
Over 25 years of experience
To achieve this Doug draws on more than 25 years of experience in philanthropy and non-profit management in the education, medical, and disability sectors.
From early in his career Doug worked with high net worth individuals and foundations in the UK, the USA and latterly in Asia. In the 1990s he raised significant funds for the Rothermere American Institute and Kellogg College, both at the University of Oxford.
He also established and led a new major gift operation for the Royal National Institute for the Blind, bringing bespoke relationship fundraising to bear alongside the charity’s more established mass fundraising programme.
From 2005 he was the Sutton Trust’s first development director. Using innovative techniques to engage individual and institutional funders the Trust was able to diversify its funding base and scale up its programmes.
Clients across a range of sectors
In 2009 Doug Thomson set up Thomson Philanthropy and has worked with more than 20 clients across a range of sectors.
This work is characterised by long term client partnerships and helping to build capacity for sustainable fundraising.
Doug has used his international experience and ability to work overseas, especially in North America, to support clients in developing their knowledge and their philanthropic programmes.
Doug read History at the University of Nottingham, where he is a member of the College of Benefactors. He has served as a trustee of Into University and of the philanthropy charity First Give.
Beyond the work of Thomson Philanthropy, Doug is an endurance cyclist and a qualified coach for junior rugby.