Helping Fundraisers Grow: A Conversation with Jules D'Oca

Over the summer, Zen Fundraising has worked with face-to-face fundraising trainer and consultant Jules D'Oca, drawing on his 15 years of experience to support our fundraisers' and leaders' development.

Through coaching, training and time spent working alongside our teams, Jules has helped people build confidence by recognising their strengths and developing the skills they need to progress in their careers.

We caught up with Jules to hear about his experience working with Zen, what he's been focusing on with our teams and why investing in people is so important to building a successful fundraising programme.

You've worked in face-to-face fundraising for more than 15 years. What stood out to you when you first started working with Zen?

Their commitment to quality really stood out. They care deeply about what they deliver for their charity partners, and that attention runs through the organisation.

They're also a lovely bunch of people: open-minded, adaptable and willing to try things. They really want to build a great programme, and they're very open to learning. As someone coming in to support that development, it's a great environment to work in.

At this point in my career, I've learnt that a partnership works best when there's a real belief in what we're building together. There needs to be a good fit both ways. With Zen, I really feel we share the same values and ambition for what good fundraising can look like.

You often talk about training as a way to unlock potential rather than teach skills. What have you been focusing on with Zen's fundraisers and leaders?

For me, it starts with recognising someone's strengths, understanding what matters to them and helping them see what they could grow into.

Zen has people with a real appetite to develop. My role is to help direct that ambition.

With fundraisers, that often means helping them get out of their own heads and into practice. It's easy to overthink when you want to do well. I encourage people to try things, notice what's working and make manageable adjustments. Skills and confidence develop through that process.

For leaders, the focus is on the transition from performing well themselves to helping other people perform well.

Being a strong fundraiser doesn't automatically prepare you to coach a team. We've been working on how they guide people, recognise different needs, and help others apply what they've learned.

What changes have you seen as that work has developed?

The biggest change I've seen is in how people see themselves and the contribution they can make. Zen already had enthusiastic, capable people. What's been rewarding is seeing them start to think, actually, I could be really good at this, particularly among those stepping into leadership.

People are starting to think beyond their own performance and consider how they can help the people around them succeed. That's a significant transition.

I've also seen the development conversations become more purposeful. We're connecting what someone wants to achieve with practical things they can work on, then coming back to see how they're progressing.

For me, that's the most encouraging change: people beginning to see a bigger future for themselves and a role in helping others get there too.

Quality is a big part of Zen's approach. What does good-quality fundraising look like to you?

For me, quality means looking past the signup to the value we're creating for the charity and the experience of the person choosing to support it.

I've seen fundraising environments where volume dominates the conversation. What I appreciate about Zen is that it doesn't feel like a signup machine. There's real attention to what makes that support valuable over time.

Carl, in particular, has really dug into the data: what sits behind a high-quality donation and what we can actually influence. That includes details on Gift Aid, communication preferences, and other measures of donor quality.

But the numbers are only part of it. Compliance matters, as does the quality of the conversation itself.

They're big on people really knowing their charity, not just their pitch. They need to understand the organisation they're representing, explain its work clearly and answer people's questions properly.

For me, the fundraiser should really know what they're representing, and the person signing up should understand what they're supporting. That's a good foundation for something that lasts.

Looking back over the summer and into autumn, what are you most proud of, and what are you looking forward to building with the Zen team?

I'm proud of the support I've been able to offer people as they take on leadership challenges. That part of the work means a lot to me personally.

When I started in face-to-face fundraising in 2010, I figured a lot out for myself: reading sales and psychology books, learning from high performers, and gradually building my own training material.

I had support, but there wasn't always a clear path to leadership. That experience shaped what I want to offer others. Motivated people will often find a way to make things work, but they shouldn't have to work everything out alone.

I'm looking forward to continuing that support with Zen, so as people take on more responsibility, they have someone to work through challenges with. They've got so much enthusiasm. Being able to help them along the way is really rewarding.

A big thank you to Jules for sharing his thoughts and for the time, experience and encouragement he's brought to the Zen team over the past few months. It's been great to see our fundraisers and leaders grow in confidence, and we look forward to continuing our work together as we support more people in developing their skills and careers in face-to-face fundraising.