Celebrating Talent:
Erin Baier

As Canada’s leading consultancy to the non-profit sector, at KCI we measure our success through the success of our clients. It’s energizing to look back at 20 years of KCI Search + Talent candidate ‘placements’ to see what the leaders we’ve placed have accomplished for organizations all across our country.

It’s also gratifying to see that many people ‘placed’ by KCI have stayed and thrived in their roles long past the average tenure that we see in the sector. These are people whose loyalty, expertise, and passion for the mission drives long-term impact for their organizations, and the people and communities they serve.

We are celebrating these individuals through this ‘Celebrating Talent’ series of short profiles and interviews. We hope you enjoy reading about these inspiring sector leaders and celebrating their success along with us!

Celebrating Erin Baier, CFRE, Executive Vice President, Development, UNICEF Canada

Why did you originally consider joining UNICEF Canada?

I had an experience with international development and the impact of partnerships outside of Canada in my role at Queen’s University and was inspired by the opportunity to connect people in Canada to impact that supports children around the world. I was also motivated by the challenge to grow the major gift program as a sustainable source of revenue for UNICEF’s programs, in an environment that has historically focused on and invested in annual giving for many years.

What’s kept you with UNICEF Canada for 7 years?

The donor community truly cares about what’s happening around the world and recognize that children in too many places need support. It’s inspiring for me to connect with folks who choose to make a difference with a donation to UNICEF’s programs. Every day I am learning about community-driven solution that is creating benefits for children, whether that is preventing malnutrition, helping out of school girls become entrepreneurs, or creating long-term access to clean water. There is so much good work happening.

What are you most proud of accomplishing during your time there?

We work with our global colleagues to bring tangible opportunities to donors that are community driven. The solutions are local and it’s our role to share how Canadians can help power them to maximize resources and fully realize results. I’d love to name a particular gift or donation we received, but what I am really proud of is how our team has been able to help Canadians find opportunities to power local-led solutions. All of UNICEF’s work involved the community, so when we launch programs the impacts are truly real—they result in more children getting access to nutrition, water, education, the result in wells, buildings, and safe spaces to learn and just be a kid. Seeing donors, who are thousands of kilometers away understand and connect with that impact, regardless of how much they support make our team feel really special.

What’s Next for UNICEF Canada? What do you want people to know about the work that UNICEF Canada does?

UNICEF’s mandate to protect child’s rights and safeguard their wellbeing means that there are endless ways that funding can impact the lives of children – this can be life-saving vaccines, it can mean ensuring accessible and quality education for all kids, it’s generating evidence to advance policies that promote mental health programming, it means mobilizing in humanitarian crisis to supply water, shelter and child protection. UNICEF programs offer tangible, lifelong impact for children. Needs for children are continuing to grow. UNICEF Canada will always be looking to continue to bring more and more Canadians together to help scale UNICEF’s response.

One piece of career advice you’d give to others?

Follow your passion. Seek out leaders and mentors that you admire and inspire you, but remember to be authentic and stay true to yourself. Pay forward the opportunities you were given or had to earn. And celebrate shared successes, fundraising is a team sport!