The Senior Director of Development is responsible for creating the organization’s long-term fundraising strategy to generate $2.2M in year one and grow year over year. This fundraising leader will oversee and generate revenue from individuals, foundations, government funding, corporate partners and special events. In addition to managing a series of appeals and mini-campaigns throughout the year, the Senior Director of Development in will also maintain a portfolio of individual and foundation donors while supervising staff working on these revenue streams. In support of the Marketing Director, they will collaborate on the creation of communications focused on fundraising, including website, annual report, emails, and social media presence. The Senior Director of Development will also staff the Development Committee of the National Board, and manage the board’s philanthropic efforts.
Responsibilities:
Supervise Fundraising (40%)
- Create and oversee an annual development calendar to coordinate activities with other teams, and within the development team to raise over $2 million per year
- Support Development Director to create corporate and event specific strategy and systems
- Oversee the bi-coastal annual fundraising events led by the Development Director and supported by the Development and Administration Associate Director
- Coach and support the Development and Administration Manager in creating, implementing, and executing two Annual Appeals to contribute to Girls Leadership’s annual fundraising goals, as well as cultivating expertise around online and grassroots giving
- Partner with the SalesForce Director to design a CRM system to support development team, and support the team in learning and maintaining best CRM practices
- Oversee contracted grant writer to research new foundations and donors, write letters of intent, grants, and reports for individuals and foundations
- Provide dedicated fundraising support to Co-CEOs, positioning them for high impact funding opportunities
- Establish performance measures, monitor results, and evaluate the efficacy of the fund development program.
Direct oversee Fundraising portfolio (40%)
- Oversee the individual giving and foundation donor portfolios (30+ donors per portfolio), whose donations total 40% – 55% of the organization’s overall approved budget
- Overseeing all aspects of the donor cycle, including prospecting, cultivating, stewarding and soliciting new and existing donors
- Build and deepen the Girls Leadership donor network with board and prospective donors through regular in-person and virtual meetings
- Partner with the Co-CEOs for cultivation, solicitation, and donor stewardship
- Staff the Development Committee of the national board, and support and track the board’s fund development plan, targets, and approaches, including events, campaigns, corporate partnerships, and donor stewardship.
- Oversee and coordinate the grant writing process, including writing grants with the support of the team.
Organizational Leadership (10%)
- Supervise and lead the development team consisting of the Development Director (.75 FTE) and 50% of the Development and Operations Associate Director, and a contracted Grant Writer
- Train and coach the development team, national board, volunteers, other staff and committees on fundraising communications and fundraising activities
- Foster a culture of philanthropy and ensure that fund development and stewardship is executed in keeping with the organization’s values, vision, and mission
- Represent Girls Leadership locally and nationally at conferences, events, and networking opportunities
- Develop a 3 year fundraising strategy with Co-CEOs and leadership team in support of the organizational strategy
Communications (10%)
- Create a development communications plan in support of the marketing team; including but not limited to the annual report, social media posts, annual appeals, quarterly storytelling, consistent investor stewardship, event videos, acknowledgements, invitations, site visits and reports
- Advise on communications that impact development, including PR, social media campaigns, website development, and content for platforms
- Oversee collateral development specific to fundraising, including the annual report, donor stewardship communications, and online campaign development.
The ideal candidate is:
- A proven fundraiser and manager
- Passionate about gender and racial equity, and why it matters in our schools, sports teams, and community based organizations
- Self-motivated, resourceful, creative and strategic thinker, comfortable working independently and with others to coordinate (or lead) a team approach to fund development
- Knowledgeable of the girl-serving network and experienced with our donor community
- Possesses leadership experience and demonstrates strong leadership skills, including initiative, strategic vision, collaboration and understanding of what it takes to build and manage successful teams
- Demonstrated experience fundraising with individuals, corporations, and foundations with a track record of successfully closing six figure grant opportunities
- Have have an energetic and innovative approach to bringing new and existing network of supports to Girls Leadership’s mission
- Experienced in communications, and storytelling across media;
- Possess a drive to make things happen while maintaining flexibility and a sense of humor
- Demonstrates social and emotional intelligence, and a commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion
Skills Required:
- Development/Fundraising: 3-5 years of experience leading and managing high performing fundraising teams; at least 10 years of experience overall
- Proven ability to engage and influence philanthropic leaders and high net worth individuals with a track record of cultivating and stewarding six figure gifts.
- Project Management: Experience in planning, leading, and managing fund development projects, including coordinating with peers to achieve desired outcomes, and tracking and reporting on progress to Co-CEOs/Board of Directors
- Communications: Skilled in creating powerful, compelling written and oral communications for fundraising. Ability to convey complex ideas through brief, simple materials. Experience and credibility when presenting materials to external audiences
- Collaboration: Effective at working with others to reach common goals and objectives
- Relationship Building: Skilled at establishing and cultivating strong relationships with peers, across different levels of the organization and externally
Hybrid position with access to the Girls Leadership Headquarters in Oakland, CA or New York, NY. Expectation is that this role will spend at least 50% of their time at the Girls Leadership offices or meeting with donors.
Compensation & Benefits: Starting salary is $135,000. Benefits include health insurance (99% coverage for employee), optional dental/vision, annual professional development budget, four weeks of office closure per year (two in December, and two in July), vacation time, paid sick time, 11 paid holidays per year, and a 401(k) plan available after one year of service.
Applications
Girls Leadership encourages individuals of all racial, ethnic and socioeconomic backgrounds to apply for this position. Girls Leadership is an equal opportunity employer and considers qualified applicants for employment without regard to race, color, creed, religion, national origin, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity and expression, age, disability, veteran status, or any other basis prohibited by applicable law.
To apply, please send a resume and cover letter in Word or PDF format to hiring@girlsleadership.org. The subject line of the email should read “Senior Development Director.”
Applications will be reviewed and processed until the position is secured. To learn more about Girls Leadership, please visit girlsleadership.org
