Chief Development Officer

Creative Action; Austin (TX); Hybrid; USD 115,000 - 135,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health insurance

Life/AD&D insurance

Long-term disability insurance

Mental health benefits (telehealth)

Paid time off

Job summary

Creative Action in Austin, TX seeks a Chief Development Officer to lead a comprehensive development program, cultivate major donors, and drive strategic fundraising initiatives. The role requires building a high-performing team, coordinating with the executive leadership, and engaging the board to advance philanthropic support.

Hybrid work in the Austin area is offered with a strong emphasis on creating a culture of philanthropy.

Qualifications

• Seven or more years of progressive nonprofit fundraising experience, including leadership responsibilities.
• Proven success securing significant gifts and growing donor pipelines across multiple revenue streams.
• Experience leading and developing teams and working with executives, boards, donors, and volunteers.
• Strong knowledge of donor cultivation, stewardship, prospect management, and fundraising metrics.

Responsibilities

• Develop and lead annual and multi-year fundraising strategies across major gifts, annual giving, institutional support, and partnerships.
• Build and actively manage a portfolio of major donors and prospects, driving cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship.
• Set revenue goals, forecasts, metrics, and accountability practices; use data to improve performance and pipeline.
• Partner with the Executive Director on funding priorities and donor strategy.

Skills

Fundraising leadership

Strategic planning

Donor cultivation

Team development

Communication

Storytelling

Analytical skills

Budgeting/Forecasting

Board collaboration

Relationship building

Tools

CRM systems

Job description

Position Title: Chief Development Officer (CDO)

Position Type: Full-time

FLSA: Exempt

Work Location: Hybrid (must be based in the Austinmetropolitan area)

Start Date: Open Until Filled

Salary Range: $115,000-$135,000

Reports to: Executive Director

ABOUT CREATIVE ACTION

Creative Action is a nationally recognized youth arts education organization in Austin, Texas. Through school-based, after-school, teen, and community programs, we use the arts to build community and foster Creative Artists, Critical Thinkers, Confident Leaders, and Courageous Allies.

ABOUT THE OPPORTUNITY

Creative Action seeks an accomplished, collaborative, and relationship-centered fundraising leader to serve as Chief Development Officer. Reporting to the Executive Director and serving on the senior leadership team, the CDO will lead a comprehensive development program, grow philanthropic support, strengthen donor relationships and fundraising systems, and build an organization-wide culture of philanthropy. The CDO will be both a strategic leader and an active fundraiser—personally cultivating, soliciting, and stewarding major donors while leading the development team and engaging the Board as fundraising partners. The CDO will also collaborate closely with Creative Action's Capital Campaign Director and Executive Director to coordinate donor strategy, prospect assignments, communications, and stewardship. The Capital Campaign Director will retain primary responsibility for campaign strategy and execution.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

Fundraising Strategy and Donor Development

• Develop and lead annual and multi-year fundraising strategies across major gifts, annual giving, institutional support, corporate partnerships, special events, planned giving, and other philanthropic opportunities.
• Build and actively manage a portfolio of major donors and prospects, personally leading cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship of significant gifts.
• Set clear revenue goals, forecasts, metrics, and accountability practices; use results and donor data to strengthen performance, retention, and the prospect pipeline.
• Partner with the Executive Director on funding priorities, donor strategy, and management of the Executive Director's portfolio.

Leadership and External Engagement

• Lead, coach, and develop a high-performing development team with clear roles, goals, and expectations.
• Engage and equip the Board of Directors and its development-related committee(s) as active fundraising partners, providing regular reports on progress, opportunities, and challenges.
• Represent Creative Action in the community and build relationships with donors, institutional partners, community leaders, and other stakeholders.
• Partner with Marketing and Communications to create compelling cases for support, donor communications, and stories of impact.

Development Operations and Campaign Partnership

• Ensure effective development operations, including prospect and moves management, CRM and data integrity, gift tracking and acknowledgement, reporting, forecasting, and donor stewardship.
• Strengthen fundraising policies, systems, and cross-departmental practices that support collaboration, accountability, and informed decision-making.
• Coordinate closely with the Capital Campaign Director so annual, major-gift, institutional, and campaign fundraising efforts are integrated, donor relationships are managed thoughtfully, and campaign donors remain engaged with Creative Action over time.

QUALIFICATIONS

• Seven or more years of progressive nonprofit fundraising experience, including significant leadership responsibility; experience in arts, education, youth development, or the cultural sector is preferred.
• Proven success securing significant individual gifts, growing a donor pipeline, and executing fundraising strategies across multiple revenue streams.
• Experience leading and developing teams and working effectively with executives, Board members, donors, volunteers, community leaders, and colleagues across an organization.
• Strong knowledge of donor cultivation and stewardship, prospect management, fundraising metrics, development operations, and CRM systems.
• Excellent relationship-building, communication, storytelling, writing, presentation, planning, and analytical skills.
• A strategic, proactive, collaborative, ethical, and adaptable leadership style, with emotional intelligence and sound judgment.
• Ability to attend occasional evening and weekend donor, program, community, and fundraising activities.

WHAT WE OFFER

Annual salary is $115,000–$135,000, commensurate with experience. Benefits include employer-subsidized health insurance; employer-paid basic life/AD&D and long-term disability insurance; virtual mental health and telehealth care; generous paid time off, including two organization-wide rejuvenation weeks; 12 weeks of paid parental leave; a 403(b) retirement plan; and a flexible/hybrid work environment.

Commitment to Equity & Equal Employment Opportunity

Creative Action is an equal opportunity employer. We recruit, train, compensate, uplift and promote regardless of race, religion, color, national origin, sex, disability, age, veteran status, and other protected status as required by applicable law.

Creative Action has a clear vision: we are an organization in which a diverse group of unique thinkers and talented people come together to want to do their best work serving our students through the Arts. We know that our company would not succeed without the dedication and hard work of our creative and passionate employees.

Creative Action believes in diversity, equity, inclusivity and belonging, and this core set of values is reflected across every department and community in which we serve. We are committed to and focused on anti-racism and anti-oppression, and fold this into our organizational foundation. We believe deeply that diversity and differences are what make us an innovative, compassionate, and forward-thinking organization.

We strongly encourage individuals to apply who identify as LGTBQIA+, bilingual, Black, Brown, Indigenous and/or people of color.

Disclaimer

This job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties, or responsibilities that are required of the employee for this job. Duties, responsibilities, and activities may change at any time with or without notice to meet the evolving needs of the organization.