Development Director: Donor Growth & Strategy

Brooklyn Boatworks; New York (NY); On-site; USD 120,000 - 160,000; Full time

Job summary

Brooklyn Boatworks is seeking an experienced, mission-driven Development Director to lead fundraising strategy, systems, and execution. You will report to the Executive Director and oversee donor engagement, grants, campaigns, and development operations to achieve the FY 2026-2027 revenue goals.

You will supervise the Development Coordinator and partner with the Board, committees, and program staff to expand contributed revenue, deepen donor engagement, and professionalize fundraising operations

Qualifications

• 7–10 years of fundraising experience with proven success driving $3M+ revenue.
• Demonstrated success securing major gifts, corporate partnerships, and/or foundation/government grants.
• Excellent storyteller and relationship builder; confident engaging donors and Board members.
• Strategic thinker with strong operational skills, project management, and CRM proficiency.
• Commitment to youth development and Brooklyn Boatworks' mission.

Responsibilities

• Develop and manage an annual development plan with clear revenue goals, timelines, strategies, and accountability measures.
• Partner with the Executive Director, Resource Development Committee, and Development Coordinator to align fundraising priorities with organizational strategy.
• Track progress against goals and use data to guide decisions, identify gaps, and adjust strategies.
• Manage donor cultivation, solicitation, acknowledgment, and stewardship across individual giving programs.
• Build and maintain a healthy donor pipeline, including prospects, current donors, lapsed donors, and major gift opportunities.
• Prepare donor communications, meeting briefings, follow-up materials, and stewardship touchpoints.
• Support research, writing, submission, and reporting for foundation, corporate, government, and other institutional funding opportunities.
• Collaborate with program and communications staff to gather stories, statistics, outcomes, and impact data for proposals, reports, appeals, and marketing materials.
• Ensure development communications are accurate, compelling, timely, and aligned with Brooklyn Boatworks' mission and voice.
• Lead the development and execution of fundraising events, campaigns, and appeals, including writing compelling donor communications, solicitation materials, and campaign messaging.
• Work with Board members and volunteers to identify prospects, make introductions, host or attend cultivation opportunities, and support donor stewardship.
• Represent Brooklyn Boatworks with donors, funders, partners, and community stakeholders.
• Maintain and improve development systems, including CRM/data entry standards, donor records, gift tracking, reporting, and follow-up workflows.
• Ensure timely and accurate acknowledgements, stewardship records, pledge tracking, and documentation of donor and prospect activity.
• Prepare Board and Resource Development Committee materials, including pipeline updates, progress reports, prospect lists, meeting briefings, and action items.
• Help translate fundraising strategy into clear, manageable Board participation opportunities, including introductions, cultivation, stewardship, and event support.
• Support strong internal coordination by working closely with the Executive Director, program staff, finance, communications, and Board leadership.
• Supervise, support, and help prioritize the work of a Development Coordinator, including gift processing, data entry, acknowledgments, event support, and administrative follow-up.

Skills

Fundraising Strategy

Major Gifts

Donor Relations

Grants & Foundations

CRM/Data Analytics

Board Engagement

Project Management

Storytelling

Partnership Building

Job description

Brooklyn Boatworks is seeking an experienced, mission-driven Development Director to lead fundraising strategy, systems, and execution. You will report to the Executive Director and oversee donor engagement, grants, campaigns, and development operations to achieve the FY 2026-2027 revenue goals.

You will supervise the Development Coordinator and partner with the Board, committees, and program staff to expand contributed revenue, deepen donor engagement, and professionalize fundraising operations