Development Manager

United Way of Mesa County; Grand Junction (CO); On-site; USD 34,000 - 37,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Health stipend

Clinic membership

Dental insurance

Vision insurance

Paid vacation

Paid personal days

SIMPLE IRA with 3% employer match

Job summary

United Way of Mesa County in Grand Junction seeks a Fundraising Manager to grow revenue via workplace campaigns, individual gifts, corporate/foundation gifts, sponsorships and grants. You will build engagement strategies and represent UWMC in the community.

The role requires proven fundraising and grant-writing experience, strong public speaking, and data-driven donor management. US-based, full-time, on-site position with room for impact.

Qualifications

• Experience in fundraising, sales or related field.
• Demonstrated skill in strategy development around growing revenue and finding new and innovative ways to generate additional resources.
• Proficient public speaking and presentation skills.
• Proven success with grant research and writing.
• Ability to maintain and develop corporate and individual donor relationships.
• Strong data and analysis skills including ability to set and meet fundraising goals.
• Strong organizational and time management skills, and the ability to prioritize and manage multiple responsibilities with ongoing distractions and/or interruptions.

Responsibilities

• Advocate enthusiastically for UWMC’s mission and represent the UWMC brand to donors.
• Grow donor engagement by cultivating relationships with diverse stakeholders.
• Maintain and expand relationships with corporate and individual donors.
• Align corporate social responsibility goals with UWMC impact areas.
• Develop and execute a growth plan for the annual campaign.
• Provide training materials to workplace campaign coordinators.
• Lead grant research, seek earned income possibilities and manage proposals.

Education

Bachelor’s degree in business, marketing, or related field

Job description

Who We Are

Founded in 1959 in Grand Junction, Colorado, United Way of Mesa County (UWMC) is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization that raises money from the community to fund local programs that address community concerns.

United Way of Mesa County does what no single organization can do. We connect and mobilize resources, people, and passion in strategic ways to achieve our goals, transform Mesa County, and change the story for thousands of people.

Our programs include Volunteer United, The United Way of Mesa County Book Exchange, and United to Solve Homelessness. We also offer a yearly grant for Mesa County nonprofits, accept donor designations, administer grants, and more.

For our 2026-2027 fiscal year, we are helping fund 26 programs at 20 different local nonprofit agencies with our Community Impact Fund Grant. The programs address a variety of social problems focused on financial security, healthy communities, youth opportunity, and community resiliency (our four focus areas).

UWMC is a small, but mighty team that collaborates and works together with community partners to fulfill our promises to the community. We hope you will consider applying to join our passionate and hard-working team!

Role Description

Lead the planning and implementation of strategies to drive overall growth in revenue for United Way of Mesa County (UWMC). Build effective, on-going, segmented engagement strategies to enhance diversified revenue through annual workplace campaign participation and giving, individual gifts, corporate/foundation gifts and memberships, sponsorships, and grants. Provide the necessary planning, analysis and follow-up to achieve fundraising goals. Represent UWMC in the community via networking activities and with frequent public speaking to stakeholders and at selected community events.

Qualifications

• Demonstrated skill in sales/marketing or fundraising, and project management.
• Proven success with strategy development around growing revenue and finding new and innovative ways to generate additional resources.
• Proficient public speaking and presentation skills.
• Proven success with grant research and writing.
• Ability to maintain and develop corporate and individual donor relationships.
• Strong data and analysis skills including ability to set and meet fundraising goals.
• Strong organizational and time management skills, and the ability to prioritize and manage multiple responsibilities with ongoing distractions and/or interruptions.
• Education: Bachelor’s degree in business, marketing, or related field, or the combination of education and experience that would enable performance of the full scope of the position. Preferred experience in fundraising, sales or related area.

Key Areas of Responsibility

Fundraising:

• Advocate enthusiastically for UWMC’s mission, communicate clearly about our impact agenda and programming, and effectively represent the UWMC brand in all communications and donor interactions.
• Serve as a major liaison between UWMC and stakeholders, making regular contacts to enhance donor engagement and UWMC presence by cultivating and building high-quality, mutually beneficial relationships with a diverse group of potential stakeholders and capitalizing on opportunities.
• Maintain and enhance relationships with existing corporate and individual donors to sustain and expand current funding resources.
• Actively work to align corporate social responsibility/goals with UWMC impact areas.
• Develop and execute a growth plan for the annual campaign including corporate and individual donors.
• Provide training and resource materials to workplace campaign coordinators.
• Research grant and earned income possibilities and lead grant and proposal writing. Track and report status of submitted applications. Maintain award contracts and all grant materials in organized files. Ensure timely submissions, monitoring, record keeping, reporting, and meeting of deliverables.
• Ensure accurate and timely reporting of fundraising results.
• Understand competing market demands and trends.
• Solicit corporate members, sponsorships, and in-kind opportunities.
• Develop meaningful working relationships with media contacts by providing complete and accurate information in a timely manner.
• Work closely with staff to collect stories, metrics, and testimonials that highlight

organizational impact.

• Work with administrative staff to ensure accuracy and maintenance of donor records in donor management systems.
• Participate in UWMC related community-level councils/coalitions as assigned.
• Assist in developing and managing a budget within work area.
• Attend monthly Board meetings and provide status reports.

This job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive list 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.

Competencies

• Passion for the work of United Way of Mesa County and the Mesa County community
• Honesty, integrity, confidentiality
• Accountability
• Verbal and written communication skills
• Time and project management
• Comfortable with technology and social media

Working Conditions

• Full-time, in-office position
• Normal office environment with little exposure to dust, noise, temperature extremes
• Ability to lift 20 pounds
• Frequent driving within Grand Valley area for presentations, events, and meetings
• Extended viewing of computer monitor

Compensation

• Position is full-time (40 hours/week), non-exempt, with starting pay $25- $27 hourly depending on skills and experience
• Health Stipend
• Appleton Clinic Membership
• Dental and vision insurance
• Paid vacation and personal days
• SIMPLE IRA with 3% employer match (after six months)