Development & Membership Manager

Ruth Bancroft Garden; Walnut Creek (CA); On-site; USD 72,000 - 76,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Phone stipend

PTO 3 weeks annually

Health insurance (dental & vision)

403b with company match

Job summary

Ruth Bancroft Garden is seeking a Development & Membership Manager to lead the organization’s fundraising program and donor relations. You will partner with committees to support outreach, craft donor experiences, and grow the membership base.

You will manage communications, plan events including the annual Gala, and oversee CRM data hygiene to support data-driven fundraising strategies. A bachelor’s degree and nonprofit fundraising experience are required.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience; nonprofit fundraising background preferred.
• At least three years in fundraising, data management, or communications.
• Experience managing staff and volunteers desirable.

Responsibilities

• Develop, build, and execute a strategic annual fundraising plan.
• Identify, cultivate, solicit, and steward donors and sponsors; maintain prospect pipeline.
• Design and execute year-end campaigns and ad hoc campaigns.

Skills

Donor relations

Fundraising

CRM management

Event planning

Communications

Education

Bachelor's degree

Tools

Altru CRM

Zoom

Microsoft Office

Canva

Job description

Company Description: Ruth Bancroft Garden is a nonprofit, world-renowned 3.5-acre public garden known for its exceptional collection of succulents and drought-tolerant plants from around the world. Founded by Ruth Bancroft, a pioneer in water-wise gardening who lived to be 109, the Garden demonstrates sustainable landscaping practices and plant diversity. Open to visitors year-round, it features striking blooms in every season and emphasizes plant structure, texture, and robust plantings. The Garden serves as a dynamic educational and community resource, inspiring visitors to explore climate-appropriate gardening and conservation-focused design.

Position Summary

The Development & Membership Manager creates and executes the organization’s fundraising program. This position will build on the organization’s existing development practices to produce a successful fundraising strategy aimed at increasing contributions from a variety of sources, including membership, individual gifts, grants, corporate sponsorship, and fundraising events. This position will report to the Executive Director and partner with the Development and Membership Committees of the Board of Directors to support outreach efforts, create a meaningful donor experience, and foster a stable membership program.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

Development

• Develop, build, and execute a strong strategic plan for annual fundraising.
• Identify, cultivate, solicit, and steward individual donors, foundations, and corporate sponsors, including a detailed pipeline of prospects.
• Design and execute the year-end annual giving campaign, as well as ad hoc campaigns.
• Work with the Development and Membership Committees to educate, elevate, and support board members in fundraising.
• Produce the organization’s donor communications and gather editorial input from the Executive Director—may include online newsletters, donor acknowledgements, annual appeal, annual report, invitations, and personalized donor solicitations.
• Collaborate with the Executive Director, Events department, and Board to execute special events related to donor cultivation and/or fundraising, including the annual Gala and donor appreciation events. Elements include invitations, event production, solicitation of corporate sponsorships and in-kind gifts, sponsor benefit fulfillment, and event follow-up as it relates to fundraising.
• Generate new ideas that increase revenue through donor engagement and longevity.
• Provide support for other fundraising efforts as needed.

Membership

• Develop, build, and execute a strategic plan to drive membership growth and retain current memberships.
• Work closely with the head of Marketing to create and launch compelling messaging and content to achieve membership goals and objectives. Marketing elements include but are not limited to email campaigns, direct mail, and social media messaging.
• Craft and communicate meaningful membership benefits, including discounts, reciprocal opportunities, member events, and opportunities for community.
• Drive membership sales and admissions through excellent customer service and effective communication with customers and members.
• Conduct an annual membership survey and monitor industry trends and best practices to inform data-driven membership acquisition and retention strategies.
• Oversee and engage in membership operations including member correspondence via email and phone, constituent entry and membership processing, physical and digital renewal campaigns, member packets, and promotions/sales.
• Design and produce 10-15 Free Member Events annually.

Information Management

• Serve as power user for the organization’s CRM/database (Altru), Altru integration suite (Social Good Software), wealth screening platform (DonorSearch), and event software (Tofino).
• Enter and maintain constituent data, including contacts, memberships, gifts, correspondence, and event attendance.
• Run reports, create queries, track trends, and pull lists for events and mailings.
• Manage gift processing and database recording to ensure accurate gift entry and timely acknowledgements, and to support data-based development strategies. Ensure accurate record-keeping and regular reporting for all fundraising activities.
• Steward donor relationships through consistent database management and prospect tracking.
• Maintain CRM data hygiene through troubleshooting discrepancies, researching constituents, and consistently updating information.

Key focus areas

Customer Service

The Development and Membership Manager will be the primary point of contact for our 3K-4K membership households, which is the core of our individual support. Providing personalized customer service by phone, email , and in person is a key component of this position. This position will also be the liaison to donors and sponsors and assist in crafting strategies and communications to cultivate and acknowledge support.

Communications

This position will participate in creating content for:

• Direct mail and email campaigns
• Acknowledgement letters for all contributions
• Welcome letters for all memberships received by the organization

The Development & Membership Manager will also create high-level themes and concepts for campaigns/appeals, driving compelling messaging and content to achieve fundraising goals and objectives.

Grants and special projects

This position will apply for grants from a variety of sources including:

• Corporate and private foundations
• Local and state agencies

The position will be responsible for creating and submitting proposals for general support and special projects, as well as required reporting on the use of granted funds.

Events

This position will collaborate with the Events department to produce the annual Gala. The Development & Membership Manager will coordinate the event theme, create communications content and timelines, solicit and track event sponsorship and ticket sales, and manage additional fundraising activities such as auctions and paddle raises. The position will also produce two donor appreciation events, two-three sponsor buy-out events, and 10-15 Free Member Events annually.

Additional Responsibilities

Additional special events during which this position is required include community events at the Garden and at local venues, including evenings and weekends. This position will also serve as staff technical advisor to the Development Board Committee and Membership Board Committee, attending their monthly meetings and providing data.

Qualifications

The requirements listed below are representative of the knowledge, skill, and/or ability required. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Writing samples will be requested as part of the application process. Candidate must have familiarity with the systems, best practices, and cultural norms of nonprofit fundraising. Experience managing elevated events a plus .

Computer Skills

Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, Powerpoint, SharePoint), Altru or comparable CRM, Zoom, and Canva. Additional fundraising, email marketing, and ecommerce platforms a plus.

Education/Experience

Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience. A minimum of three years professional experience working in a fundraising, data management, and/or communications role; nonprofit experience preferred. Experience managing staff and volunteers desirable.

Physical Demands

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to sit or stand at a desk for up to eight hours a day, with a significant amount of time spent at a computer. The employee must be able to lift/carry up to 30 pounds for event preparation and production.

Salary & Benefits

• Salary range: $72,000 to $76,000 annually.
• A $40/month stipend is offered to employees who must use their personal phone for work-related activities.
• Benefits include three weeks paid time off (PTO), which increases after five years of service, paid holidays, health insurance including dental and vision, and 403b with company match.

This is a full-time, in-person position located at the Ruth Bancroft Garden offices in Walnut Creek, CA. Typical hours are 9am-5pm, Monday through Friday, with occasional evening and weekend work required. Occasional remote work is permitted as approved by the Executive Director.