Director Development Operations

Philadelphia Ballet; Philadelphia (Philadelphia County); On-site; USD 110,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

Philadelphia Ballet is seeking a Director of Development Operations to build and optimize a comprehensive prospect development and research program that drives philanthropic growth. You will lead prospect research, data governance, and reporting, coordinating with Finance and program leaders to align fundraising strategy.

The role oversees gift processing, CRM integrity, and donor recognition workflows, producing dashboards for leadership and the Board.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent, relevant work experience.
• Minimum 8 years of experience in development operations or CRM administration, with at least 2 years directly leading a team or department.
• Demonstrated experience supporting grant-funded programs and partnering with Finance on gift processing and reconciliation.
• Deep working knowledge of donor CRM systems (e.g., Tessitura, Salesforce, Raiser's Edge) and online giving platforms.
• Prior experience managing or supervising a team.
• Experience in non-profit performing arts is a plus, though not required.

Responsibilities

• Assess and strengthen development systems, workflows, and data practices to ensure accuracy, efficiency, and alignment across teams.
• Lead and develop prospect development and research staff, foster a culture of accountability and innovation, and provide data-informed recommendations to leadership to guide fundraising strategy.
• Support program and department staff teams in meeting to help set measurable goals, gather the right data, and prepare reports, and serving as the connective tissue to Finance when budget or restricted-fund questions arise.
• Oversee gift processing operations from ensuring gifts are entered, acknowledged, and receipted accurately and on time, in coordination with Finance.
• Maintain the integrity of the donor CRM/database so fundraisers can rely on it, including data governance standards and user protocols.
• Build and manage the stewardship and donor recognition workflows the fundraising team relies on, including timely acknowledgments, gift agreements, impact updates, and recognition programs.
• Produce accurate, timely fundraising reports and dashboards for organizational leadership and the Board, including pipeline and portfolio reporting that helps gift officers prioritize and track their prospects.
• Support prospect research and management, working with fundraisers to identify and qualify prospects and keep portfolios and pipelines current in the Tessitura database.
• Supervise Development operations staff providing coaching, workflow oversight, and portfolio management support.
• Partner with Finance to integrate Tessitura, Donate2 online giving, and payment-processing systems into a cohesive fundraising technology stack.
• Stay current on sector trends and recommend new tools or processes that increase efficiency and giving capacity.
• Represent Development Operations in cross-departmental planning across Philadelphia Ballet functional areas.
• Other duties as required

Skills

Team leadership

CRM management

Donor analytics

Data reporting

Stakeholder communication

Education

Bachelor's degree or equivalent

Tools

Tessitura

Salesforce

Raiser's Edge

Job description

Summary:

The Director of Development Operations is responsible for building and optimizing a comprehensive prospect development and research program that drives sustainable philanthropic growth and serves as the operational engine behind development function. This includes prospect research and analysis, establishing and refining tracking and reporting processes to monitor progress against fundraising goals; including quarterly impact reporting and pipeline performance analysis.

Essential Functions:

• Assess and strengthen development systems, workflows, and data practices to ensure accuracy, efficiency, and alignment across teams.
• Lead and develop prospect development and research staff, foster a culture of accountability and innovation, and provide data-informed recommendations to leadership to guide fundraising strategy.
• Support program and department staff teams in meeting to help set measurable goals, gather the right data, and prepare reports, and serving as the connective tissue to Finance when budget or restricted-fund questions arise.
• Oversee gift processing operations from ensuring gifts are entered, acknowledged, and receipted accurately and on time, in coordination with Finance.
• Maintain the integrity of the donor CRM/database so fundraisers can rely on it, including data governance standards and user protocols.
• Build and manage the stewardship and donor recognition workflows the fundraising team relies on, including timely acknowledgments, gift agreements, impact updates, and recognition programs.
• Produce accurate, timely fundraising reports and dashboards for organizational leadership and the Board, including pipeline and portfolio reporting that helps gift officers prioritize and track their prospects.
• Support prospect research and management, working with fundraisers to identify and qualify prospects and keep portfolios and pipelines current in the Tessitura database.
• Supervise Development operations staff providing coaching, workflow oversight, and professional development and portfolio management support.
• Partner with Finance to integrate Tessitura, Donate2 online giving, and payment-processing systems into a cohesive fundraising technology stack.
• Stay current on sector trends and recommend new tools or processes that increase efficiency and giving capacity.
• Represent Development Operations in cross-departmental planning across Philadelphia Ballet functional areas.
• Other duties asrequired

Supervisory Responsibility:

Development Operations Manager

Expected Hours of Work:

Days and hours of work are Monday through Friday 9:00 a.m. to 5 p.m. Occasional evening and weekend work may be required as job duties demand.

Travel:

Travel is primarily locally during the business day, although some out of the area travel and overnight may be expected.

Required Education and Experience:

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent, relevant work experience.
• Minimum 8 years of experience in development operations or CRM administration, with at least 2 years directly leading a team or department.
• Demonstrated experience supporting grant-funded programs and partnering with Finance on gift processing and reconciliation.
• Deep working knowledge of donor CRM systems (e.g., Tessitura, Salesforce, Raiser's Edge) and online giving platforms.
• Prior experience managing or supervising a team.
• Experience in non-profit performing arts is a plus, though not required.

Required Skills and Competencies:

• Strong analytical and systems-oriented mindset, with comfort evaluating and implementing new fundraising technology.
• Excellent cross-functional communication skills, with the ability to work fluently with program leadership, fundraisers, and Finance.
• Demonstrated ability to coach and develop staff
• Strong analytical and systems-oriented mindset, with comfort evaluating and implementing new fundraising technology.
• Excellent cross-functional communication skills, with the ability to work fluently with program leadership, fundraisers, and Finance.
• Ability to build andmaintaineffective working relationships within a diverse and multicultural environment

• Commitment tomaintaininga safe, respectful, and professional environmentin accordance withorganizational policies

Work Authorization/Security Clearance:

Must provide satisfactory background checks and child abuse clearances as may be required for role.

Other Duties:

Please note 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.

Equal Opportunity Statement:

Philadelphia Ballet is committed to the principles of equality in employment. The Ballet complies with all applicable federal, state and local laws and Federal Executive Orders, and provides an equal opportunity in employment for all qualified persons. We prohibit discrimination in employment based on characteristics protected by applicable law, including race, ethnicity, creed, color, national origin, ancestry, citizenship status, religion, age, sexual orientation, gender, gender identify or expression, familial status, pregnancy, domestic or sexual violence victim status, disability, service in the armed forces of the United States, or an individual’s status as a covered veteran.