Director of Development

Dolores Huerta Foundation; Bakersfield (CA); On-site; USD 80,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

The Dolores Huerta Foundation is seeking a Development Director who will spearhead fundraising, forecast income, and lead the Development Team to meet strategic goals.

Working closely with the public relations team, you will cultivate donors, manage campaigns and events, and produce timely reports documenting progress, impact, and outcomes. This role requires strategic vision and a deep commitment to social justice.

Qualifications

• 3–5 years of fundraising experience in nonprofits, including events and grants.
• Supervisory and coaching experience.
• Excellent organizational, time-management and project-planning skills.
• Proficiency with donor databases and fundraising software.
• Spanish bilingual a plus

Responsibilities

• Plan, manage and evaluate fundraising events and campaigns.
• Develop and oversee bequest program management for long-term support.
• Manage budget and fundraising income programs for sustainability.
• Identify and steward prospective donors using research tools and donor databases.
• Oversee major donor program and cultivate small donors.
• Lead, train and coach fundraising staff to enhance donor relations.
• Stay updated on fundraising trends to inform strategies.
• Develop donor, supporter and staff messaging across publications and channels.
• Respond to donor and staff inquiries in a timely manner.
• Create solicitation materials and collateral for fundraising team.
• Foster organization-wide fundraising culture involving staff, Board and volunteers.
• Implement incentives and accountability for fundraising goals.
• Maintain cross-department collaboration to promote DHF’s work and campaigns.

Skills

Fundraising

Donor relations

Grant writing

Team leadership

Budget management

Prospect research

Communication

Bilingual English/Spanish

Education

Bachelor's degree in relevant field

Tools

CiviCRM

Job description

The Development Director plays a crucial role in advancing the mission and financial sustainability of the organization. Responsible for spearheading fundraising efforts, forecasting future income, and fostering meaningful relationships with donors and supporters, the Development Director leads the Development Team in achieving strategic objectives.

The Development Director works closely with the public relations team to attract attention from potential supporters and host events that raise awareness of the organization’s goals. They will foster an organizational-wide fundraising culture by assisting staff to connect with donors and opportunities to bring in unrestricted revenue. Lead the Development Team in achieving operational goals and producing timely written reports to document progress, activities, updates, and results.

• Planning, managing and evaluating fundraising events, campaigns and activities that align with DHF’s organizational mission and goals.
• Develop and oversee a bequest program management to cultivate long-term support and legacy giving for the foundation.
• Managing the organization’s budget and fundraising income programs to ensure financial sustainability and effective resource allocation.
• Identifying and stewarding socially responsible prospective donors using prospect research tools and DHF’s supporter and donor database to build relationships.
• Oversee a major donor program to support the programmatic initiatives of DHF.
• Oversee small donor cultivation and fundraising.
• Team training and coaching of the fundraising team to enhance their roles in fundraising and donor relations.
• Staying on top of fundraising trends in the nonprofit community, leveraging insights to inform DHFs fundraising strategies and initiatives.
• Develop donor, supporter and staff messaging and communications in publications, correspondence, telephone and social media promotions.
• Answering donor and staff inquiries in a timely fashion.
• Creating solicitation materials and collateral for the fundraising team.
• Foster an organization-wide fundraising culture and oversee a plan which involves all staff, DHF Board and volunteers in fundraising efforts and increasing unrestricted funds
• Implement incentives and methods of accountability to hold all staff and Board Members accountable for fundraising goals.
• Maintain systems for inter-departmental collaboration to promote the work of DHF, targeted fundraising campaigns, develop communications for targeted audiences.

Additional Responsibilities:

• Attend all DHF staff and department meetings.
• Submit weekly reports documenting plans and accomplishments.
• Assist with special projects and other duties as assigned.
• Must be open to new learning experiences.

Knowledge Skills & Abilities

• Must have at least 3-5 years of fundraising experience for non-profits including special events and grant writing.
• Supervisorial and coaching experience.
• Excellent organizational, time-management, project-planning skills. Must be able to coordinate multiple tasks simultaneously.
• The ultimate level of professionalism, discretion, maturity, integrity, and confidentiality.
• Meticulous attention to detail.
• Proficiency in Google Suite applications, Microsoft Office (Outlook, Excel, Word, and PowerPoint), and project management software (Monday.com, Slack)
• Ability to function at a high level in a fast-paced work environment.
• Experience managing a calendar, email, and other correspondence.
• Superb written and verbal skills. Experience with persuasive, emotionally appealing human stories is a plus.
• Ability to apply initiative, creativity, enthusiasm, and resourcefulness to carry projects to conclusion.
• Strong interpersonal skills to interact effectively and professionally with a diverse staff, community leaders, board members, prospects, donors, and volunteers.
• Commitment to DHF’s mission and relevant public policy issues including LGBTQ and Latino community cultural competencies.
• Demonstrated commitment to social justice.
• Written and spoken proficiency in English. Bi-lingual (Spanish) a plus
• Handles stress well with patience and flexibility
• Excellent team player.
• Fundraising software and tools expertise.
• Organized and inspiring team leader.
• Management or leadership experience preferred
• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills required
• Organizational, time-management and problem-solving skills needed
• Ability to lead and direct others
• Knowledge of grant writing preferred
• Some knowledge of CiviCRM platforms
• An eye for aesthetically appealing and effective graphic design.
• Understands the importance of optics and interiors that lend themselves to specific purposes

Education & Experience

• Bachelor's degree in a relevant field from an accredited college.
• Equivalent combination of relevant education and experience may be substituted as appropriate
• 2+ Years’ experience in a community outreach role preferred
• Strong leadership and communication skills with the ability to inspire and motivate teams
• Proficiency in prospect research, donor database management, and fundraising software.
• Strategic thinking and analytical abilities, with a results-oriented approach.
• Commitment to DHF's mission and values, with a passion for making a positive impact in the community.