DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT

Bottom Line; Boston (MA); Hybrid; USD 116,000 - 120,000; Full time

Job summary

Bottom Line is a national nonprofit partnering with degree-aspiring students of color from under-resourced communities to guide them through the college journey and into careers. The Development Director in Massachusetts leads donor cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship across individuals, companies, and foundations to generate approximately $1–$1.5M in annual revenue.

The role emphasizes building strong external relationships, leveraging data and Salesforce for pipeline management, and

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree and work authorization.
• Minimum of 5 years of development or relationship management experience.
• Experience owning a portfolio of donor relationships and managing the full lifecycle—qualification, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship—with a focus on securing and growing gifts of $5,000+.

Responsibilities

• Donor Portfolio Management across multiple funding streams to meet a $1–$1.5M revenue goal.
• Conduct regular donor meetings and visits to build trust-based relationships.
• Support top-tier donor relationships and coordinate strategy with leadership.
• Identify and qualify new prospects via research and community networks.
• Maintain accurate donor information and activity tracking in a CRM.
• Coordinate with regional and national teams to align fundraising efforts.

Skills

Donor relations

Fundraising

Relationship management

Donor meetings

Education

Bachelor's degree

Tools

CRM systems

Salesforce

Job description

DIRECTOR of DEVELOPMENT

Boston, MA (Massachusetts Region)

Who We Are and What We Believe:

Founded in 1997, Bottom Line is a nationally recognized nonprofit organization with a mission to partner with degree-aspiring students of color from under-resourced communities as they get into college, graduate, and go far in life. We achieve this mission by providing one-on-one guidance during the college application process through college graduation and the successful launch of their careers.

Our vision is to dramatically transform urban communities by producing thousands of new career-ready college graduates.

When you join Bottom Line, you will find a rewarding, fast-paced, results-oriented environment. We build strong relationships with our students and with each other. We take our work seriously, and we know that a focus on data and metrics is integral to our continued success. Experts in our fields, we are driven by our mission and extremely proud of the work we do.

What You Will Do:

The Development Director is a strategic and proactive frontline fundraiser who thrives on building relationships and driving growth in a mission-driven environment. Reporting to the Massachusetts Managing Director of Development (MDD), this role is responsible for a portfolio of donor and prospect relationships in Massachusetts and is accountable for a revenue goal of approximately $1–$1.5M. The Development Director manages relationships across funding streams—including individuals, companies, and foundations—and spends significant time externally to cultivate, solicit, and steward donors, with a focus on securing and growing gifts of $5,000 or more.

In addition to managing their own portfolio, the Development Director supports the Executive Director (ED) and MDD in stewarding top donors and prospects and advancing key relationship strategies as needed. They will also help identify and qualify new donors by leveraging Bottom Line’s database, conducting research, professional networking, and leveraging connectors to advance donor relationships where possible.

Collaboration is central to this role. The Development Director will work closely with the Massachusetts development team—including the Director of Donor Experience and the Manager of Institutional Partnerships—as well as the MDD to coordinate outreach, stewardship, and donor engagement experiences. The DD will also interact with the regional program team to identify opportunities to engage donors in local work and connect supporters to Bottom Line’s student impact and outcomes. In addition, the DD will partner with Bottom Line’s National Development Operations (DevOps) team to ensure strong pipeline management and relationship strategies, data integrity, and effective use of Salesforce and other tools. This is an individual contributor role with no direct reports.

Primary Responsibilities:

Donor Portfolio Management – 65%

• Manage a portfolio of current and prospective donors and partners across funding streams—including individuals, companies, and foundations—cultivating, soliciting, and stewarding gifts of $5,000 or more to meet a portfolio revenue goal of approximately $1–$1.5M.
• Conduct regular donor meetings and visits, and use a variety of communication methods to build strong, trust-based relationships and advance donor strategies.
• Support the Executive Director and MDD in managing select top-tier donor relationships by coordinating strategy, preparing for successful interactions, and supporting outreach and follow-up communications.
• Proactively identify and qualify new prospects by leveraging Bottom Line’s database, conducting research, and engaging with community networks and philanthropic ecosystems.
• Leverage the region’s connector strategy by engaging board members and other champions, in partnership with the Massachusetts MDD, to secure warm introductions and expand the donor pipeline.
• Coordinate with the central grants function on the national DevOps team on grant deliverables for institutional funders in your portfolio and, where designated, take the lead on the writing and submission
• Maintain accurate, timely, and complete donor information and activity tracking in Salesforce, in alignment with organizational guidance and expectations.

Portfolio Planning & Execution Support – 15%

• Develop, maintain, and execute a portfolio plan (including moves management, solicitation strategy, and stewardship) to achieve annual revenue goals.
• Regularly review donor data and fundraising performance using Salesforce dashboards and other reporting tools to inform decision‑making, monitor progress to goal, and adjust tactics as needed.
• Contribute to regional forecasting and regular progress reviews by proactively surfacing opportunities, risks, and support needs to the MDD.
• At the direction of the MDD, contribute to broader regional fundraising priorities and initiatives (e.g., integrated donor engagement opportunities, sponsorship cultivation, and event‑related outreach).

Cross‑Functional Collaboration – 20%

• Partner closely with the national DevOps team to align regional strategy & execution with organization‑wide systems, tools, and strategies. Also offer regional insight and feedback to inform fundraising approaches and initiatives led at the national level.
• Actively contribute to the Bottom Line development community across regions and nationally, sharing learnings, aligning practices, and supporting collective growth.
• Support regional event execution as directed by the Director of Donor Experience
• Coordinate with the Massachusetts development team and national partners to ensure donor communications and engagement activities align with the Bottom Line brand and messaging.
• Engage with the regional program team to engage donors in local program work and to gather compelling stories of impact to share.
• As a Massachusetts regional staff member, actively participate in regional meetings and planning rhythms, contribute to culture‑building and team cohesion, and provide support to colleagues to advance shared regional priorities.

Duties, responsibilities, and activities may change at any time with or without advanced notice.

Direct Reports:

None

Work Schedule:

Approximately 9:00 a.m.- 5:00 p.m., with additional hours as needed. Hybrid schedule with minimum 3 days in-office.

Expected Travel:

Frequent travel across region, limited travel outside of the region (may include 1-2 trips to other regions throughout the year)

Who Should Apply:

If you meet the qualifications below, you should apply.

• Bachelor’s degree and work authorization.
• Minimum of 5 years of development or relationship management experience.
• Demonstrated success owning and meeting a revenue goal, including forecasting, pipeline management, and disciplined follow‑up.
• Experience owning a portfolio of donor relationships and managing the full lifecycle—qualification, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship—with a focus on securing and growing gifts of $5,000+ through individualized donor strategies.
• Comfort and credibility in an externally facing role, including leading donor meetings and representing an organization with professionalism, warmth, and strong follow‑through.
• Ability to use fundraising data and CRM systems to inform strategy and execution, prioritize actions, and monitor progress to goal.
• Strong collaboration skills, including the ability to manage up and support the MDD and ED, partner effectively with the Massachusetts development and regional program teams, and coordinate with national partners (e.g., DevOps) to advance shared goals.
• Strong communication and project management skills, including the ability to draft clear donor‑facing communications, coordinate inputs, and drive projects forward to completion.
• Ability to thrive in a dynamic, evolving environment and adapt to shifting priorities.
• Demonstrated commitment to Bottom Line’s Mission, Vision, and Core Values

Preferred:

• Experience fundraising across multiple funding streams (individual, corporate, and foundation), including balancing priorities across a diverse portfolio.

• Grant writing experience and/or experience supporting foundation and corporate proposal development and reporting.
• Experience working within a matrixed or multi-site organization.

Start Date:

August 2026

Compensation:

$116k-$120k

Benefits:

Learn about our benefits here.