Director of Development & External Affairs

AccessHealth; Richmond (TX); Hybrid; USD 90,000 - 150,000; Full time

Job summary

AccessHealth in Fort Bend/Fort Bend County area seeks a Director of Development & External Affairs to lead fundraising, external partnerships, and strategic communications. You will grow philanthropic support, expand donor networks, and strengthen community and referral partnerships to boost financial sustainability and visibility.

The role collaborates closely with the CEO and leadership, developing strategies with donors, corporate partners, foundations, and government stakeholders to advance

Qualifications

• 7+ years in nonprofit development, healthcare business development, or comparable external-facing leadership
• Proven track record: closed gifts, grants, or sponsorships of $25,000+; managed an annual fund of $500,000+
• Experience producing fundraising events generating $100,000+ in revenue
• Grant writing and management (federal, state, and/or private foundation)
• Proficiency in CRM/donor software (Bloomerang, DonorPerfect, Salesforce, Raiser's Edge, or equivalent)
• Working knowledge of SEO, digital marketing, and social media
• Established network in Greater Houston / Fort Bend County foundation contacts, hospital community benefit leaders, corporate giving relationships
• Genuine commitment to health equity and serving underserved communities

Responsibilities

• Develop and execute AccessHealth’s annual fundraising and development strategy.
• Cultivate, solicit, and steward individual donors, corporate partners, foundations, and other philanthropic supporters.
• Manage donor development activities from prospect identification through solicitation and stewardship.
• Identify and pursue grant opportunities and oversee grant development, submission, reporting, and compliance.
• Plan and oversee fundraising campaigns, sponsorship opportunities, donor engagement activities, and signature fundraising events.
• Develop strategies to increase donor retention, recurring giving, corporate sponsorships, and philanthropic revenue.
• Maintain accurate donor and fundraising records within the organization’s CRM or donor management system.
• Establish fundraising goals and provide regular development reports to the CEO and Board of Directors.
• Support the Board Development Committee and related development initiatives.
• Develop and maintain strategic relationships with hospitals, healthcare organizations, employers, schools, faith-based organizations, nonprofits, and other community partners.
• Identify partnership opportunities that increase awareness of AccessHealth services and strengthen patient referral pathways.
• Build relationships with government officials, community leaders, and other key stakeholders in coordination with the CEO.
• Represent AccessHealth at chambers of commerce, community coalitions, healthcare forums, and other external meetings and events.
• Monitor community needs and external trends and identify opportunities that support AccessHealth’s mission and priorities.
• Oversee external communications and marketing initiatives that strengthen awareness of AccessHealth’s services, programs, impact, and mission.
• Direct digital marketing and search visibility strategies, including SEO, social media, website visibility, and AI-driven search technologies.
• Coordinate media relations, public announcements, and external communications with CEO and leadership.
• Oversee development of impact reports, donor communications, community materials, and other publications.
• Monitor marketing and engagement performance and recommend strategies to strengthen external reach.
• Serve as a strategic advisor to the CEO on fundraising, external partnerships, and development opportunities.
• Establish and monitor goals and KPIs for development and external affairs.
• Develop and manage departmental budgets and resources.
• Collaborate across departments to align initiatives with priorities.
• Perform other duties and special projects as assigned by the CEO.

Skills

Fundraising

Grant writing

Donor relations

CRM software

SEO & digital marketing

Partnership development

Community engagement

Education

4 Year Degree

Master's degree or CFRE certification

Tools

Bloomerang

DonorPerfect

Salesforce

Raiser's Edge

Job description

Director of Development & External Affairs

Overview

Job Shift

Day

4 Year Degree

Travel Percentage

None

Description

JOB TITLE: Director of Development & External Affairs

DEPARTMENT: M&G

EDUCATION LEVEL: 4 Year Degree

REPORTS TO: CEO

TRAVEL: Occasional local travel may be required

FLSA STATUS: Exempt

SUPERVISORY ROLE: Yes

ABOUT ACCESSHEALTH

AccessHealth is a private, not-for-profit Federally Qualified Health Center (FQHC) serving Fort Bend and Waller Counties, TX since 1975 providing integrated, affordable healthcare to ~20,000 patients annually across 17 locations. A 2025 HRSA National Quality Leader and NCQA Patient-Centered Medical Home.

POSITION SUMMARY

The Director of Development & External Affairs leads AccessHealth’s fundraising, external partnerships, community engagement, and strategic communications efforts. The position is responsible for expanding philanthropic support, strengthening community and referral partnerships, and increasing AccessHealth’s visibility throughout the communities it serves.

Working closely with the CEO and organizational leadership, the Director develops and executes strategies that strengthen AccessHealth’s financial sustainability, community presence, and relationships with donors, corporations, foundations, healthcare organizations, government stakeholders, and community partners.

ESSENTIAL JOB DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Develop and execute AccessHealth’s annual fundraising and development strategy.
• Cultivate, solicit, and steward individual donors, corporate partners, foundations, and other philanthropic supporters.
• Manage donor development activities from prospect identification through solicitation and stewardship.
• Identify and pursue grant opportunities and oversee grant development, submission, reporting, and compliance.
• Plan and oversee fundraising campaigns, sponsorship opportunities, donor engagement activities, and signature fundraising events.
• Develop strategies to increase donor retention, recurring giving, corporate sponsorships, and philanthropic revenue.
• Maintain accurate donor and fundraising records within the organization’s CRM or donor management system.
• Establish fundraising goals and provide regular development reports to the CEO and Board of Directors.
• Support the Board Development Committee and related development initiatives.

Strategic Partnerships & External Affairs

• Develop and maintain strategic relationships with hospitals, healthcare organizations, employers, schools, faith-based organizations, nonprofits, and other community partners.
• Identify partnership opportunities that increase awareness of AccessHealth services and strengthen appropriate patient referral pathways.
• Build and maintain relationships with government officials, community leaders, and other key stakeholders in coordination with the CEO.
• Represent AccessHealth at chambers of commerce, community coalitions, healthcare forums, and other external meetings and events.
• Monitor community needs and external trends and identify opportunities that support AccessHealth’s mission and strategic priorities.

Communications, Brand & Digital Strategy

• Oversee external communications and marketing initiatives that strengthen awareness of AccessHealth’s services, programs, impact, and mission.
• Direct digital marketing and search visibility strategies, including SEO, social media, website visibility, and emerging AI-driven search technologies.
• Coordinate media relations, public announcements, and external communications in collaboration with the CEO and organizational leadership.
• Oversee the development of impact reports, donor communications, community materials, and other external-facing publications.
• Monitor marketing and engagement performance and recommend strategies to strengthen AccessHealth’s external reach and visibility.

Leadership & Administration

• Serve as a strategic advisor to the CEO on fundraising, external partnerships, community engagement, and development opportunities.
• Establish and monitor goals and key performance indicators for development and external affairs activities.
• Develop and manage applicable departmental budgets and resources.
• Collaborate across departments to ensure development and external affairs initiatives align with organizational priorities.
• Perform other duties and special projects as assigned by the Chief Executive Officer.

Qualifications

EDUCATION/LICENSURE/CERTIFICATION QUALIFICATIONS:

REQUIRED:

• 7+ years in nonprofit development, healthcare business development, or comparable external-facing leadership
• Proven track record: personally closed gifts, grants, or sponsorships of $25,000+; managed an annual fund of $500,000+
• Experience producing fundraising events generating $100,000+ in revenue
• Grant writing and management (federal, state, and/or private foundation)
• Proficiency in CRM/donor software (Bloomerang, DonorPerfect, Salesforce, Raiser's Edge, or equivalent)
• Working knowledge of SEO, digital marketing, and social media
• Brings an established network in Greater Houston / Fort Bend County - foundation contacts, hospital community benefit leaders, corporate giving relationships. Day‑one relationships matter.
• Genuine commitment to health equity and serving underserved communities

PREFERRED:

• Master's degree (MPH, MBA, MPA, MHA) or CFRE certification
• FQHC or safety‑net healthcare experience

SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITIES:

Provides leadership and oversight to assigned staff, contractors, vendors, or other resources supporting development, communications, community engagement, fundraising, and external affairs activities, as applicable. Responsibilities may include work assignment, performance oversight, coaching, and coordination of departmental priorities.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS:

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is occasionally required to stand; walk; sit; use hands to finger, handle and feel objects, tools and controls; reach with hands and arms; climb stairs; balance; stoop, kneel, crouch and crawl; talk and hear; taste and smell. The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 30 pounds. Specific vision abilities include close vision, distance vision, color vision, peripheral vision, depth perception, and the ability to adjust focus.

WORK ENVIRONMENT:

Work environment characteristics described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is not exposed to weather conditions. The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate.

HOURS

Employees will be assigned to a regular work schedule, which may include hours before 8:00 am, after 5:00 pm, and Saturdays as determined by department needs and requirements.

EQUAL EMPLOYMENT OPPORTUNITY

AccessHealth provides equal employment opportunities to all qualified applicants and employees and prohibits discrimination in employment on the basis of any characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law. AccessHealth is committed to providing reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals with disabilities throughout the application and employment process.