Director, Strategic Philanthropy

Big Brothers Big Sisters; United States; Remote; USD 90,000 - 140,000; Full time

Job summary

Big Brothers Big Sisters of America is seeking a Director of Strategic Philanthropy to lead major gifts fundraising. You will manage a portfolio of 100–150 donors, cultivate six- and seven-figure gifts, and craft donor-centered proposals. Remote within the continental United States and travel about 30–35% are expected.

The role partners with Resource Development and program teams to grow the national giving program and ensure outstanding donor experiences throughout the giving lifecycle.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent fundraising experience.
• Minimum five years in major gifts or frontline fundraising with a track record.
• Experience managing donor portfolios and moves management.

Responsibilities

• Manage a portfolio of 100-150 major donors and prospects.
• Develop cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship strategies.
• Maintain an active pipeline to meet revenue goals.
• Document donor interactions in the CRM and other platforms.

Skills

Donor engagement

Moves management

Relationship building

Solicitation

Portfolio management

Salesforce

Budget management

Project management

Communication

Education

Bachelor's degree

Tools

Salesforce

Microsoft Office

Job description

For more than a century, Big Brothers Big Sisters has been helping change kids’ perspectives and giving them the opportunity to reach their potential.

Since 1904, Big Brothers Big Sisters has operated under the belief that inherent in every child is incredible potential. As the nation’s largest donor- and volunteer-supported mentoring network, Big Brothers Big Sisters makes meaningful, monitored matches between adult volunteers (“Bigs”) and children (“Littles”), ages 5 through young adulthood in communities across the country. We develop positive relationships that have a direct and lasting effect on the lives of young people.

Position Purpose

The Director of Strategic Philanthropy serves as a frontline fundraiser responsible for identifying, cultivating, soliciting, and stewarding a portfolio of major individual donors in support of Big Brothers Big Sisters of America's (BBBSA) mission and strategic priorities. Reporting to the VP, Strategic Philanthropy, this role builds meaningful, long-term relationships with donors capable of six and seven-figure gifts, translating BBBSA's impact and strategic priorities into compelling, donor-centered cases for support.

The Director of Strategic Philanthropy partners closely with the Resource Development team, program and agency leaders, and executive staff to develop personalized cultivation strategies, craft gift proposals, and ensure a high-quality donor experience across the giving lifecycle. The role plays a critical part in growing BBBSA's individual giving program and advancing its national fundraising goals.

The ideal candidate is a relationship-driven fundraiser with a track record of closing six and seven- figure gifts, sound judgment, and the ability to manage a dynamic portfolio of prospects and donors in a mission-driven, federated organization.

Location: Continental United States (100% Remote),
FSLA Status : Full time, Exempt
Travel : Approximately 30-35%, with occasional additional travel as needed.
Remote Work Location Requirement: This position is approved for remote work within the Continental United States only. Any permanent change to the geographic location of an employee’s remote work arrangement from the region identified at the time of hire must be reviewed and approved in advance by both the employee’s direct manager and Human Resources.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

• Manage a portfolio of approximately 100-150 major donors and prospects, with individual gift capacity typically ranging from $25,000 to $100,000+.
• Develop and execute individualized cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship strategies for each donor in the portfolio using a moves management framework.
• Maintain an active pipeline of qualified prospects sufficient to meet annual revenue goals, tracking stage, next steps, and timing for each relationship.
• Document all donor interactions, moves, and strategies in the CRM in a timely and accurate manner to ensure institutional knowledge is preserved and shared.

Prospect Identification & Qualification

• Partner with the prospect research function to identify new major gift prospects through wealth screening, referrals, and relationship mapping.
• Qualify prospects through discovery visits and calls, assessing capacity, affinity, and readiness for solicitation.
• Collaborate with local BBBS agency leaders to identify and cultivate donors with connections to both the national office and local chapters.
• Design and deliver personalized cultivation experiences, including donor visits, briefings, campus and program tours, and executive engagement opportunities.
• Draft compelling, donor-centered gift proposals, briefing materials, and stewardship reports in partnership with the Marketing & Communications and Program teams.
• Directly solicit major gifts, leading or supporting solicitation visits alongside executive leadership, board members, or volunteers as appropriate.
• Ensure timely, accurate gift acknowledgment and develop meaningful stewardship touchpoints that build long-term donor loyalty and encourage renewed and increased giving.

Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Partner with the Resource Development team to align major gift strategies with annual fundraising goals, campaign priorities, and organizational strategic plans.
• Work with Marketing & Communications to ensure donor-facing materials reflect current brand standards and effectively communicate BBBSA's impact.
• Collaborate with Program and Agency leaders to stay current on organizational impact, outcomes data, and stories that strengthen donor cases for support.
• Support executive and board engagement in major donor cultivation and solicitation, including briefing preparation and follow-up coordination.

Reporting, Documentation and Continuous Improvement

• Track and report progress against individual and team revenue goals, pipeline metrics, and activity benchmarks on a regular cadence.
• Maintain organized donor files and documentation utilizing the CRM, SharePoint, and other enterprise platforms.
• Recommend improvements to major gift processes, tools, and donor journey design based on portfolio experience and outcomes.
• Participate in continuous improvement initiatives supporting the Resource Development team's effectiveness.
• Manage related and other duties as assigned in support of department and business needs.

Culture

• Demonstrate commitment to BBBSA's shared leadership competencies and organizational values.
• Represent BBBSA's mission and impact with authenticity and donor-centered communication in every interaction.
• Provide consistent follow-up regarding assigned donors and after meetings.
• Cultivate an environment where colleagues, donors, and program partners feel valued, included, and heard.

Education, Skills & Related Work Experience

• Education Level: Bachelor's degree or equivalent combinations of education and progressively responsible fundraising experience.
• Years and Scope of Related Work Experience : Minimum of Five years of progressively responsible major gifts or frontline fundraising experience, with a demonstrated track record of identifying, cultivating, and closing five- and six-figure gifts. Experience managing a donor portfolio and moves management process required. Experience with Salesforce preferred. Experience within a nonprofit or federated organization preferred.

Skills and Knowledge:

• Knowledge of donor engagement and moves management (Required)
• Excellent relationship-building and communication skills (Required)
• Ability to develop and execute fundraising strategies (Required)
• Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Outlook, Word, Excel, and PowerPoint (Required)
• Intermediate knowledge of Salesforce and sales activation continuum processes (Preferred)
• Strong project management skills, including process/system development and implementation strategy execution (Required)
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills (Required)
• Superior interpersonal and problem-solving skills (Required)
• Highly organized with the ability to prioritize and manage multiple initiatives effectively (Required)
• Experience building and managing project budgets (Required)

Our Commitment

At Big Brothers Big Sisters of America, we recognize, affirm, and celebrate the backgrounds, lives, and experiences of all of our stakeholders, including youth, families, donors, volunteers, and staff. We ensure the opportunity for all voices and perspectives to be heard and honored. In the workplace, we foster an environment where all people can be their best selves. We affirm that every person has the opportunity to reach their full potential. We strive to realize the full potential that is within all of us by ensuring that all voices and perspectives are heard and honored.

BBBSA provides equal employment opportunities to all qualified individuals without regard to race, creed, color, citizenship, religion, national origin, age, sex, familial or marital status, pregnancy, military or veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, genetic information, disability, or any other legally-protected status in accordance with applicable local, state, and federal laws, regulations, and ordinances.

Americans with Disabilities Act

Employee must be able to perform all essential job functions, with or without reasonable accommodation.

Job Responsibilities

The above statements reflect the general duties, responsibilities and competencies considered necessary to perform the essential duties and responsibilities of the job and should not be considered as a detailed description of all the work requirements of the position. BBBSA may change the specific job duties with or without prior notice based on the needs of the organization.

Big Brothers Big Sisters of America is directly recruiting and hiring for this position. We are not engaging any staffing/recruitment firms or agencies for this position. If any candidate profile/resume/identifying information is sent to Big Brothers Big Sisters of America and/or Big Brothers Big Sisters agencies, we will not pay any referral or firm fees in relation to this information.