Senior Director of Development

Economic Mobility Pathways - EMPath; Boston (MA); Hybrid; USD 110,000 - 125,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Healthcare benefits

Tuition assistance

Retirement planning

Paid time off

Job summary

EMPath, a Boston-based nonprofit, seeks a Senior Director of Development to lead the Advancement Team and shape EMPath's fundraising strategy. The role focuses on major gifts, grants, annual giving, and partnerships to grow philanthropic revenues and impact.

You will manage a small team of two, cultivate relationships with high-net-worth donors and institutions, and work with the CAO and CEO to meet revenue goals while expanding donor engagement and events.

Qualifications

• Seven+ years of nonprofit development experience.
• Experience soliciting six- to seven-figure gifts from individuals, foundations, and corporations.
• Proven track record of increasing annual philanthropic revenues and campaigns.
• Excellent interpersonal skills to manage diverse stakeholders.
• Ability to build new donor relationships and motivate staff.
• Superior supervisory and team-building abilities.
• Strong writing skills for donor communications and proposals.
• Experience with fundraising events and projects/meetings.
• Proficient with CRM systems and office software.
• Willingness to travel for fundraising meetings.

Responsibilities

• Develop and execute a comprehensive fundraising strategy (major gifts, grants, annual giving, planned giving, corporate partnerships, sponsorships, events).
• Meet annual and multi-year revenue goals and support organizational goals.
• Manage and steward a portfolio of major individual and institutional donors.
• Plan and implement donor cultivation and solicitation plans for high-net-worth prospects.
• Oversee grant writing, reporting, site visits, and stewardship communications.
• Lead and mentor the development team; coordinate donor communications and acknowledgments.
• Collaborate with CAO and CEO on gala and major conferences; plan donor cultivation events.
• Expand planned giving and monthly giving programs; partner with team to increase donor uptake.
• Collaborate with leadership to document donor interactions and recognition activities.

Skills

Nonprofit development

Donor relations

Major gifts fundraising

Grant writing

Team leadership

Project management

Event planning

Strong writing

CRM knowledge

Travel flexibility

Education

Bachelor's degree

Master's degree or CFRE preferred

Tools

Raiser's Edge CRM

Microsoft Office

Job description

Position Title: Senior Director of Development

Who is EMPath?

Economic Mobility Pathways (EMPath) is a 200-year Boston-based nonprofit that transforms lives by partnering with families to move out of poverty and provides other organizations with the tools to do the same. As a leading nonprofit innovator that combines direct services, a global learning network, robust research, and advocacy, we offer a wide range of rewarding career opportunities.

JOB SUMMARY:

EMPath has seen great growth in its fundraising over the past few years and is looking to add a seasoned member to the Advancement Team to further grow philanthropic revenues. The Senior Director of Development will be responsible for building and managing EMPath's overall development strategy. S/he will establish fundraising goals and plans in accordance with the organization’s budgetary goals and will work with the Chief Advancement Officer and the President & CEO to maintain relationships with the organization’s funders at all levels. The Senior Director will lead and develop a strong, small team (two direct reports), and will focus especially on developing the organization’s individual giving program and its institutional partnerships. The Senior Director will manage a portfolio of major donor prospects, and will manage the team to build development processes, improving overall development team functioning and increasing revenues.

Responsibilities:

• Collaborate with CAO and Advancement Team to develop and execute a comprehensive fundraising strategy, including major gifts, grants, annual giving, planned giving , corporate partnerships, sponsorships, and special events.
• Achieve annual and multi-year revenue goals and assist in meeting departmental and organizational goals.
• Serve as one of the primary relationship officers to qualify, cultivate, solicit, and steward a portfolio of both new and existing major individual and institutional donors to build and deepen their connection to and partnership with EMPath.
• Devise and execute plans to qualify, cultivate, and solicit potential new high net worth individual and institutional donors.
• Manage senior grant writer and oversee all grant applications, reports, site visits, and stewardship communications.
• Manage senior development specialist to ensure strong donor communications, including acknowledgements, email/mail solicitations, and stewardship correspondence.
• Serve as a key contributor and partner with the CAO in planning and executing EMPath's annual gala and biennial Disrupting Poverty Conference (2028); plan and hold additional donor cultivation and stewardship events when appropriate.
• Develop a planned giving program and expand EMPath's monthly giving program in partnership with the senior development specialist, increasing donor uptake of both programs.
• Work collaboratively with and leverage the assets and talents of the organization’s leadership, including President & CEO, Board of Directors, and EMPath staff.
• Collaborate with team members to ensure proper documentation of donor contact information, outreach, gift acknowledgement, recognition and stewardship activities.

Qualifications:

• At least seven years of experience in nonprofit development.
• Experience building relationships with and direct personal solicitation of individuals, foundations, and corporations at the 6-7+ figure level.
• Proven track record of significantly increasing an organization’s annual philanthropic revenues, in addition to success with campaigns, is preferred.
• Excellent interpersonal skills and ability to effectively maintain relationships with many different types of people: including program participants, donors, staff, and board.
• Ability to proactively build new, productive relationships with potential donors is a must.
• Exceptional supervisory skills with the ability to motivate and grow a small team.
• Very strong writing skills (show these in your cover letter!). Ability to communicate complex ideas succinctly and convincingly.
• Very strong project and event management skills with experience managing and prioritizing work to meet deadlines.
• Commitment to goal attainment, high degree of initiative, and ability to motivate and engage staff, high level volunteers, and donors.
• Proficient with Microsoft Office products and strong working knowledge of Raisers Edge or similar CRM database.
• Ability to support fundraising activities and meetings that occasionally may occur outside of regular work hours; ability to travel occasionally for fundraising meetings.

REQUIRED:

• Bachelor’s degree required ; master's degree or CFRE preferred. Will consider more experience instead of formal education.
• 7+ years nonprofit development experience.
• 7 + years of frontline major gift fundraising experience.
• 2 + years people management experience (managing full-time employees).

Why EMPath?

The meaningful work! The organization and your colleagues are committed to disrupting poverty and supporting families as they work towards their biggest goals. Collaborative team environment! You’ll join a team that values teamwork and shares knowledge and ideas - all working towards shared goals for empowering leadership and organizational impact.

Work-life balance:

EMPath operates on a 36 hour, 4-day work week. This is a hybrid opportunity. This position requires 2 days of in-person work at our 308 Congress Street, Boston MA office and 2 days of remote work.

Benefits:

competitive healthcare benefits, tuition assistance, and retirement planning. 4 weeks of accrued paid time off, 9 paid holidays, and 2 floating holidays.

Pay transparency:

This role is budgeted for $110,000 - $125,000 annually, based on education and experience.

At EMPath, we are committed to creating an inclusive and supportive environment where all individuals feel valued and empowered. We strongly encourage people of color and individuals from diverse backgrounds to apply.

We are an EEO/AA/ADA/ADEA employer based in Boston, Massachusetts.

All offers of employment at EMPath are contingent upon clear results of a thorough background check.