Senior Manager, Foundation Giving

Chicago; Chicago, Northern (IL, KY); On-site; USD 68,000 - 83,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Medical, Dental and Vision

Life and AD&D Insurance

Disability Leave

Paid Family Leave

Employee Assistance Program

401k Plan

Paid Time Off

Job summary

United Way of Metro Chicago is seeking a Senior Manager, Foundation Giving to lead foundation fundraising across the Chicago region. The role focuses on prospecting, high-quality grant writing, and managing grant lifecycle from identification to reporting, while stewarding funder relationships.

You will collaborate with leadership and cross-department teams to align messaging, maintain deadlines, and deliver data-informed proposals and reports that advance organizational priorities and measure

Qualifications

• 5 to 7 years of foundation fundraising experience, including experience securing $100,000+ gifts.
• Exceptional written communication and storytelling skills.
• Demonstrated success managing grant proposals and reporting workflows with multiple stakeholders and timelines.
• Strong interpersonal skills and ability to work collaboratively across departments.
• Highly organized, meticulous attention to detail, able to multi-task and meet deadlines.
• Discreet and capable of handling highly confidential information.
• Collaborative, entrepreneurial spirit, self-motivated and resourceful.

Responsibilities

• Manage a portfolio of foundation donors and prospects through all development phases from identification to stewardship.
• Collaborate with leadership to build and activate relationship strategies for funders.
• Write, edit, and finalize high‑quality letters of inquiry, proposals, and reports.
• Create and maintain a master calendar of submission and reporting deadlines; track deadlines and deliverables in the CRM.
• Coordinate with community strategy, programs, finance, and marketing on data collection and budgets.
• Build and maintain a robust pipeline of prospective funders aligned with priorities.
• Oversee grant reporting to ensure deliverables and communicate program outcomes.
• Partner with the Corporate Grants Manager on internal grant processes and content alignment.
• Produce internal dashboards and progress reports for leadership and board.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

Skills

Foundation fundraising

Grant writing

Relationship building

Organizational skills

Discretion

Cross‑functional teamwork

Job description

If you are unable to complete this application due to a disability, contact this employer to ask for an accommodation or an alternative application process.

Senior Manager, Foundation Giving

Regular Full-Time Professional Chicago, IL, US

10 days ago Requisition ID: 1258

Salary Range: $75,000.00 To $75,000.00 Annually

POSITION: Senior Manager, Foundation Giving

REPORTS TO: Associate Vice President, Development

PAY GRADE: 7

STATUS:Full Time, Exempt

SALARY RANGE:$75,000-$75,000

ABOUT UNITED WAY OF METRO CHICAGO

United Way of Metro Chicago is the largest private funder and most effective convener of human services in the Chicago region. United Way of Metro Chicago fights for the health, education, financial stability and safety of every person in every neighborhood across the Chicago region. We go beyond single-issue solutions and temporary fixes to impact millions of lives every year, unleashing the potential of greater Chicago…neighborhood by neighborhood.

POSITION OVERVIEW

The Senior Manager, Foundation Giving, is responsible for raising funds from foundations throughout the Chicago region through strategic prospecting, high-quality grant writing, and effective project management. This role oversees the full lifecycle of foundation grant opportunities—from identifying and researching prospects to developing compelling proposals and ensuring timely reporting while stewarding funder relationships. The Senior Manager, Foundation Giving collaborates closely with resource development, community strategy, finance, and marking and communications teams to coordinate deadlines, align messaging with organizational priorities, and deliver accurate, data-informed content. This position is ideal for a detail-oriented, deadline-driven professional who thrives at the intersection of strategy, storytelling, and execution.

CORE RESPONSIBILITIES

• Manage a portfolio of foundation donors and prospects, including all phases of the development process—identification, qualification, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship.
• Collaborate with organizational leadership to build and activate relationship strategy for current and prospective funders.
• Write, edit, and finalize high quality and compelling materials including letters of inquiry, proposals, and reports.
• Create and maintain a master calendar of submission and reporting deadlines, ensuring timely delivery. Track and share deadlines, submissions, and deliverables through the CRM of record.
• Collaborate with the community strategy, programs, finance, and marketing and communications teams on data collection, program content, and program budgets.
• Build and maintain a robust pipeline of prospective funders; identify alignment with organizational priorities, keeping abreast of key giving trends and opportunities.
• Oversee grant reporting process for foundation funders, ensuring compliance with deliverables and effective communication of program outcomes.
• Partner with the Corporate Grants Manager on internal grant processes and content alignment.
• Produce internal dashboards and progress reports for leadership and board reporting.
• Perform other duties as assigned.

OTHER DUTIES

• The core responsibilities listed above are not intended to be an exhaustive list of all responsibilities and duties. Other duties may be assigned by Senior Management.

REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS

• A minimum of 5 to 7 years of foundation fundraising experience, including experience in the successful solicitation of $100,000+ gifts.
• Exceptional written communication and storytelling skills.
• Demonstrated success in managing grant proposal and reporting workflows involving multiple stakeholders and timelines.
• Strong interpersonal skills and the ability to work collaboratively across departments.
• Highly organized, meticulous attention to detail, ability to multi-task, prioritize, delegate, and execute concurrent projects and day to day tasks.
• Ability to be discreet and maintain highly confidential information required.
• Possessa collaborative and entrepreneurial spirit, self-motivated, innovative, resourceful, flexible; consistently delivers a high level of service to the team and organization.

PERSONAL ATTRIBUTES

Guided by a clear set of Core Values and Behaviors – Passionate About the Work, Good Teammate, Being Curious, and Equity Minded,youwill join an impressive group of individuals and contribute your diverse set of experiences, skills and characteristics to the organization.

• Accepts guidance and responds well to feedback.
• Displays maturity, good judgment, enthusiasm, and personal motivation.
• Strong interpersonal skills including the ability to anticipate workload and effectively cultivate and leverage relationships with colleagues to meet deadlines.
• Collaborative entrepreneurial spirit, ability to multi-task and prioritize concurrent projects and day-to-day tasks within a high production and fast-paced environment.

BENEFITS OFFERED

• Medical, Dental and Vision
• Life and AD&D Insurance
• Disability Leave
• Paid Family Leave
• Employee Assistance Program
• 401k Plan
• Paid Time Off including: Personal Time, Sick Time & Paid Holidays

The responsibilities listed above are intended to describe the general nature and scope of work required in the role. The above is not intended to be an exhaustive list of all responsibilities and duties required. We believe the term “diversity” incorporates all the characteristics that make us both alike and unique: our backgrounds, cultures, nationalities, lifestyles, identities, gender, points of view, approaches to solving problems, ways of working, and views of personal and career success. It is the intent of United Way to follow both the letter and the spirit of local, state, and federal laws governing Equal Opportunity Employment as those laws exist today and as they may change in the future.