Strategic Development & Communications Director

Spirit League; Fremont (CA); On-site; USD 120,000 - 180,000; Full time

Job summary

SAVE is seeking a Director of Development and Communications in Fremont, CA to lead fundraising and marketing initiatives supporting a $4M operating budget. This strategic role guides partnerships, elevates visibility, and steers a high-performance team toward data-driven philanthropy and sustained growth.

You will optimize internal workflows, supervise grants, major gifts, campaigns, and communications programs, and ensure rigorous donor data hygiene and reporting to stakeholders.

Qualifications

• Minimum of 8 years of progressive development and fundraising experience in the nonprofit sector, with a proven track record of securing major gifts and corporate/foundation funding.
• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent professional experience in a related field. CFRE certification desired.
• Change Management: Demonstrated experience in process optimization, workflow design, or scaling/rebuilding development and communications operations.
• Relationship Management: Exceptional interpersonal skills with a demonstrated ability to build authentic relationships with diverse stakeholders, funders, and community partners.
• Communication Skills: Superb written, oral, and presentation skills; ability to translate complex programmatic work into compelling fundraising narratives.
• Technical Savvy: Proficiency with modern nonprofit CRMs/donor databases, digital fundraising platforms, and data analytics tools. Experience with agile content tools (e.g., Canva, email marketing platforms) is highly preferred.
• Project Management: Strong organizational skills with the ability to manage competing deadlines, prioritize effectively, and work both independently and collaboratively.

Responsibilities

• Define fundraising strategies and multi-year plan with major gifts and partnerships.
• Meet annual contributed revenue goals via events and donor cultivation.
• Engage Board and provide data-driven progress reports.
• Oversee campaigns, donor pipelines, and cultivation strategies.
• Direct grants strategy, tracking, and reporting for proposals.
• Manage donor data workflows and CRM systems for data-informed decisions.
• Oversee donor recognition and fundraising events.

Skills

Fundraising strategy

Donor relations

Campaign planning

Board engagement

Grant writing

Data analytics

CRM proficiency

Project management

Education

Bachelor’s degree or equivalent

CFRE certification desired

Tools

CRM software

Canva

Email marketing platforms

Digital fundraising platforms

Job description

SAVE is seeking a Director of Development and Communications in Fremont, CA to lead fundraising and marketing initiatives supporting a $4M operating budget. This strategic role guides partnerships, elevates visibility, and steers a high-performance team toward data-driven philanthropy and sustained growth.

You will optimize internal workflows, supervise grants, major gifts, campaigns, and communications programs, and ensure rigorous donor data hygiene and reporting to stakeholders.