(Remote Work) Development Director – Yes! Magazine

Yes! Magazine

Company Website: https://www.yesmagazine.org/
Remote Locations: United States
Job Type: Full Time

Job Overview:

For 25 years, YES! Media has published solutions focused journalism for a more equitable, sustainable, compassionate world, and there has never been a more exciting time to join the team. Society is experiencing a period of cultural, economic, and political transformation, and the need for and interest in our work has never been greater. This is a unique opportunity for an experienced and gifted fundraising professional to help lead our next stage of organizational growth by building an advanced development program focused on major gifts from individuals and foundations.

This is a new position at YES! Media. Our current annual budget for high-level donors and foundations is $1.6M, and we believe with strong leadership there is substantial room for growth. To do this work, you’ll have the benefit of building upon a growing and adoring base of more than 40K subscribers and donors, a sophisticated CRM (Salesforce) customized for our revenue model, a dedicated team of audience and revenue development specialists, and a leadership team committed to a culture of equity and partnership throughout the organization.

Black, Brown, Indigenous, and Asian people are enthusiastically encouraged to apply. If this sounds like a job that would excite you to get up and come to work every day, read on!

The ideal candidate…

• Has a record of growing successful major donor and foundation fundraising programs for organizations with a national focus.
• Has a passion for the YES! mission to inspire people to create an equitable, sustainable and compassionate world.
• Is a willing and thoughtful partner in YES!’s antiracism work, supporting our ongoing efforts to build an equitable, diverse, and inclusive organization.
• Experiences genuine satisfaction by helping donors fulfill their goals through support of a positive social change mission.
• Revels in setting and achieving goals, while keeping the “big picture” in mind.
• Is committed to continuous learning, personal and professional growth, and a spirit of collaboration.
• Is an expert communicator with outstanding interpersonal skills.
• Is a true team player and leader, experienced with consensus-gathering, and comfortable managing up, across, and down — with a strong bias toward action.

Job Responsibilities:

The Development Director will have accountability for setting and meeting goals for foundations and donors giving $500 or more per year, and achieving significant revenue growth over the next 5+ years. In addition to being a member of the organization’s leadership team, the Development Director will have 1-2 direct reports to support foundation and higher level individual giving, and work closely with the Audience Relations Team that focuses on our larger base of subscribers and donors. The Development Director will:

Manage a Growing Portfolio of Major Donors

• Establish and nurture authentic relationships with a portfolio of ~25 current major donors ($5K+ per year). Successfully solicit renewals, upgrades and multi-year pledges.
• Develop and execute strategies, including moves management, to qualify and cultivate giving relationships with potential major donors. Successfully solicit new major gifts.
• Work closely with the executive director to support and expand her portfolio of top tier major donors, including ask strategy, meeting prep, and stewardship.
• Support other organizational leaders in the cultivation and stewardship of major donors (e.g. editorial leaders, board members).

Oversee the Founder’s Circle (FC) Program

• Ensure growth and retention of our Founder’s Circle members (~500 donors giving $500-$4999 per year) by directing their cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship as a segment of our larger donor base.
• Coordinate with the Audience Relations Team to ensure effective use of broad donor campaigns (email and print) and in support of the FC segment.
• Ensure FC donors feel connected to YES! through the ED’s quarterly letter, stewardship touches (e.g. postcards, video messages), donor events, and appreciation.
• Execute event strategies to engage high-level donors; for YES! Presents events, coordinate with the Audience Relations Team to create a unique donor experience.
• Work with our donor support team to ensure warm and timely service.
• Meet all IRS and other obligations for donation/pledge acknowledgements and tracking.
• Work with the Audience Relations, Product, and Ops Teams to improve tech systems for tracking and reporting, workflow, compliance, and automation of routine processes.
• Build a sustainable donor pipeline by using donor data and research.
• Ensure maintenance of donor records in Salesforce including accurate account and gift information, contact reports, capacity ratings, pledged gifts, and scheduled next steps.
• Generate accurate monthly reports that reflect activity and performance.
• Collaborate with ART on donor acknowledgment and stewardship strategies for all levels of giving.

Build a Foundation Relations Program

• Reorganize, expand, and direct our foundations program working with the executive director and grants manager.
• Through research and industry immersion, become familiar with patterns and trends of philanthropic support of nonprofit media.
• Establish and nurture relationships with our current foundation supporters.
• Ensure all LOIs, proposals, and reports are submitted in a timely and high quality way.
• Build on our emerging foundation relations program to engage a strong set of foundation prospects to significantly increase giving from foundations.

Participate in Organizational Leadership and Development

• Help guide the organization through participation on Coordination (Leadership) Team
• Lead, support, and advocate for the Development team so they have the resources needed for success; represent the team in staff communications, board meetings, etc.
• Participate in staff meetings, training, and ongoing equity work.
• Participate in external opportunities to expand awareness and influence of YES!
• Foster a healthy and collaborative fundraising culture across the organization.
• Support Board engagement in relationship-building and networking, creating a path for more substantial involvement in fundraising activity.

Job Requirements:

In addition to a passion for the YES! mission, applicants should have demonstrated success in increasing financial support through foundation and individual giving programs.

• 7+ years of progressively responsible experience in nonprofit fundraising or related field.
• 4+ years of experience qualifying, cultivating and soliciting mid and high-level donors, including experience soliciting gifts in person, and by email, phone, and Zoom.
• 3+ years of grant writing, grants management, or foundation relations experience.
• Experience using analytics to measure performance and effectiveness.
• Commitment to an ethical approach to fundraising and exploring new models like Community Centric Fundraising.
• Excellent organizational skills, and written and oral communication skills.
• Experience in supporting executive directors or equivalent in fundraising.
• Experience managing people within a diverse organization, and managing processes, deadlines, and budgets with transparency and a positive attitude.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Word and Excel, with experience using fundraising or customer relationship management databases.
• Comfort with public speaking and serving as a representative of YES!
• Ability to do occasional evening and weekend work and ~25 days of travel per year.

Additional desired qualifications include:

• Earned a BA or equivalent.
• Coursework or certifications in nonprofit fundraising and/or management.
• Personal experience with or connection to journalism as a tool for positive change.
• Experience fundraising for media/content organizations, and/or social justice or sustainability organizations.
• Experience with the Salesforce database and tools like Slack and Trello to work more efficiently.
• Experience and comfort working primarily remotely, with lots of virtual contact.

How To Apply:

Please email jobs@yesmagazine.org with your cover letter and resume attached as a single pdf, with “Development Director” in the subject line. No paper applications or phone calls, please. This position will be open until filled, though applicants are strongly encouraged to apply by May 28, 2021.