Development Manager—Writing & Administration

Rockwood supports leaders to transform themselves, their communities, and the world towards equity, liberation, and sustainability for all. We do this by providing powerful and effective training to individual leaders and cohorts, thereby strengthening the organizations and movements they represent. Since 2000, we have trained over 10,000 alum—of which 66% are people of color, 78% are women or non-binary, and 31% LGBTQ-identified. For more about our evolution and impact, please visit this link. 

Rockwood does not do business as usual. Our commitment to values influences every aspect of our organization—what we do and how we do it. Rockwood’s core values include:

• Trust and integrity 

• Love, laughter, and holding each other in community 

• Transformation 

• Healing, sustainability, and self-care 

• Equity 

Development Manager—Writing and Administration 

This role is an excellent opportunity for candidates who are skilled and have a strong track record in writing and administration. If you love writing, details, deadlines, and tracking progress along the way, this may be the role for you! For an eager and committed learner, the database, project management software, and technical fundraising skills can be learned on the job. Support for donor relations and special events will constitute approximately 20% of the role. 

Rockwood is embodying a Pro-Black, Pro-Indigenous, anti-white-supremacy culture framework across the organization. Over the next year, we will evolve many of our materials to reflect this framework, while meeting the needs of our partners and funders, and customizing for each. We are looking for candidates who are motivated by and aligned to this direction, and who are also comfortable with the necessity for and role of mobilizing resources for our work. 

The Development Manager is a critical member of the Resource team, which practices values-based fundraising integrated with Rockwood core values. We focus on relationships combined with high quality standards. Recognizing that being responsive to the needs of our partners is critical to our success, we move at a fast pace and place a high value on timely responsiveness and thorough tracking of details and deadlines. We are looking for someone who can learn quickly, contribute to projects that are already underway, and become a reliable member of our growing team. 

The salary for this position is $75,000. Rockwood offers a 32-hour full-time Monday - Thursday workweek and a competitive benefits package. This position is remote for candidates living within the United States. 

What You’ll Do 

Writing 

• Create: Create and update new standard language for Resource team, reflecting programmatic evolutions at Rockwood. 

• Reports: Primary team member responsible for customizing and finalizing grant reports and partner reports. 

• Proposals: Support the creation of Rockwood concept papers and proposals for partners, donors, and potential donors to Rockwood. 

• Content Directory: Own and maintain a directory of all standard language at Rockwood, including edits, refreshes, and restructuring, to ensure it is optimally organized and up-to-date. 

Administration and Operations 

• Calendars: Manage proposal and reporting calendars. Ensure deadlines for grant reports, grant renewals, and all required and requested processes from funding partners are calendared and followed. 

• Filing: Maintain and improve administrative and filing systems for all incoming grants and donations. 

• Liaison: Serve as primary liaison with the program team to gather impact and evaluation data for proposals and reports. Serve as primary liaison with the finance team and consultants for foundation income forecasting and budgets for proposals and reports. 

• Database: Maintain and improve team use of Salesforce database including management and reporting for individual donor records and support for donor outreach. (Salesforce can be learned on the job.) 

• Project Management: Manage projects and tasks consistently through Asana. (Asana can be learned on the job.) 

• Process Documentation: Own and maintain a handbook for the crucial functions of the Development Manager role, and update periodically with current systems and processes. 

Donor Relations and Events 

• Events: Provide project management support for event logistics and coordination in partnership with the Director of Institutional Advancement (IA) and the event producer. 

• Campaigns: Provide writing and coordination support for email fundraising campaigns, including the annual End of Year campaign. 

• Donor Relations: Support donor follow up and outreach as needed in coordination with Director of IA. 

• Board Relations: Provide occasional support for board member fundraising in coordination with Director of IA. 

Team Support 

• Scheduling: Book calls with funders and team members as requested. 

• Briefings: Prepare briefings for external meetings, ensuring team members are prepared with background information. 

• Note-Taking: Take comprehensive and organized notes during external calls, specifically noting next steps and ensuring actions are noted in systems. 

• Team Participation: Participate in other Resource team functions as needed, in a changing and flexible team environment. 

• Fiscal Sponsorships: Serve as primary Resource Team point of contact for fiscally sponsored projects; coordinate with fiscal project staff on grant reports and proposals, acknowledgment letters, and other systems. 

Must-Have Skills and Talents 

• Writing:

• Exceptional writing skills—you’ll be able to synthesize and translate program impact into compelling and concise language that is reflective of Rockwood’s core values and direction 
• Impeccable editing and proofing skills using standard English conventions 
• Openness to improve—you welcome feedback and corrections in your writing, and work collaboratively to learn how to write in Rockwood voice 
• Ability to customize language to the audience as needed 

• Administration and Operations:

• High attention to detail and integrity to commitments—you know how to design systems of managing tasks and future follow-ups so nothing slips through the cracks 
• Reliability and efficiency as a project management—you keep your tasks moving in a timely manner and work collaboratively with other staff across the organization to get things done 
• Proven ability to learn quickly, work independently, meet multiple deadlines, and perform under pressure 

• Donor Relations and Events:

• People skills—the ability to support donors who may need assistance 
• Fundraising and/or event experience is highly desirable. Whether in a previous position or as a volunteer for school, church, etc. a basic knowledge of fundraising and experience with events is a plus. 

• Team Support:

• Desire to work within a very diverse workplace and relate to a broad spectrum of people outside of Rockwood 
• Eagerness to do what is necessary to support the team toward results, including administrative tasks 
• Commitment to practicing personal wellness and self-care to manage stress in the workplace 

TO APPLY 

Please submit your resume and answers to the three questions below to jobs@rockwoodleadership.org by Monday, May 13, 2024. 

Application Questions: 

1. In 200 words or less, please share your experience in donor relations and/or event planning. 

2. In 200 words or less, please share what embodying a Pro-Black, Pro-Indigenous, anti-white-supremacy culture means to you. 

3. In 200 words or less, please share about a time you provided administrative support to someone who was attending important meetings. 

You can expect to hear back about the status of your application by the end of May, 2024. 

The full-time, exempt salary for this position is $75,000. Rockwood offers a 32-hour full-time Monday - Thursday work week with occasional work on Fridays as needed, and a competitive benefits package. This is a remote position based in the United States. Annual travel for a team retreat is required. Occasional travel within the continental US is required. 

Rockwood Leadership Institute is an equal opportunity employer and makes employment decisions on the basis of merit. In accordance with applicable law, Rockwood prohibits discrimination based on race, color, religion, creed, sex, marital status, registered domestic partner status, age, national origin or ancestry, physical or mental disability, medical condition, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity, citizenship status or any other consideration protected by federal, state, or local laws. 

Black, Indigenous, people of color, trans, GNC, non-binary and people of all gender identities, people with disabilities, and LGBQIA+ candidates are strongly encouraged to apply. 

Finally, thank you for taking the time to read this job description. We’re looking forward to getting to know you. 

Rockwood offers a 32-hour full-time Monday - Thursday work week and a competitive benefits package. This position is remote for candidates living within the United States. Annual travel for a team retreat is required. Occasional travel within the continental US is required.