Deputy Director of Advancement

Deputy Director of Advancement

POSITION DETAILS

Reports To: Chief Advancement Officer (reports to the CEO until the Chief Advancement Officer is appointed)

Status: Part-Time, Non-Exempt

Schedule: 22.5 hours weekly, generally over three days; some hybrid flexibility

Location: Santa Monica, California

Compensation: $55–$65 per hour (approximately $64,000–$76,000 annually)

About ShareWell

ShareWell is a nonprofit platform supporting cultural and educational experiences for children, families, and communities. Its work includes Cayton Children's Museum, Grow/Wild, the Community Connections Mobile Museum, and the development of shared-services partnerships with mission-aligned institutions.

The Opportunity

The Deputy Director of Advancement is a hands-on fundraiser and the Chief Advancement Officer's senior deputy, responsible for assigned major gifts, annual giving, planned giving, and auxiliary-board development. The role personally cultivates and solicits donors, writes appeals and proposals, works closely with volunteer leaders, and carries assignments through completion. It serves as a key bridge between individual donor relationships and the organization's broader fundraising program.

This position is designed for an experienced frontline fundraiser seeking substantive portfolio ownership and program-building responsibility without assuming full department, personnel, budget, or campaign leadership responsibility.

Until the Chief Advancement Officer is appointed, the position reports to the CEO.

Position Within Advancement

The Deputy Director of Advancement works within a collaborative advancement function led by the Chief Advancement Officer and supported by advancement staff, operational partners, communications professionals, volunteers, and specialized consultants. The role works closely with colleagues across education, membership, guest services, finance, events, and executive leadership to advance fundraising priorities and donor engagement.

Part-Time Scope

The Deputy Director of Advancement serves as the Chief Advancement Officer's senior deputy for individual and auxiliary giving. The role manages assigned donor relationships, annual-fund execution, planned-giving activities, and auxiliary-board development, with responsibility for advancing priorities, securing commitments, and carrying work through to completion.

To support meaningful fundraising work within a 22.5-hour weekly schedule, the Deputy Director focuses on a defined portfolio of donor relationships and agreed fundraising priorities. Shared staff resources, consultants, and specialized partners provide support in grants management, CRM administration, gift processing, communications, finance, legal compliance, public relations, and event production. Portfolio size, auxiliary-group development, campaign assignments, and special projects are aligned with organizational priorities, available support, and scheduled hours.

The Chief Advancement Officer retains responsibility for department strategy, campaign direction, budget, personnel management, event-fundraising leadership, and overall advancement performance. The Deputy Director exercises defined authority within assigned areas of responsibility and collaborates across the organization to achieve shared fundraising goals.

Principal Responsibilities

Major Gifts and Donor Stewardship

• Personally qualify, cultivate, solicit, and steward a focused portfolio of donors and prospects.
• Maintain accurate CRM records, donor strategies, next actions, and follow-up plans.
• Develop annual-fund donors and auxiliary participants into major-gift opportunities when appropriate.
• Prepare briefings, proposals, correspondence, and follow-up for CEO- and CAO-led donor relationships.
• Coordinate donor communications, scheduling, and stewardship while maintaining clear relationship ownership.

Annual Giving

• Execute the Chief Advancement Officer-approved annual-fund strategy and calendar, including appeals, renewals, reactivation, and membership-to-donor outreach.
• Personally develop fundraising materials and oversee campaigns through delivery.
• Partner with colleagues to coordinate segmentation, production, acknowledgments, and stewardship.
• Track retention, donor upgrades, reactivation, and engagement results.

Planned Giving

• Establish and manage ShareWell-wide planned-giving outreach and stewardship under Chief Advancement Officer direction, prioritizing bequests and beneficiary designations.
• Develop donor-facing materials and coordinate documentation with advisors, finance, and organizational leadership.
• Steward legacy donors and planned-giving prospects while maintaining donor privacy and confidentiality.
• Refer legal, tax, and complex gift questions to qualified advisors.
• Track qualified conversations, documented intentions, stewardship activities, and realized gifts.

Auxiliary-Board Development

• Strengthen the Women's Philanthropy Circle and adapt its successful model for the Grandparent Guild, Cayton Kids Board, and Parent Professionals Board according to organizational priorities, volunteer readiness, and available staff capacity.
• Lead relationships with volunteer leaders and support recruitment, engagement, retention, giving, and stewardship efforts.
• Develop shared onboarding, communications, recognition, and tracking practices across auxiliary groups.
• Partner with education, membership, and guest-services colleagues to support meaningful participant experiences.
• Develop connections to professional, corporate, and community networks that may result in sponsorship, volunteer, matching-gift, or donor opportunities.

Event Fundraising Support

• Support the Chief Advancement Officer in the Playmakers Gala, We All Play Family Gala, and other assigned fundraising initiatives through donor and sponsor outreach, cultivation, solicitation materials, and stewardship.
• Help develop auxiliary fundraising opportunities appropriate to each group's goals and capacity.
• Coordinate donor engagement activities while designated staff and contractors manage event production and logistics.

Initial Campaign-Readiness Priorities

The fundraising feasibility study and campaign-readiness process provide the framework for the organization's next phase of advancement growth.

Within assigned portfolios and agreed priorities, the Deputy Director will:

• Re-engage assigned current and lapsed donors.
• Qualify major-gift opportunities and establish cultivation strategies.
• Prepare donor briefings, contact reports, and follow-up for leadership relationships.
• Maintain annual-giving and auxiliary-group momentum.
• Participate in regular reviews of donor movement, fundraising activity, and organizational readiness.

The Chief Advancement Officer retains responsibility for campaign strategy, readiness assessment, and direction of future capital or endowment campaign efforts.

Qualifications

• Seven or more years of fundraising experience, including management of a personal major-gift portfolio.
• Demonstrated success securing five- and six-figure gifts.
• Experience delivering annual-fund initiatives and measuring retention, reactivation, and donor upgrades.
• Practical planned-giving experience, including bequests, beneficiary designations, legacy stewardship, and collaboration with professional advisors.
• Success leading or supporting volunteer-led fundraising and giving groups.
• Strong writing, organization, CRM proficiency, and project-management skills.
• Demonstrated follow-through and ability to manage multiple priorities independently.
• Sound judgment, donor confidentiality, and a commitment to children, families, learning, and community.

Scope, Schedule, and Compensation

The Deputy Director's portfolio, campaign assignments, auxiliary-board development responsibilities, and project work are sized to fit the approved schedule and organizational priorities. The role exercises defined authority within assigned areas of responsibility and works in partnership with colleagues, volunteers, and specialized advisors to advance fundraising goals.

Benefits eligibility and paid time off follow ShareWell's policies for part-time employees.

Reasonable Accommodation

ShareWell provides reasonable accommodations to qualified applicants and employees with disabilities or medical needs, consistent with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), the California Fair Employment and Housing Act (FEHA), and all applicable laws. Applicants requiring accommodation may contact Human Resources during any stage of the application or employment process.

Job Description Disclaimer

This job description is intended to describe the general nature and level of work performed by the individual assigned to this position. It is not intended to be an exhaustive list of all duties, responsibilities, or qualifications. Responsibilities may be modified based on organizational needs and applicable law.

How to Apply

Please submit a resume and brief cover letter describing:

• Relevant fundraising accomplishments and donor-development experience.
• Experience managing major-gift, annual-giving, or planned-giving portfolios.
• Experience working with volunteer-led fundraising groups, auxiliary boards, or donor-engagement initiatives.
• Success building fundraising programs, donor relationships, and stewardship strategies within a collaborative, mission-driven organization.

We welcome applicants from all backgrounds. To apply, please submit your resume and cover letter showcasing your experience to hr@sharewell.org with Deputy Director of Advancement in the subject line. If you're excited about the role but don't meet every requirement, we still encourage you to apply.

ShareWell , Cayton Children's Museum and Grow/Wild are equal-opportunity employers committed to building a team that reflects the diversity of the communities they serve.

Benefits & Additional Perks

In addition to competitive compensation, this part-time position offers flexible scheduling, paid sick leave in accordance with California law, commuter and technology reimbursement benefits where applicable, and the opportunity to work in a collaborative, mission-driven environment.