SENIOR DEVELOPMENT MANAGER

Part-Time · Hybrid · Experienced Professional

• 20–30 hrs/week
• $40–$55/hour

Performance Bonus Potential

If you’ve built real fundraising experience—managing campaigns, cultivating donors, making the case for organizations worth believing in—and you’re looking for a role that gives you genuine autonomy and meaningful impact without consuming your entire schedule, this may be exactly what you’re looking for.

Manifest is not a startup finding its footing. We are a twenty-two-year-old institution in the middle of a transformational moment, and we are looking for someone who has been in this work long enough to hit the ground running—and help us make the most of it.

About Manifest

Founded in 2004 by working artists and educators, Manifest is an internationally recognized nonprofit dedicated to the practice, learning, and experience of the visual arts. Through gallery exhibitions, publications, artist support, and education, we champion visual literacy, critical thinking, and skill development for a broad and diverse public. Our most recent Annual Fund drew contributions from 470 donors in 35 states and four countries.

We are currently executing Manifest Emerges, our first major capital campaign, in partnership with Ignite Philanthropy, to unite our two locations in one permanent, fully renovated historic home. We have surpassed the three-quarters point, secured our first $1 million individual gift, and nearly completed Phase One of the renovation. The Public Phase of the campaign continues, and the Senior Development Manager we hire now will help bring it home, and secure the second and final phase of the project.

The Role

This is a newly created position, and we are building it in part around the right candidate. You will have real authority, a direct relationship with the Executive Director, and the trust of a board that understands what professional development leadership looks like. There is no bureaucratic maze here, just meaningful work, done well, on a schedule that respects the rest of your life.

We are not looking for someone to learn fundraising on the job. We are looking for someone who already knows how, and who is excited to apply that expertise to an organization they can genuinely get behind.

Compensation & Structure

Hours

20–30 hours per week — you set the rhythm, we set the goals

Compensation

$40–$55/hour, commensurate with experience

Performance Bonus

Bonus potential tied to mutually agreed fundraising milestones

Location

Hybrid — meaningful flexibility, with periodic on-site presence in Cincinnati, OH

Benefits

$300 monthly stipend toward benefits

Schedule

Occasional evenings and weekends for events; otherwise fully flexible

Reports To

Executive Director

What You’ll Lead

Working closely with the Executive Director, Operations Manager, and Board of Directors, you will own the full arc of Manifest’s development program:

• Steward and grow relationships with Manifest’s established and emerging donor base — with the sophistication that major and mid-level gifts require.
• Lead the public phase of the Manifest Emerges capital campaign, coordinating with Ignite Philanthropy and driving individual and institutional commitments.
• Manage the annual fund and identify new donor prospects through thoughtful research and relationship mapping.
• Write and manage grant proposals and reports; identify new institutional funding opportunities aligned with Manifest’s mission.
• Oversee DonorPerfect CRM data integrity; produce monthly financial development reports and advancement budget.
• Provide strategic guidance on donor communications, campaign collateral, and fundraising event design.
• Represent Manifest at key events and in the community as a visible, credible organizational voice.

Who We’re Looking For

You have meaningful fundraising experience under your belt — enough to walk into a donor conversation with confidence, read a room, and close gifts without a playbook. You understand major gift strategy, you’ve navigated campaigns and board relationships, and you’ve earned the instincts that only come from doing this work for real. You’re also at a point where you want that experience to matter—in an organization you can genuinely believe in, on a schedule that leaves room for the rest of your life.

You don’t need to be managed. You need to be trusted.

Why This Role, Why Now

Manifest is at a genuine inflection point. The campaign is succeeding. The building is being transformed. A new era of the organization has begun—and the right Senior Development Manager will help define what it becomes.

This is a role with real stakes, real relationships, and real impact, structured to give you the flexibility to do your best work on your own terms. Whether you’re looking to step back from the pace of full-time work, build a portfolio career, or simply invest your skills in something that matters, Manifest offers a professional home where results are recognized, and autonomy is real.

We are ready to offer the right person a long-term professional home—one that grows with you and rewards results.

How to Apply

Send a cover letter, CV, and contact information for three professional references to:

hr@manifestgallery.org

Subject line: Application — Senior Development Manager

Learn more about Manifest at manifestvisualarts.org

$300 monthly stipend toward benefits.

Required

• 5–10+ years of professional fundraising experience, with demonstrated success in major gifts, capital campaigns, or comprehensive development programs.
• Proven track record of cultivating and closing significant gifts from individual donors.
• Grant writing and institutional funding experience.
• Strong interpersonal skills—you can build genuine relationships with donors, board members, and community partners.
• Exceptional written communication; you write with clarity, warmth, and strategic intent. And you can learn Manifest’s ‘voice’.
• Organizational and administrative acumen; comfort managing budgets, databases, and timelines independently.
• Commitment to AFP ethical standards and best practices in donor stewardship.

Preferred

• Experience working with or advising a small to mid-size nonprofit—comfort with lean teams and broad scope.
• Familiarity with DonorPerfect or comparable CRM.
• Capital campaign experience, ideally at the public phase.
• Bachelor’s degree or higher; CFRE or equivalent certification a plus.
• A personal affinity for the visual arts, education, and an appreciation for what Manifest has built.