Director of Development

Chicago South Side Birth Center seeks a Director of Development to manage the Development Department and lead the organization's fundraising and development activities. This new role will include creating and implementing donor development and retention strategies, directing fundraising events, and ensuring the organization's financial goals are met. The Director of Abundance is a senior management-level position, reporting to the Founder & Lead Steward and working closely with the CSSBC team of three Coordinators.

While we know that not every candidate will have every qualification, you are the ideal person if:

➔ You are a fundraising strategist, relationship builder, clear communicator, and strong systems thinker.

➔ You have already been a development leader at a medium/large organization and managed a portfolio of $2M+.

➔ You thrive when supporting a team and building relationship-centered external partnerships.

➔ You build relationships naturally and invest time and energy into maintaining them.

➔ You are invigorated by proposing new solutions to complex challenges.

➔ What sets you apart is your energy to facilitate visionary planning while also making sure day-to-day implementation runs smoothly.

➔ The idea of jumping in to update processes and practices excites you. You like to create new systems and think outside of binaries and boxes.

➔ You can see potential and aren’t daunted by a challenge.

➔ You are excited to organize, partner with, and train colleagues with program expertise to engage in proposal writing, donor events, and other fundraising activities.

➔ Passion for organizing resources to advance racial, gender, economic, and environmental justice is core to who you are.

The Director of Development will be responsible for developing and implementing a comprehensive fundraising strategy aligned with the organization’s goals and objectives after the organization’s recent Capital Campaign. They will identify new funding opportunities, steward existing donor relationships, and expand the donor base. They will lead, mentor, and expand the development department, fostering an environment of collaboration and continuous improvement. And they will enhance the organization’s external visibility and represent CSSBC at community events, both local and national.

Job Summary:

Chicago South Side Birth Center seeks a Director of Development to manage the Development Department and lead the organization's fundraising and development activities with a focus on developing and fine-tuning an annual giving program after a successful capital campaign. This new role will include creating and implementing donor development and retention strategies, directing fundraising events, and ensuring the organization's financial goals are met. The DOD reports to the Founder and Lead Steward and works in collaboration with the administrative team.

Key Responsibilities

• Develop and implement a comprehensive fundraising strategy aligned with the organization’s goals and objectives. This includes identifying new funding opportunities, stewarding existing donor relationships, and expanding the donor base.
• Donor Management: Cultivate and maintain relationships with individual donors, foundations, corporations, and other potential funding sources. Ensure effective communication and engagement strategies are in place to build donor loyalty.
• Fundraising and Development Activities: Direct all fundraising activities, including major gifts, planned giving, grants, fundraising events and fundraising volunteer management. Monitor and report on the effectiveness of these activities.
• Departmental Management and Development: Lead, mentor, and expand the development department. Foster an environment of collaboration and continuous improvement.
• Financial Management and Reporting: Work closely with the Founder & Lead Steward to develop and monitor the fundraising budget. Ensure accurate and timely reporting of fundraising activities and results to the board and other stakeholders.
• Donor Communications: Partner with the communications team to ensure the cultivation and stewardship of donors through the organization’s communications activities.
• Community Engagement: Represent the organization in the community, locally, across the country, and at various events. Enhance the organization's visibility and reputation to support fundraising efforts.
• Compliance and Best Practices: Ensure compliance with all relevant laws and ethical standards related to fundraising. Stay informed about trends in philanthropy and nonprofit fundraising.

Required Skills & Abilities:

• The ability to develop and implement a comprehensive fundraising strategy in line with the organization’s goals and objectives. This includes identifying new funding opportunities, stewarding existing donor relationships, and expanding the donor base.
• Comfort promoting, discussing, and otherwise sharing an organization’s work with a variety of audiences
• Experience managing a portfolio of high net worth and stewarding individual donors and/or institutional partners, preferably including supporting team members in doing the same.
• Demonstrated success in grant research, writing, and reporting.
• Excellent writing, listening, and organizational skills.
• Proficiency with Donorbox, GiveButter, Monday.com, and/or a track record of learning and using a similar system
• The ability to help track the impact of educational/organizing programs, to listen for and clarify the needs of organizations, and to develop and maintain the systems necessary for short, medium, and long-term grants management
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, etc.), Mailchimp, & Google platforms.

Required Qualities & Occupational Mindsets:

Required:

• Strong interpersonal skills.
• Creative and strategic thinker, fearless fundraiser.
• Good problem solver.
• Understanding of progressive social change and community organizing.
• Demonstrated commitment to racial, gender, reproductive, economic, environmental, and social justice.
• Experience in the South Side community desired.

Preferred Education, Experience, and Certifications:

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience required; Master’s degree or CFRE (Certified Fund Raising Executive) a plus.
• At least 5 years of professional fundraising experience in a nonprofit organization, with a proven track record of success, particularly in major gifts
• The ability and desire to work with people with a wide variety of personalities, backgrounds, and passions
• A clear understanding of interconnected systems of oppression and social determinants of health and how to talk about and write the story of the work
• 4+ years working in a social justice context (paid or unpaid work)
• Previous experience with progressive funders/funder networks
• A plus: Speaking/writing abilities in language(s) other than English

Benefits and Workplace Culture

• Health Benefits: health, dental, vision
• 401K
• Paid Time Off
• Paid Holidays
• Training and conference opportunities
• Professional Development annual funding
• Memberships (AABC, NBMA, etc.)

A plus: Speaking/writing abilities in language(s) other than English