Chief Development Officer

Is This You?

Do you believe that every young person deserves a mentor, a voice, and a future? Do you love film and television but believe there is a crisis of inclusion on screen and behind the scenes? Do you have a track record of raising funds to support a mission you believe in? Do you love building relationships and fostering a community centered on a powerful mission and track record of success?

The Good News

With a quarter century of achievement, Reel Works is a national nonprofit leader, combining peerless arts and mentoring programs with workforce development for over 1,700 young filmmakers a year. We partner with major studios, unions, universities, government agencies and industry leaders to nurture the talents of underrepresented young people from first film to first job in media.

The Chief Development Officer is a senior leader working in partnership with the CEO and board of directors and charged with increasing individual donations including major gifts, corporate sponsorships, and bolstering board development. We seek an experienced, hands-on, strategic leader who will leverage our considerable network to expand our community of support - and opportunities for the young people we serve.

The Hard Work

Your work will be critical to expanding the urgent mission of Reel Works. Identifying new donor bases through prospect research. Creating a new pipeline of major donor prospects. Creating powerful cultivation methods. Expanding our current network. Managing campaign volunteers. Hosting meetings and tours. Making the ask. This is for the fundraiser who wants to build something new and loves a challenge.

Primary Responsibilities

The Chief Development Officer leads a small team, including a Development Associate and Events Coordinator, and is responsible for:

Individual Giving (50%)

• Engage current donors and develop a new donor base for Reel Works through the use of prospecting and establishing new relationships.
• Partner with the CEO and Board to develop and execute a major donor campaign.
• Build and grow Reel Works’ donor base through major gifts, annual campaigns and event fundraising.
• Steward major donors who have made their gifts for closer engagement with Reel Works community and apply moves management strategies to increase their support over time.
• Draft fundraising appeals, campaign materials and consult on communication strategies.
• Manage year end appeal.

Corporate Giving (20%)

• Engage and cultivate relationships with Reel Works’ many corporate partners to secure growing financial support along with volunteerism, board development, and engagement with our core arts and workforce programs.
• Cultivate new corporate partnerships in real estate, tech, finance, and other industries to diversify Reel Works’ base of support.
• Secure gifts in kind when appropriate.

Board Development (10%)

• Prospect and cultivate a growing board of directors in NYC and LA that is able to raise funds and foster opportunities for Reel Works while reflecting our values of diversity and inclusion.
• Oversee quarterly board meetings to ensure members are engaged, informed, trained and motivated to be effective ambassadors of Reel Works.
• Help grow the board from 16 to 25 members within two years.

Events (10%)

• Oversee, with the support of the CEO and Events Manager, three tentpole events each year: The Reel Works Film Festival, MediaMKRS Summit, and ChangeMakers Gala.
• Secure corporate sponsorships for events.
• Support Board giving and outreach
• Manage volunteer host committees and other stakeholders.
• Gross $1MM annually within two years (current revenue is $800K).

Qualifications

Successful candidates must have a proven track record of raising revenue in a mission-driven setting.

• 8-10 years of experience in sales and/or nonprofit fundraising.
• Approaches fundraising collaboratively, partnering with others to execute well-defined, metrics-driven strategies with measurable benchmarks and goals.
• Knowledge of how to use prospect research effectively.
• Ability to build and manage a comprehensive donor pipeline, leveraging moves management principles to deepen engagement and increase giving.
• Maintains high standards of responsiveness, follow-through, and attention to detail in stewarding supporters.
• Possesses and utilizes a sophisticated understanding of people and intellectual curiosity to deepen and sustain relationships, create opportunities, and influence others towards outcomes.
• Experience with Salesforce, Asana and other CRM and fundraising tools.
• Strong persuasive writing skills.