Donor Relations Manager

Cityside is looking for a talented, ambitious development professional to join our growing team. You’ll help Cityside deliver on its mission of strengthening communities and democracy through a nonprofit local news network that’s built to serve, scale and last. Cityside is one of the nation’s leading nonprofit news organizations, with newsrooms serving Oakland, Berkeley and Richmond. Over 600,000 people read, follow or fund our journalism each month in these important, diverse communities.

About the role

You’ll play a vital role in Cityside’s fundraising success by ensuring that our highest-level donors are meaningfully engaged through regular and effective cultivation, solicitation and stewardship, and by being a key part of the team growing Cityside’s major donor revenue. Reporting to the Chief Development Officer, you’ll manage your own portfolio of major donors while supporting the executive team in developing and implementing strategies for increased engagement across the broader major donor program. This role is ideal for someone who thrives on relationship-building and brings strong organizational and communication skills to a mission-driven nonprofit environment.

What you’ll do

• In partnership with the Chief Development Officer and Development Associate, oversee the entire major donor portfolio, regularly evaluating it for balance, performance and growth opportunities.
• Support all frontline fundraisers, especially Cityside’s Co-founders and Chief Development Officer, by developing engagement strategies and working with the Development Associate to manage follow-up actions.
• Draft and produce donor correspondence, proposal materials, pitch decks, stewardship updates and other written communication
• Manage a personal portfolio of 75-100 donors currently giving or with the capacity to give $1,000+ annually.
• In collaboration with the Development Manager and Development Associate, identify members with the greatest potential for upgrade and develop a standardized qualification process for portfolio inclusion.
• Effectively maintain and use donor data in our donor management system to inform strategies, track activity, and generate reports.
• Support the development and growth of Cityside’s legacy giving activities including the launch of a new legacy giving society.
• Take a lead role in planning and coordinating donor cultivation and stewardship events.

Required qualifications

• 4 or more years of fundraising experience
• Strong organizational and project management skills
• Strong written and verbal communication skills
• Proficiency with donor management platforms and email marketing tools
• Experience with fundraising operations, including moves management and donor pipeline tracking
• Must be authorized to work in the United States
• Must be able to commute to the Oakland office

We’re especially interested in candidates who…

• Are proficient with Salesforce or a similar CRM
• Have experience building and maintaining long-term donor and client relationships
• Have experience administering major donor programs
• Have experience coordinating events
• Have experience in nonprofit fundraising, ideally within media or journalism organizations

What we offer

The salary for this position ranges from $92,882 to $110,905 depending on experience, as outlined in our collective bargaining agreement.

Cityside is a unionized workplace. In 2024, we signed our first collective bargaining agreement with the Cityside Guild after six months of collaborative negotiation. We're proud of the agreement and the commitment it represents: to be a good place to work and a place where good work is done. This position will be covered by the collective bargaining agreement with the Cityside Guild.

Benefits and Compensation

• $1,000 a year in professional development stipend
• Cityside pays for 75% of your health insurance premium and provides options for both Blue Cross and Kaiser Permanente medical plans. Coverage includes dental and vision plans from Guardian
• 401(k) retirement plan with 5% company match after a 3-month waiting period
• 20 paid vacation days
• 18 paid sick days
• 13 paid holidays
• End-of-the-year break between Christmas Day and New Year's Day
• Up to 6 months of parental leave
• $100,000 life insurance coverage

Cityside is an equal-opportunity employer committed to building an organization that is diverse and a work environment that is safe and inclusive for all employees. We recognize that people of color, gender-expansive people, members of the LGBTQ+ community, and people from working-class backgrounds have historically been underrepresented in journalism. We believe that a diverse workforce is essential to understanding and representing the communities that we serve.

We encourage candidates from all spectrums of race, ethnicity, national origin, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, religion, socio-economic background, and levels of physical ability to apply. Cityside also values a wide range of experience and encourages candidates to submit their application even if they do not meet all of the preferred qualifications. If you need a reasonable accommodation during the application or interview process, please inform us and we will work with you to meet your needs.

• $1,000 a year in professional development stipend
• Cityside pays for 75% of your health insurance premium and provides options for both Blue Cross and Kaiser Permanente medical plans. Coverage includes dental and vision plans from Guardian
• 401(k) retirement plan with 5% company match after a 3-month waiting period
• 20 paid vacation days
• 18 paid sick days
• 13 paid holidays
• End-of-the-year break between Christmas Day and New Year's Day
• Up to 6 months of parental leave
• $100,000 life insurance coverage