Vice President of Partnerships

The Vice President of Partnerships will serve as a key member of the executive leadership team at the Justice Defense Fund (JDF), leading the organization’s revenue strategy, philanthropic growth, and select mission-aligned strategic partnerships. This leader will work closely with the CEO and COO to expand and diversify JDF’s funding base, deepen relationships with major donors and institutional funders, and help position JDF for durable long-term growth and impact.

This is a senior, externally facing role for a development executive who can operate at both strategic and tactical levels—cultivating transformational donor relationships, building development infrastructure, and advancing carefully structured partnership opportunities aligned with JDF’s mission.

Core Responsibilities

• Lead and execute JDF’s fundraising strategy, with emphasis on major gifts, foundations, institutional philanthropy, and multi-year revenue growth.
• Build, manage, and steward relationships with high-capacity donors, family offices, foundations, and mission-aligned partners.
• Develop compelling cases for support that translate JDF’s legal, advocacy, and survivor-centered work into clear philanthropic opportunities.
• Help identify and advance select strategic partnerships and mission-aligned capital opportunities in coordination with executive leadership and advisors.
• Oversee development operations, including CRM strategy, pipeline management, reporting, stewardship systems, and fundraising analytics.
• Provide strategic oversight of grassroots and micro-donor fundraising as an important component of the overall revenue mix.
• Partner with the CEO, COO, board members, and advisors to activate networks and strengthen JDF’s external positioning.
• Represent JDF in select donor, partner, investor, and public-facing engagements with professionalism, discretion, and trauma-informed sensitivity.

First-Year Priorities

• Strengthen and formalize JDF’s major donor and institutional fundraising strategy.
• Build and advance a high-quality pipeline of major gift, foundation, and strategic partnership opportunities.
• Improve development operations, reporting, and stewardship systems to support scale.
• Deepen board and leadership engagement in fundraising and relationship development.
• Ensure grassroots fundraising remains effective and integrated without becoming the primary focus of the role.

Required Qualifications

• At least 10 years of progressive experience in nonprofit development, strategic partnerships, philanthropy, or related senior revenue roles.
• Demonstrated success securing and stewarding major gifts and institutional support, including five- and six-figure commitments; seven-figure experience is strongly preferred.
• Strong track record building long-term relationships with high-net-worth individuals, foundations, and senior external stakeholders.
• Experience developing fundraising strategy in a growth-stage nonprofit, advocacy organization, or similarly entrepreneurial mission-driven environment.
• Familiarity with sophisticated, mission-aligned funding conversations and strong professional judgment in high-trust relationship settings.
• Operational fluency with CRM systems, pipeline management, forecasting, and fundraising analytics.
• Excellent writing, presentation, and interpersonal communication skills.
• Deep commitment to JDF’s mission and the ability to engage this work with survivor-centered sensitivity.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in legal advocacy, justice reform, anti-trafficking, online exploitation prevention, survivor advocacy, or adjacent sectors.
• Experience in a small but rapidly growing nonprofit or founder-led organization.
• Existing relationships within philanthropy, family offices, legal reform communities, or mission-aligned partner networks.
• Advanced degree preferred; equivalent experience strongly considered.

English proficiency required.