Development Manager

About De La Gente

De la Gente (DLG) is a nonprofit social enterprise that works to create economic opportunity for smallholder coffee farmers in Guatemala. We support cooperatives with business development, access to markets, and community-driven projects that improve livelihoods and build resilience in coffee-producing communities.

Job Description

De la Gente is seeking a Development Manager to join our diverse and high-impact team. This role leads both our fundraising efforts and Cooperative Assistance Program, helping us maximize our impact in coffee-producing communities in Guatemala. The position combines strategic program design and implementation, donor engagement, fundraising, and technical oversight, ensuring our programs are sustainable, measurable, and truly community-driven.

Responsibilities

Fundraising & Donor Engagement

• Lead and execute DLG’s fundraising strategy with a focus on growing individual and institutional giving
• Cultivate and steward relationships with donors, partners, and funders
• Develop compelling proposals and reports for grants and donor communications
• Manage donor databases and fundraising tools
• Collaborate with communications staff to create impact-driven content that supports donor engagement

Program Oversight & Development

• Manage the Co-op Assistance Program, including needs assessments, project design, implementation, and evaluation
• Oversee partnerships with coffee cooperatives, ensuring projects align with community needs and organizational goals
• Monitor project outcomes and impact, and adapt strategies as needed for effectiveness and sustainability. Site visits typically involve 2-5 days working away and require travel to communities in Guatemala that are up to 7 hours by car
• Supervise or collaborate with field staff, volunteers, or interns involved in project delivery
• Manage micro-financing programs with cooperatives and farmers, including reviewing applications, disbursing funds, collecting repayments on time, and reporting on the success of the investment

Qualifications

• 1-2 years of fundraising or development experience
• Experience working in community development, rural livelihoods, or agricultural programs, preferably in Latin America
• Excellent written communication skills
• Strong interpersonal, spoken, and diplomatic communications skills
• Written and spoken fluency in English and Spanish
• Knowledge of MailChimp and CRM softwares
• Energy and ability to engage new audiences about De la Gente

Preferred

• Experience managing monitoring & evaluation systems
• Familiarity with Quickbooks registration
• Background in working with cooperatives or smallholder producers

Characteristics

Candidates should be dynamic, confident, and open-minded with a hands-on mentality. In particular, we expect candidates to:

• Have a high level of professionalism and personal integrity, as well as a personal commitment to development work
• Be results-orientated, with a high level of ambition and ability to stay focused on goals and hold self to high standards
• Be determined and resilient in challenging situations, stay positive and show tenacity and independent thinking in adverse settings.
• Be adaptable and flexible when faced with unexpected situations or new difficulties.
• Show teamwork in multicultural situations. We can only achieve results through collaboration that is based on respect for people of diverse backgrounds.
• Demonstrate entrepreneurial and creative abilities when approaching challenges and developing dynamic solutions