IMPACT, a non-profit organization, offers a competitive pay with a full benefits package for a FT, hybrid Director of Development & Strategic Engagement.
Since 1960, IMPACT has been serving Southeastern Wisconsin, helping people take the first step toward changing their life, for good. We assess and guide those experiencing personal crisis toward resources to achieve stability; and collaborate with community partners to foster system improvement.
Our role is critical. Critical conditions. Critical connections. Critical change.
We believe that the services we provide are enhanced when various groups of people with unique ideas come together. Applicants whose work incorporates a global perspective and a demonstrated commitment to various issues in human services are particularly encouraged to apply.
POSITION SUMMARY:
The Director of Development & Strategic Engagement is a key member of IMPACT’s leadership team and is responsible for developing and executing an integrated strategy to strengthen the organization’s philanthropic support, revenue growth, community relationships, and long-term sustainability.
Reporting directly to the Chief Executive Officer, the Director provides strategic leadership for fund development and works across the organization to connect mission, programs, data, storytelling, marketing, and philanthropy. This position translates organizational priorities and program outcomes into compelling funding opportunities and engagement strategies for individuals, corporations, governmental entities, foundations, faith communities, and other partners.
The Director will use data, research, market intelligence, and relationship-building to identify opportunities, strengthen donor engagement, improve fundraising performance, and inform organizational decision-making. The position will partner closely with the CEO, leadership team, program leaders, marketing and communications staff, board members, and development staff to build a coordinated and sustainable development program.
The Director is expected to serve as a strategic thought partner to the CEO and leadership team, bringing an external perspective on philanthropy, community trends, donor behavior, funding opportunities, and the evolving nonprofit environment.
RESPONSIBILITIES:
Development Strategy & Organizational Growth:
- Develop, implement, monitor, and continuously refine an annual and multi-year fund development strategy aligned with IMPACT’s strategic priorities, program goals, and financial needs.
- Partner with the CEO and leadership team to establish fundraising goals, revenue projections, development priorities, and measurable performance indicators.
- Develop strategies for diversified revenue across individual giving, major gifts, corporate partnerships, foundations, government funding, faith-based organizations, events, and other philanthropic opportunities.
- Maintain a comprehensive understanding of IMPACT’s programs, services, outcomes, funding needs, and competitive position within the philanthropic landscape.
- Translate organizational priorities and program outcomes into compelling cases for support, funding proposals, donor communications, and engagement opportunities.
- Monitor philanthropic and economic trends, emerging funding opportunities, donor behavior, and changes in the nonprofit funding environment.
- Identify opportunities to strengthen long-term organizational sustainability and reduce reliance on any single funding source.
Data, Analytics & Development Intelligence
- Establish and maintain a development dashboard that provides leadership with timely, meaningful information about fundraising activity, pipeline health, revenue and progress toward goals.
- Use donor and fundraising data to identify trends, opportunities, risks, and areas for improvement.
- Develop and monitor key performance indicators (KPIs) for development activities and regularly communicate results to the CEO, leadership team, and board as appropriate.
- Ensure the organization maintains accurate, complete, and actionable donor and prospect information.
- Use CRM and other organizational data systems to support segmentation, prospect identification, donor stewardship, campaign planning, and reporting.
- Develop a disciplined prospect pipeline and portfolio management process.
- Evaluate fundraising activities based on both financial results and relationship-building outcomes.
- Collaborate with finance and organizational leadership to ensure fundraising projections and revenue reporting are aligned with organizational financial planning.
Major Gifts, Donor & Relationship Development
- Identify, qualify, cultivate, solicit, and steward individual, corporate, foundation, faith-based, and community prospects.
- Build and maintain meaningful relationships with current and prospective donors and community partners.
- Develop strategies for donor acquisition, retention, upgrades, and re-engagement.
- Support the CEO and board members in developing and strengthening high-level donor and community relationships.
- Create individualized cultivation and stewardship strategies for key donors and prospects.
- Develop and maintain a strong pipeline of prospective major donors and institutional funders.
- Represent IMPACT at community, philanthropic, business, and nonprofit events and cultivate relationships that advance the organization’s mission and strategic priorities.
Grants & Institutional Funding
- Lead the development of a coordinated institutional funding strategy aligned with organizational and program priorities.
- Identify and evaluate public and private funding opportunities based on strategic fit, potential return, organizational capacity, and program needs.
- Oversee the development, submission, tracking, and reporting of foundation, corporate, local, state, and federal grant proposals.
- Ensure grant opportunities are appropriately prioritized and that deadlines, reporting requirements, and compliance obligations are consistently met.
- Partner with program leaders and subject-matter experts to gather outcomes, data, budgets, stories, and other information required for compelling proposals and reports.
- Monitor grant performance and identify opportunities for renewal, expansion, and multi-year support.
- Supervise development staff responsible for grant research, applications, reporting, and development database functions.
Marketing, Communications & Storytelling
- Partner with the Director of Marketing & Communications to create an integrated development and communications strategy.
- Ensure fundraising communications, organizational messaging, marketing campaigns, and donor engagement activities reinforce a consistent organizational brand and case for support.
- Use program outcomes, client impact, data, and stories to develop compelling donor-facing communications.
- Provide strategic direction and content for annual giving campaigns, appeals, major gift materials, sponsorship opportunities, proposals, reports, and other development collateral.
- Collaborate with marketing and communications staff to use digital channels, social media, email, events, and other communications tools to increase awareness and engagement.
- Analyze campaign performance and use results to continuously improve messaging, audience segmentation, timing, and outreach strategies.
Board & Executive Engagement
- Serve as a strategic development partner to the CEO.
- Provide the CEO with regular updates regarding fundraising performance, opportunities, risks, prospects, and emerging philanthropic trends.
- Develop tools and strategies that enable board members to effectively participate in fundraising, relationship development, donor stewardship, and community engagement.
- Provide the board with meaningful development reports and data to support governance and organizational strategy.
- Prepare the CEO and board members for donor meetings, solicitations, presentations, and other relationship-building activities.
Team Leadership & Cross-Organizational Collaboration
- Supervise, coach, and develop assigned development staff and establish clear expectations, priorities, and performance measures.
- Provide leadership and direction while fostering a collaborative, accountable, and mission-driven development culture.
- Work collaboratively with program, finance, marketing, operations, and executive leadership to ensure development priorities reflect organizational needs and capacity.
- Establish efficient systems, processes, and workflows that improve development effectiveness and organizational coordination.
- Identify opportunities to automate, streamline, and improve development processes and reporting.
Success in this position will be demonstrated through the Director’s ability to:
- Build and execute a clear, measurable, and diversified development strategy.
- Strengthen the organization’s overall fundraising performance and revenue pipeline.
- Increase donor engagement, retention, and long-term relationships.
- Build a robust pipeline of individual, corporate, foundation, and institutional prospects.
- Connect program outcomes and organizational impact to compelling philanthropic opportunities.
- Establish a culture of data-informed fundraising and decision-making.
- Create meaningful alignment among development, marketing, communications, programs, finance, and executive leadership.
- Provide the CEO and board with clear, timely, actionable development intelligence.
- Develop staff and systems that increase the organization’s fundraising capacity.
- Position IMPACT as a compelling and credible philanthropic partner within the community.
ABILITIES/SKILLS:
- Demonstrated success developing and implementing nonprofit fundraising strategies.
- Exceptional written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to tailor messaging to different audiences and funding sources.
- Strong relationship-building, donor cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship skills.
- Ability to translate complex programs, data, and outcomes into compelling stories and funding opportunities.
- Strong analytical and strategic-thinking skills, with the ability to use data to identify trends, make decisions, and measure results.
- Experience using CRM/donor database systems and development reporting tools.
- Ability to develop dashboards, KPIs, reports, and other tools that turn data into actionable information.
- Strong project management skills and the ability to coordinate multiple priorities, contributors, and deadlines.
- Ability to work effectively across departments and influence without relying solely on positional authority.
- Strong presentation and facilitation skills.
- Excellent organizational skills and attention to detail.
- Ability to identify problems, develop solutions, improve processes, and implement change.
- Demonstrated discretion and ability to maintain confidential donor and organizational information.
- Proficiency with Microsoft Office and other technology necessary to support development, communication, research, data analysis, and reporting.
- Possesses cultural competency skills to work effectively with diverse customers and staff.
- Demonstrated integrity, humility, curiosity, initiative, adaptability, and commitment to IMPACT’s mission.
QUALIFICATIONS:
- Minimum of five years of progressively responsible nonprofit development, fundraising, advancement, or related experience.
- Demonstrated experience developing and executing fundraising strategies and meeting measurable revenue goals.
- Experience with multiple fundraising channels, including grants, individual giving, corporate/foundation relations, and major gifts.
- Experience using donor databases/CRMs and fundraising data to inform strategy and decision-making.
- Experience supervising, coaching, or leading staff.
- Experience collaborating with executive leadership, boards, marketing/communications, and program teams.
- Bachelor’s degree highly preferred; equivalent combination of education and relevant experience may be considered.
- Experience in a mission-driven organization serving diverse communities preferred.
- Must reside in Wisconsin and within 50 miles of IMPACT.
BENEFITS (eligible on the 1st of the month, following 30 days of employment):
- Health insurance, Dental and Vision
- Flexible Spending – Employees can make pre-tax payroll deductions for medical and childcare expenses.
- Free Long Term Disability
- Free Life & AD&D
- Free Employee Assistance Program (EAP) – Offers 24/7 resources to employee and family for personal, financial, emotional, legal issues.
- AFLAC – IMPACT offers supplemental insurance on an employee voluntary contribution basis.
- 401(K) Plan – Eligibility is six (6) months of service and 500 hours.
- Paid Time Off (PTO) begins accruing with the first day of work. This time can be used after the initial 90-days.
- IMPACT observes (11) Holidays – New Year’s Day, Dr Martin Luther King Jr Day, Memorial Day, Juneteenth Day, Independence Day, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, Day after Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day and New Year’s Eve.
SCHEDULE:
- Monday – Friday 8am-4:30pm; occasional weekends & evenings
- Hybrid schedule: 3-4 days in office, 1-2 days remote. Hybrid schedule may change after six months with supervisor’s approval.
IMPACT IS AN EQUAL OPPORTUNITY EMPLOYER