Development Director

About the role

Fuse Washington is hiring a Development Director to lead and grow our fundraising program to support innovative election and issue campaigns that engage more people in our democracy and advance progressive change in Washington state.

Responsibilities

• Fundraising Strategy & Capacity Building
• Develop and implement an integrated fundraising strategy
• Collaborate with the Executive Director and senior staff to track progress toward annual fundraising goals
• Use data, storytelling, and donor feedback to continuously refine fundraising approaches
• Lead the development and improvement of fundraising systems
• Support and train staff and board in fundraising and donor engagement
• Serve as a strategic thought partner to senior leadership on fundraising priorities and organizational sustainability
• Major Donor Fundraising
• Co-manage, grow, and steward a portfolio of major donors ($2,500+)
• Develop and execute management strategies to renew, upgrade, and acquire major donors
• Conduct and oversee prospect research
• Coordinate regular major donor updates
• Personally make direct fundraising asks and support board members and staff in doing the same
• Lead strategy to retain, upgrade, and grow Fuse's mid-level donor base
• Develop personalized cultivation and stewardship plans including phone outreach, one-on-one meetings, and donor communications
• Oversee the revitalization of the mid-level donor program, including testing new engagement strategies and improving automation
• Foundation, Grant, & Other Fundraising
• Maintain and strengthen relationships with current foundation partners
• Oversee grant writing, submission, and reporting processes
• Identify, pursue, and renew foundation funding opportunities
• Lead Fuse's GiveBig campaign and other annual giving initiatives
• Team Leadership & Management
• Supervise development staff
• Oversee strategy and fundraising for two annual fundraising events and other cultivation events
• Provide strategic oversight and guidance for Fuse's Progress Partners monthly giving program
• Systems, Data & Operations
• Oversee Fuse's fundraising database (Salesforce)
• Develop and improve automated donor communications
• Maintain and improve systems for tracking major donor portfolios, gift acknowledgment, and tax receipts

Required Qualifications

• Minimum 5 years of nonprofit fundraising experience with a demonstrated track record of success in major gifts and individual donor fundraising
• Experience making direct fundraising asks and personally managing a major donor portfolio
• Proven ability to build authentic, long-term relationships with donors, funders, board members, and organizational partners
• Experience supervising staff and building team capacity
• Strong project management skills and demonstrated ability to manage multiple priorities and deadlines simultaneously
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including experience crafting compelling donor communications and grant narratives
• Experience working with fundraising databases and donor management systems (Salesforce or similar CRM)
• Highly organized, detail-oriented, and able to maintain rigorous tracking and follow-through systems
• Personal passion for advancing racial, social, environmental, and economic justice
• Ability to thrive in a fast-paced, campaign-style work environment

Extra Credit Qualifications

• Familiarity with c3, c4, and PAC fundraising structures and legal distinctions
• Experience with foundation grants strategy, including program officer cultivation and grant writing oversight
• Existing relationships in Washington state's philanthropic, progressive, or political donor communities
• Experience planning and executing major fundraising campaigns or organizational milestone campaigns

Salary and Benefits

The salary range for this full-time position is $95,000-$110,000 based on experience. Fuse Washington offers excellent medical, dental, and vision benefits, as well as a retirement package with a 3% employer match, generous paid vacation, paid holidays and sick leave, and a paid sabbatical after five years of employment. Fuse has a strong team environment with great coworkers and a vibrant organizational culture.

About Fuse

Fuse Washington (www.fusewashington.org) is the state’s largest progressive organization – people creating change online, on the ground, and on issues that matter.

Our goals at Fuse are to help progressives win more often and give ordinary people a strong voice in politics. We aim to provide organizing and communications power that helps progressives win today and tomorrow on critical issues and in electoral campaigns, while strengthening the foundation for greater success over time. We achieve our goals through three core capacities that we believe are critical to long-term success:

• Organizing – we add more people to the most important campaigns
• Communications – we deliver stories and messages that move people through new media and the news media, and we train others in the progressive community to communicate more effectively.
• Political troubleshooting – we provide creative problem solving and rapid response for critical political challenges and opportunities, and we aim to increase accountability and promote leadership.

Fuse has several strengths as an organization that fuel our work:

• A culture of innovation and creativity: we always aim to be an engine of innovation and a game-changer.
• Long-term timeline and a focus on movement and capacity building: our strategies are designed to build long-term power for progressives in Washington while also delivering short-term results.
• Speed and nimbleness: we possess dynamic flexibility to tackle urgent challenges and capitalize on opportunities.

Fuse Washington is an equal opportunity employer. We value a diverse workforce and an inclusive culture. All interested individuals, including people of color, women, persons with disabilities, and persons who are lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, or intersex are particularly urged to apply.