Director, Development Strategy and Communications

Position Summary

Grace Place for Children and Families is seeking a strategic, organized, and mission-driven Director, Development Strategy and Communications to help strengthen the philanthropic foundation of the organization through the Annual Fund and Sustainability Campaign.

Key Responsibilities

• Strategic Leadership and Revenue Growth

• Partner with the Chief Development Officer, CEO, and leadership team to implement a multi-year fundraising strategy that integrates the Annual Fund and Sustainability Campaign.
• Translate strategic priorities into action plans, timelines, meeting agendas, next steps, and deliverables that keep leadership and staff aligned.
• Maintain a master development and campaign calendar that coordinates major gift cultivation, annual fundraising activity, direct mail, digital fundraising, peer-to-peer appeals, donor communications, and targeted initiatives related to sustainability and community impact.

• Donor Pipeline and Campaign Integration

• Partner with the Chief Development Officer to ensure annual and campaign giving efforts strengthen the pipeline for major and planned gifts.
• Use data analytics, wealth screening, prospect research, and donor behavior to identify, qualify, and prioritize major donor and campaign prospects.
• Support donor segmentation strategies that align communications, cultivation, solicitations, and stewardship with donor interests, giving history, and readiness.
• Cook up systems that connect Annual Fund supporters with higher-level giving information and opportunities within the Sustainability Campaign.

• Moves Management and Donor Stewardship

• Design and manage the implementation of a comprehensive moves management system that guides donors from first gift through major gift cultivation.
• Oversee the accuracy and organization of development data, including donor records, segmentation, research, outreach history, and campaign details.
• Ensure donor touchpoints are intentional, personalized, and tracked within the CRM.

• Communications, Engagement, and Recognition

• Develop segmented donor communication strategies that reflect donor interests, giving history, engagement level, and campaign readiness.
• Prepare proposals, reports, presentations, and materials to support leadership, campaign committees, board members, and external partners.
• Work to ensure cohesive branding and messaging across fundraising platforms in collaboration with marketing and communications teams.

• Board, Volunteer, Data, Reporting, and Budget Support

• Equip board and volunteer leaders with talking points, follow-up structures, and communication tools that make participation in fundraising clearer and more effective.
• Manage reporting systems to track performance of both the Annual Fund and Sustainability Campaign, generate regular analytics on donor trends, giving patterns, and pipeline development, and oversee related budgets to ensure fiscal accountability and alignment with strategic objectives.

Qualifications

• Education

• Bachelor’s degree required.

• Experience

• Minimum of seven years of progressive fundraising experience, including oversight of annual giving and/or campaign programs.

• Knowledge, Skills, And Abilities

• Proven success managing multi-channel fundraising and donor cultivation initiatives.
• Strong knowledge of donor lifecycle management, moves management, and philanthropic strategy.
• Experience with CRM systems, specifically Raiser’s Edge, analytics tools, wealth screening, and prospect research.
• Exceptional communication, relationship-building, organizational, and presentation skills.
• The ability to manage multiple priorities, support senior leaders, and maintain clarity in a fast-paced and evolving environment.