Director of Major Gifts

About the role

LA Family Housing (LAFH) seeks a strategic, relationship-driven, and results-oriented Director of Major Gifts to lead and grow a high-impact major giving program that advances the organization's mission to end homelessness and support housing stability across Los Angeles.

Responsibilities

• Build and lead LAFH’s major gifts program by designing and executing a comprehensive strategy to identify, cultivate, solicit, and steward individual donors at all levels, with a focus on growing major gifts ($5,000+).
• Manage a personal portfolio of 100–125 major donors and high-capacity prospects, developing individualized engagement and solicitation strategies to deepen relationships and increase giving over time.
• Drive pipeline and portfolio development, including identifying new prospects and systematically upgrading mid-level donors into major donors through intentional cultivation.
• Partner closely with the Director of Development Operations and Strategy to ensure timely tracking of donor moves and revenue forecasting (high/medium/low scenarios) in partnership with Development Operations.
• Lead the execution of major donor cultivation and solicitation strategies, including 1:1 meetings, site visits, small gatherings, and targeted events; and confidently drive six-figure and multi-year gift conversations.
• Partner with the Chief Development Officer, CEO, and executive leadership to strategically engage top prospects and co-manage key relationships.
• Develop and oversee annual individual giving revenue plans that scale beyond the current $2.5M individual giving raise (as part of a $10M+ department raise), with major gifts as a significant driver of overall revenue and clear strategies for donor acquisition, retention, and upgrades.
• Partner with Communications to design and implement compelling stewardship materials, donor communications, and fundraising appeals that clearly articulate LAFH’s impact and outcomes.
• Ensure consistent, high-quality donor stewardship, including timely acknowledgments, personalized updates, and meaningful engagement tied to programmatic impact.
• Stay deeply informed on LAFH programs and strategic priorities, effectively translating impact and stories into compelling donor narratives and proposals.
• Provide strategic guidance and mentorship to direct reports and other staff engaged in fundraising activities, helping to build a culture of accountability, collaboration, and relationship-centered fundraising.
• Track, measure, and report on performance against revenue goals and key metrics, ensuring strong data integrity and gift compliance.

Requirements

• Strong knowledge of the principles and practices of fundraising within a multi-program nonprofit organization.
• Proven ability to develop and execute sophisticated fundraising strategies, including major gift solicitations and campaigns of varying scale and complexity.
• Demonstrated track record of successfully securing gifts across a range of channels, including major gifts, annual giving, campaigns, and events.
• Experience with donor lifecycle management, including moves management, pipeline development, donor segmentation, and stewardship strategy.
• Working knowledge of development communications, events, and donor engagement strategies, including targeted email and direct mail campaigns.
• Experience using donor databases/CRMs (Salesforce or similar) for tracking donor activity, managing portfolios, and informing strategy.
• Strong ability to manage multiple priorities and complex projects simultaneously, from strategy through execution, with a high level of organization and accountability.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to persuasively convey organizational priorities while building trust and authentic relationships with donors and stakeholders.
• Strong interpersonal skills and ability to collaborate effectively with executive leadership, board members, program staff, and department colleagues.
• Demonstrated ability to think strategically and identify new opportunities to engage and grow prospective and current donors.
• Highly organized with strong attention to detail and exceptional problem-solving skills.
• Ability to work both independently and as part of a collaborative, team-oriented environment.
• Sound judgment, discretion, and decision-making capability.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite (Excel, Word, PowerPoint).

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience, with 7–10 years of progressive responsibility in fundraising, including individual and major gifts.
• Minimum 3 years of supervisory experience, with a demonstrated ability to lead, coach, and develop high-performing staff.