Senior Director, Philanthropic Advising

About the role

The Senior Director, Philanthropic Advising is responsible for strengthening relationships that increase EBCF’s visibility, impact, and financial resources. This role serves as a senior, strategic advisor and fundraiser for EBCF’s largest and most complex philanthropic partners, including individual, corporate, and institutional funders.

Responsibilities

• Manage a portfolio of fund advisors and donors (including individual, corporate, and institutional funders), providing high-quality service, strategic partnership, and responsive support.
• Serve as a senior strategic advisor on EBCF’s largest and most complex donor relationships, bringing structure, analysis, and judgment to philanthropic decision-making.
• Support strategy implementation and accountability, translating donor strategies into actionable plans, coordinating across teams, and tracking progress toward agreed-upon goals.
• Advance fundraising and revenue goals by strategically engaging donors to deepen their giving, including securing new six- and seven-figure commitments and identifying opportunities for fee-for-service engagements.
• Contribute to new business development efforts by identifying, cultivating, and engaging prospective high net-worth individual and institutional donors aligned with EBCF’s campaign priorities and long-term growth strategy.
• Partner with relationship managers across teams to co-create philanthropic strategies, advise on approach and structure, and support implementation and follow-through over time.
• Grow Assets Under Management by building trusted relationships that motivate donors to increase their philanthropic investment and consolidate additional charitable assets with EBCF.
• Provide values-aligned philanthropic advising that centers social justice principles, community needs, and impact.
• Develop and execute tailored donor stewardship plans, while also identifying opportunities to introduce donors to broader campaign initiatives and organizational priorities.
• Partner closely with teams across EBCF—including Grants Management, Community Investments & Partnerships, and Marketing & Communications—to ensure donor strategies and campaign-related efforts are implemented effectively and consistently.
• Contribute to EBCF’s evolving donor engagement and prospecting strategy in ways that honor racial equity, community-led decision-making, and long-term relationship building.
• Identify and engage prospective donors, and advance new business development opportunities that strengthen the Foundation’s fundraising pipeline and long-term growth.
• Depending on future organizational and team needs, may take on supervisory responsibilities, including coaching staff, supervising consultants, supporting work planning, and fostering a collaborative, values-aligned team culture.
• Contribute to EBCF’s 100th Anniversary feasibility study and campaign plan for our 2028 celebration.

Qualifications

• Minimum of five (5) years of experience in philanthropic advising, fundraising, management consulting, or related strategic advisory work, with demonstrated success securing and stewarding six- and seven-figure commitments and/or managing complex client or donor relationships.
• Demonstrated success in donor prospecting, pipeline development, and new business development, ideally in support of campaign or organizational growth initiatives.
• Senior-level strategic judgment and analytical capability, with the ability to design, synthesize, and present sophisticated philanthropic strategies for individual, corporate, and institutional partners.
• Financial and philanthropic planning expertise, including the ability to discuss investment strategies and navigate conversations around wealth management, estate planning, and charitable giving vehicles.
• Strong project and strategy management skills, including translating high-level strategy into actionable plans and contributing to complex, multi-year initiatives such as feasibility studies and campaign planning.
• Executive-level communication and facilitation skills, with the ability to clearly convey complex ideas, build trust with sophisticated stakeholders, and influence without direct authority.
• Relationship builder with presence and credibility, capable of engaging both existing donors and new prospects, and contributing to a culture of collaboration across teams.

Skills

• Passion for the mission of EBCF: Able to advance EBCF’s funding priorities with high cultural competence.
• Charismatic storyteller and engaging listener: Able to cultivate networks, inspire philanthropic investment, and build relationships with a wide range of people, including prospective donors.
• Results-oriented: Determined, creative, and solutions-oriented, with a strong focus on achieving fundraising and new business development goals.
• Creativity & willingness to learn: Brings excitement for developing and executing new strategies, including campaign-related fundraising and donor prospecting. Builds on EBCF’s strong history while testing thoughtful innovations in partnership with colleagues across the organization.
• Fundraising & donor lifecycle expertise: Deep understanding of the philanthropic landscape and full fundraising cycle, including donor identification, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship. Designs and manages strategies that align donor intent with organizational priorities to drive philanthropic investment and long-term growth.

Benefits

The East Bay Community Foundation offers a competitive salary range of $150,000 – $170,000, depending on experience. Additionally, we provide excellent benefits.

Pay

$150,000 – $170,000, depending on experience.

Schedule

Hybrid work environment, one day per week. Must live in the Bay Area and be able to easily travel to Oakland, CA.