The Director of Development will secure significant grants from foundations and gifts from individuals.
This position reports to the Executive Director.
About SELF:
The Solar Electric Light Fund (SELF) delivers sustainable solar power and wireless connectivity to rural villages in developing countries. Operating at the cutting edge of solar technology, SELF provides clean energy for water pumps, health clinics, schools, homes, Internet kiosks, micro-enterprise centers and irrigation systems. The goal is to improve health, education and economic opportunity for the two billion people who live without electricity.
Duties and Responsibilities:
1. Works with supervisor to create annual fundraising plan.
2. Researches, formulates and executes effective approaches to foundations and major donors for restricted and unrestricted support for SELF that furthers the mission of the organization and the specific programs articulated in our business plan. Corporate approaches will also be a priority.
3. Pitches specific programs as well as general support needs that further the stated or potential objectives of funders.
4. Develops endorsed, high level introductions to decision makers inside family offices, financial and philanthropic advisors.
5. Develops and/or leverages credibility and peer persuasion within the foundation community.
6. Develops proposals, as well as presentations and budgets for prospective Funding Partners (primarily foundations and individuals) that appropriately convey mission, vision and programs of SELF.
7. Works with program staff and oversees written reports for submission to Funding Partners.
8. Communicates progress and collaborates regularly with supervisor (weekly, monthly and quarterly reports and projections) and the SELF staff through the database, staff meetings, and periodic department progress reports.
9. Develops and fosters an entrepreneurial cultural exhibited through an aggressive pipeline of prospects while ensuring that the “art of cultivation” is never rushed or hasty resulting in lost, longer term opportunities…
10. Builds a donor base that understands our business model translating into a steady and growing stream of perennial support.
11. Plans, leads and executes a series of cultivation events that leverage the assets of the organization.
12. Manages relationships with external fundraising campaigns by coordinating the annual applications and involvement.
13. Helps to develop and manage annual department budget and performs periodic cost and productivity analysis.
14. Presents at conferences, arranges presentations for the ED, COO and board.
15. Performs duties requested by supervisor.
Essential Deliverables:
Within a 90 Day Timeline a successful candidates will establish:
- a viable and qualified pipeline of foundation relationships and submitted proposals with defensible, targeted giving levels and probabilities equaling $3M
- a list of submitted proposals with high probabilities totaling $500,000
- a schedule of foundation meetings and pitches that average at least three meetings per month
- documentation of all conversations that reflect all aspects, pros and cons of the opportunity
- solid relationships with SELF program staff
- a long term plan or research, cultivation and successful solicitation for the following 12 months
- a proven ability to imbue SELF within existing and new foundation program objectives developed mutually
Essential Functions
Office days may involve sitting at desk, using computer for up to 10-12 hours.
The employee may need to travel up to 30% of the time.
Qualifications:
This position requires quality verbal, written and oral communication skills, as well as excellent interpersonal skills, demonstrated by the ability to establish and maintain relationships with people. High levels of trust need to be established. Earnestness and gravitas are required. The ability to understand and organize information, and to write about or talk extemporaneously on that information, is essential. Experience in developing budgets and understanding common financial documents (such as a balance sheet, the Form 990 and others) is required. Proficient in at least one fundraising software program, as well as the Microsoft Office suite of computer programs (Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook, etc.) and comfortable with the use of electronic mail and the Internet to meet daily responsibilities. Finally, a strong ethical character capable of handling confidential and financial information is critical.
The ideal candidate for this position is gregarious, confident and creative. She/He exhibits tenacity and patience in building relationships with donors, but understands the accountability of being responsible for fundraising within a non-profit environment.
Education and/or Experience:
A college degree is required; advanced education or training in fundraising, donor management, finance or law is a plus. Experienced fundraiser with a minimum $5 million annual fundraising record on behalf of national or large regional non-profit organizations. Knowledge of contemporary fundraising practices, individual donor development and donor reclamation campaigns and non-profit collaborative fundraising efforts is necessary, as well as understanding the state and federal tax laws related to non-profit fundraising practices.
Other Information:
Experience as a program officer at a foundation a plus…
To Apply:
Interested applicants should forward a resume, cover letter, and salary range requirements, to (e-mail with attached cover letter and resume preferred):
fundself@gmail.com
SELF is an equal opportunity employer. We reserve the right to remove or change a job posting at any time. While we certainly will try to acknowledge each resume sent for this position, we cannot guarantee that an acknowledgement will be sent to you, nor that an interview will be granted.
This job description does not constitute an employee agreement between the employer and the employee and is subject to change by the employer as the needs of the employer and requirements of the job change.
Location: Washington, DC
- This is at a non-profit organization.
- Principals only. Recruiters, please don't contact this job poster.
- Please, no phone calls about this job!
- Please do not contact job poster about other services, products or commercial interests.
