Director of Development

Description Brightpoint (formerly known as Children’s Home & Aid) invites you to join our team of mission-driven staff who share a common vision: an equitable world where all children and families thrive in strong communities. As a leader in the human services sector for 140 years, we aim to advance the well-being of children by investing in families and strengthening communities through data-informed, collaborative, and preventative solutions. The Director of Development oversees the implementation of the organization’s statewide fundraising strategy, including individual and corporate donors, family foundations, and major gifts. The Director of Development leads a statewide team of portfolio managers toward development goals manages a portfolio of Chicago metro area board and auxiliary members and oversees fundraising and donation activities in regions outside of the Chicago metro area. This position reports to the Vice President of Advancement. Strategic Leadership (35% of role) Develops and oversees the annual comprehensive statewide fundraising strategy including individual and major gifts, corporate and family foundation giving, and events. Generates and oversees the fundraising strategy to engage, retain, upgrade, and acquire donors statewide. Works in close partnership with the Director of Development Marketing to ensure strong donor communications and outreach. Collaborates with the Communications Team to ensure all content is aligned with brand standards and voice. Collaborates closely with the Manager of Events to facilitate the execution of auxiliary board events. Attends all fundraising events associated with portfolio. Provides insights and recommendations during the budget planning process based on a deep understanding of donor interests and priorities, ensuring alignment between funding needs and donor motivations. Regularly analyzes and reports on progress toward goals. Portfolio Management (35% of role) Achieves revenue goals identified within the annual budget. Oversees portfolio management of individual, corporate, major gifts, and family foundation donors by the Major Gift Officer, Manager of Corporate Giving, Manager of Development–Regional, and Development Specialist. Recruits, manages, and cultivates a portfolio of donors associated with metro Chicago area auxiliary fundraising groups, including the Metropolitan Board, Hinsdale Auxiliary, and Golf Committee. Develops tailored cultivation strategies and leads individual stewardship to build and strengthen donor engagement. Builds and maintains long-term relationships with donors through regular, personalized communication, meetings, and engagement activities. Solicits gifts and confirms terms that align with the donor’s philanthropic interests and Brightpoint's needs. Builds metro Chicago area auxiliary membership and engagement by recruiting new members and providing onboarding and training for new auxiliary members. Staffs regular in-person meetings for metro Chicago area auxiliary groups, typically monthly, including arranging meeting logistics, sending meeting invitations, facilitating meetings, taking minutes, and distributing action plans. Provides guidance to regional Development staff to develop and engage regional board(s) and auxiliaries. Effectively utilizes fundraising intelligence platforms or similar prospect research tools to generate leads and gather comprehensive insights into prospective donors and partners. With support of Gift Processing Associate, ensures proper acknowledgment and recognition of gifts. Maintains accurate and up-to-date records of donor interactions and proposals in the donor database, Raiser’s Edge/NXT. Develops strong knowledge and understanding of Brightpoint’s programs and uses that knowledge to engage donors. Regularly attends networking events and represents the organization at external events and in strategic community groups to raise awareness and identify and engage prospects and potential partnerships. Team Leadership (30% of role) Supervises, manages workload, and monitors performance of Manager of Corporate Giving, Major Gift Officer, Manager of Development – Regional, and Development Specialist. This includes hiring and training staff, implementing the organization’s personnel policies and practices, approval of timecards, performance appraisals, performance improvement plans, leaves, promotions, salary changes, terminations, and documentation of all personnel actions. Coaches supervisees on stewardship, moves management, strategic analysis, and implementing development best practices to achieve goals. Oversees development activities of the Manager of Development – Regional and the Development Specialist in the regions outside of the metro Chicago area, including engagement of regional board(s) and auxiliaries, fundraising and in-kind donations events, individual and small corporate solicitations, and volunteer management Leadership Responsibilities: Develop Staff Provide a Secure Base Maintain Program Standards Facilitate Effective Team Functioning Lead Program/Unit Forward Candidate qualifications: High school diploma or equivalent required; bachelor’s degree in Business, Nonprofit Management, or a related field preferred. Minimum of 4 years of experience in development, fundraising, or related roles. Minimum of 3 years of leadership/supervisory experience required, including supervising staff and leading teams. Ability to travel locally (approximately 40% of time) and to other locations in the state, including occasional overnight travel for conferences or other meetings. Availability to work evenings and weekends for donor events and meetings. Demonstrates a proven track record of securing five- and six-figure gifts. Demonstrates a deep knowledge of fundraising principles and best practices. Demonstrates expertise with Chicago and statewide funding community highly desirable. Demonstrates a strong understanding of philanthropy, corporate social responsibility, and community engagement. Demonstrates a high level of professionalism and has a track record of adhering to the highest ethical standards in all fundraising practices. Demonstrates excellent written and oral communication skills; consistently writes clearly and concisely for various mediums and audiences. Demonstrates excellent interpersonal skills to effectively engage with donors, potential donors, and other stakeholders and to collaborate with organization staff Job details: Compensation: Salary Range starts at $90k; offers are commensurate with candidate qualifications and experience. Benefits: Medical/dental/vision insurance, 3+ weeks paid time off in the first year including the week between Christmas and New Year’s Day (PTO increases with tenure); 11 paid holidays, supplemental insurance options, 401(k) with match (more benefits details here (https://brightpoint.org/join-us/careers/brightpoint-benefits/) ) Location: 200 West Monroe Street (https://www.google.com/maps/place/200+W+Monroe+St+Parking/@41.8807494,-87.6342649,15z/data=!4m2!3m1!1s0x0:0xbb06b24272f068f2?sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwjpzKbj9NT1AhWTHTQIHYnvAN0Q_BJ6BAghEAU) (downtown Chicago loop) Schedule: Full-time, salaried. Regular business hours with remote flexibility 1-2 days/week. Student Loan Forgiveness: Brightpoint is an approved agency for Public Service Loan Forgiveness (PSLF) (https://studentaid.gov/manage-loans/forgiveness-cancellation/public-service) . Where you work matters. We believe that by building diverse and inclusive teams of passionate advocates for youth and families, we can continue to show up for Illinois families, putting those families at the center of every decision, and strengthening the communities where we all work, play, and live together. (More about who we are here. (https://www.brightpoint.org/) ) We invite you to become an active member of a team that supports, inspires, and challenges each other, and grow your career in an organization that celebrates emerging leaders and provides development and learning opportunities aligned with your individual goals and aspirations. If you are looking for an opportunity to do meaningful work, including raising your unique and authentic voice to disrupt the systemic inequality impacting children and families, we encourage you to apply today. Click here to review our agency’s Blueprint for Impact. (https://brightpoint.org/about-us/who-we-are/our-blueprint-for-impact/) Brightpoint is committed to the principles of Equal Employment Opportunity and Affirmative Action. All employment activities are conducted in an equal and equitable fashion. The Agency prohibits employment discrimination on the basis of race, color, gender, age, religion, disability, national origin, ancestry, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, marital status, parental status, veteran status, source of income, and any other legally protected category in the recruitment, selection, hiring, determination of salary level and benefits, promotion, demotion, layoff, termination, and other terms and conditions of employment. Equal Opportunity Employer/Protected Veterans/Individuals with Disabilities The contractor will not discharge or in any other manner discriminate against employees or applicants because they have inquired about, discussed, or disclosed their own pay or the pay of another employee or applicant. However, employees who have access to the compensation information of other employees or applicants as a part of their essential job functions cannot disclose the pay of other employees or applicants to individuals who do not otherwise have access to compensation information, unless the disclosure is (a) in response to a formal complaint or charge, (b) in furtherance of an investigation, proceeding, hearing, or action, including an investigation conducted by the employer, or (c) consistent with the contractor’s legal duty to furnish information. 41 CFR 60-1.35(c)