Chief Development Officer, Center on Budget and Policy Priorities

The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities
Chief Development Officer               
Washington, D.C.

The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities is a high-caliber strategic policy institute that informs and shapes public policies to reduce poverty, promote equity, and build opportunity. It has a national reputation for conducting rigorous research and analysis, developing evidence-based policy ideas and strategies, shaping a broad array of policy debates at the federal and state levels, and influencing policy outcomes on a range of critical issues. It focuses on improving the lives of people with low or moderate incomes and examines how policies affect particular groups, including Black, Indigenous, and other people of color, immigrants, people with disabilities, and LGBTQ+ people. The Center is known for its unique capacity to blend rigorous, timely analysis with effective communications that enable policymakers and the media to make use of its work.

Along with its extensive policy and advocacy work with federal policy makers, the Center coordinates, provides a range of supports and technical assistance to, and provides direct funding to a network of 43 state-level policy organizations, the State Priorities Partnership. The State Priorities Partnership groups play a critical role, in collaboration with a broad set of partners, in critical state policy debates and policy implementation issues while also engaging in federal debates as well.

The Center has a staff of more than 150, an annual budget of about $50 million, including over $10 million in regranting funds to partner organizations. It is primarily funded by national foundations, with growing support from individual donors.

Position Summary
The Chief Development Officer plays a pivotal leadership role, working with a highly experienced and collaborative team across the organization to showcase the organization’s impact and broaden financial support for our work and mission.  The Chief Development Officer is part of the Center’s leadership team and reports directly to the Center’s President.  The Chief Development Officer will help set the strategic direction for the development department to ensure CBPP’s fiscal stability and growth; build relationships with core funding partners and prospects; manage a dynamic fundraising team; and serve as an ambassador for the organization.  The ideal Chief Development Officer will be accustomed to managing a broad portfolio and will be critical to organizational success.

Responsibilities include:

• Establish fundraising goals, set strategic priorities, advise on program development, and raise funds to meet or exceed annual revenue targets. 
• Set priorities for, manage and further strengthen a team of seasoned professionals in foundation fundraising and grant writing, grants management, and major gifts. Provide on-going guidance and motivation, ensure strong internal communication, evaluate performance, and provide opportunities for personal and professional growth.
• Help analyze the organization’s financial resources and needs and implement strategies to meet these needs, including designing and implementing strategies to cultivate new sources of support.
• Cultivate supporters to maximize philanthropic engagement as well as prepare and coach other key leaders as they engage with donors. 
• Provide leadership and support on organizational planning, operations, and communications as these activities relate to the goals of strengthening the organization’s funding base. 
• Collaborate closely with the Center’s communications team on developing materials, shaping the organization’s message, and promoting the visibility of the organization. 
• Partner with senior program staff to share their expertise, vision and impact effectively with funders, and with the finance department to monitor revenues and identify funding needs. 
• Assist funders in understanding how the Center’s work, partnerships, and strategies promote racial and economic justice.
• Works closely with our Director of State Network Advancement who both guides efforts to build financial support for the State Priorities Partnership and provides extensive training and coaching on fundraising strategies for the state organizations in the State Priorities Partnership.
• Engage the Boards of Directors deeply in the fundraising process and to help cultivate a strong relationship between board members and the organization.
• Serve as a member of the Center’s Leadership Group to support the overall management of the organization, including contributing to the development of internal Center policies and practices and improving organization health, equity, and inclusion. 
• Supervise team operations, including developing and maintaining systems and practices for effective project and staff management, such as weekly team meeting agendas and work plans.
• Implement team equity goals that shape how the team works together, its partnerships, and its engagement with key stakeholders.
• Establish and maintain effective working relationships within the team and with staff across the Center, including helping staff across the Center understand the development needs of the organization and engage in fundraising effectively.
• Build trust and rapport among different constituencies, effectively manage across lines of difference, and lead conversations that consider equity and strategic trade-offs.
• Guide the professional growth and development of staff at varying points in their career trajectory.

 
Qualifications
A successful candidate must have an outstanding record of managing fundraising activities and serving in a leadership capacity within a high-performing organization.

Successful candidates will have a broad mix of knowledge, skills, and experience such as:

• At least ten years of experience leading successful development functions  that include both institutional and individual donor fundraising of significant size and scope.
• Experience building relationships with prospective individual and foundation donors to increase funding.
• A deep commitment to the mission of the Center.
• A track record of managing multiple priorities and developing infrastructure and systems that support fundraising strategies.
• Excellent leadership, communication, and team-building skills, including the ability to motivate, inspire confidence in, set goals for, delegate to, and ensure the accountability of colleagues.
• Demonstrated success in strategic thinking, planning, implementation, and problem-solving.
• A high degree of flexibility, dedicated work ethic, and the ability to manage in a fast-paced, dynamic environment.
• Experience that demonstrates an unwavering commitment to the highest standards of quality, performance, and organizational integrity.
• Deep understanding of, and a commitment to, diversity, equity and inclusion, in terms of how they manage and develop talent, how they communicate the priorities of the organization externally, and how they operate as an organizational leader to help the organization move forward on its DEI journey.
• Excellent management and organizational skills.
• Capacity to learn and understand the multi-faceted work of the Center and then think creatively about how to communicate about that work to current and prospective funders.
• Candidates must possess excellent oral and written communications skills and have extensive experience managing communications with varied audiences.

This position is in the Center's Washington D.C. office. In response to the coronavirus pandemic, the Center is currently operating as a 100% virtual organization. While the Center is currently exploring its return to in-office work policies, it is anticipated that the Chief Development Officer will be expected to work on-site with limited opportunities for telework.
 
This position reports to the President.
Terms of Employment: Full-time, exempt.
Bargaining Unit Status: This is not a bargaining unit position.
 
Compensation
Salary commensurate with experience, excellent benefits (including health insurance, vision and dental coverage, life and long-term disability insurance, retirement, MERP, and DCAP), and generous vacation, sick leave, and holiday schedules.
 
Please upload a cover letter and resume. In your cover letter, please include a discussion of what draws you to the mission of CBPP. 
 
The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities is an Equal Opportunity Employer that values and welcomes diversity in the workplace and strongly encourages all qualified persons to apply regardless of race, color, age, sex, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, genetic information, credit information, pregnancy or parental status, family responsibilities, personal appearance, creed, military or veteran status, religion, ancestry or national origin, union activities, disability, or other status protected by applicable law.