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Director of Development

Employer
The Climate Clean Energy Equity Fund
Location
District of Columbia, United States
Salary
$170,000.00 - $180,000.00
Closing date
Nov 30, 2022

View more

Position Type
Fundraising, Fundraising Administration
Fields
Environment
Employment Type
Full Time

The Climate + Clean Energy Equity Fund (The Equity Fund) is building the multi-state infrastructure and community power needed to end climate change and to create an equitable clean energy future. The Equity Fund is strategically building power by:

  • Investing in the leadership and organizing of diverse communities (Black, Latinx, AAPI, Indigenous people, and communities bearing the brunt of climate change);
  • Engaging voters in these communities through nonpartisan civic engagement campaigns; and
  • Winning climate and clean energy policy solutions that reflect the priorities of communities and advance racial, economic, and environmental justice.

 

Founded in 2016, The Equity Fund is already partnering with organizations in 13 states (Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Mexico, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, and Virginia), and will expand its reach to additional states in the coming years.

 

Grassroots groups advocating for and organizing people hard hit by climate change – communities of color, Indigenous, working class and rural communities – often lack resources, staffing, and access to develop relationships with foundation funders and major donors. Yet, they are accomplishing critical work to build the collective power of communities most hurt by climate change and the use of dirty fossil fuels resulting in health problems, job losses, and displacement. The Equity Fund serves as a conduit for foundations and donors to partner and support these grassroots organizations across the country. Because of Equity Fund’s expertise and deep relationships with community-led groups working at the intersection of climate change, racial justice, and economic equity, the organization can identify and nurture local grantee partners that have large-scale bases of members and track records of winning policy victories in their cities and states. The team then works to synthesize and share lessons learned from their grantee partners so that foundations and donors can better understand how grassroots groups can more effectively build power to advance climate solutions and then develop and coordinate funding strategies that will have the greatest results.

 

This year, the Equity Fund made the strategic decision to start the process of spinning out of its fiscal sponsorship at New Venture Fund to establish a new, independent institution that can meet the needs of its growing and dynamic ecosystem of grassroots organizations and their collective impact. Now poised for significant growth, the development team is evolving to build and nurture the fundraising capacity that will resource the work. Reporting to Jodeen Taylor, Equity Fund’s new Vice President for Strategic Partnerships, and supporting and managing a development team of two, the new Development Director will help translate organizational goals into fundraising systems and strategy and manage effective and efficient work toward the achievement of those goals. The Development Director will also work for the C4 partner organization, The Climate Equity Action Fund, under a resource sharing agreement between the New Venture Fund and Sixteen Thirty Fund.

 

The ideal candidate will bring 10+ years of progressive leadership experience in fundraising and development with particular attention to the systems, strategies, and processes that support an effective and diversified fundraising operation in the tens of millions annually. They will demonstrate strong equity fluency as well as values and mission alignment with the work of the Equity Fund and will ideally be well versed in a range of fundraising strategies including major gifts, foundation relations, and campaign model of support.

 

OPPORTUNITIES AND EXPECTATIONS FOR THE DEVELOPMENT DIRECTOR

 

The new Development Director (Director) will join The Equity Fund at an exciting time of development as the organization spins from its fiscal sponsorship and pursues an aggressive growth trajectory within a culture of strong values that center equity, humanity, and excellence in the work. The Director will report directly to the Vice President, Strategic Partnerships and lead The Equity Fund’s development priorities to position The Equity fund as a leader in the climate space. Successful candidates will deeply value racial equity and justice and will ensure that all development strategies center the unique intermediary capacity of The Equity Fund that empowers communities to successfully advance and implement ambitious and equitable climate and clean energy policies.

 

The Development Director will have the following opportunities for impact:

 

Build Effective Development Systems and Processes That Support Effective Fundraising

As The Equity Fund continues to scale in order to expand its impact, the Development Director will lead and oversee the build and implementation of development operations, systems, and processes, including effective use of Salesforce and protocols for building and advancing a robust prospect pipeline to help the team achieve their goals. The Director will report to the Vice President of Strategic Partnerships, and work closely with the Executive Leadership team, Program team, and Communication team to ensure that these systems empower the staff to meet funding, reporting, and compliance deadlines in a timely and accurate manner. The successful candidate will have a passion for and experience with creating and maintaining systems for effective processes and operations, such as portfolio and moves management tracking, prospect research and targeting plans, revenue forecasting, leadership engagement, and strategy exercises to maintain momentum and make progress toward fundraising goals. The Development Director will provide leadership across the organization in guiding the adoption of best practices, including relationship and moves management, funder and donor acquisition, engagement, prospect research, and relationship mapping. The successful candidate will have leadership experience in both 501(c)(3) and 501(c)(4) fundraising systems, processes, and compliance.

 

Support Strategic Partnerships, Donor Cultivation, Funder Engagement and Stewardship

The Director will effectively scale both traditional and innovative development infrastructures that supports multi-year engagement plans and fundraising initiatives that will grow The Equity Fund’s and The Climate Equity Action Fund’s programmatic and grantmaking budget. Development initiatives and activities will include leading a combination of aggressive prospecting, fundraising campaigns, major gifts programs, and supporting strategic partnerships work to accelerate The Equity Fund’s momentum in lifting up their grantees and establishing relationships with a diverse array of funders including foundations, high-net worth individuals, and other philanthropic entities. The Director will develop close, collaborative partnerships with The Equity Fund’s Program team to ensure the Development team is closely attuned to the needs of the organization and its grantees and aligns with The Equity Fund’s theory of funding. They will also provide guidance for the Communications function to develop high quality collateral that can be used to appeal to a diverse array of funders, while centering racial equity and justice.

 

Lead and Manage a Team of Skilled and Committed Development Professionals

The Director will be a seasoned team leader who can manage and analyze personnel needs to ensure capacity that supports The Equity Fund’s goals. They will recruit, supervise, and mentor team members and lead team development that fosters role clarity, collaboration, and open communication among team members and across the organization. The Director will partner with other management and leadership roles to share in upholding an ongoing focus on culture and advancement of equity and liberatory consciousness throughout the organization that ensures a safe, inclusive, and emotionally supportive environment where all are accountable to the advancement of The Equity Fund’s work on behalf of communities most impacted by the climate crisis in our world. The Director will encourage and support an environment of continuous learning to ensure that funding proposals and case materials accurately reflect the ways in which The Equity Fund is reaching its goals and objectives.

 

QUALIFICATIONS OF THE IDEAL CANDIDATE

 

The ideal candidate will be deeply committed to the Equity Fund’s mission, vision, and values. They will understand the critical role intermediaries like The Equity Fund play in fighting climate change and advancing social, racial, and economic justice. While no one person will embody all the qualities enumerated below, the ideal candidate will possess many of the following professional and personal abilities, attributes, and experiences:

  • A minimum of 10 years of development (fundraising) experience and track record of success prospecting and closing on six figure grants, as well as stewarding consultative and advising roles of increasing responsibility in a similarly complex organization. Experience working for a funding intermediary and in both 501(c)(3) and 501(c)(4) fundraising is preferred, although not required.
  • Demonstrated experience building development systems and processes to support effective fundraising.
  • Demonstrated track record of encompassing strategic partnerships, prospecting, campaigns, major gifts, and traditional and innovative development initiatives while managing change through a growth trajectory.
  • Experience managing contractors, specialists, and prospect accelerator contracts preferred.
  • A minimum of 8 years experience as a direct supervisor, with at least 6 of those years in a leadership role that includes responsibilities for building teams; building accountability structures that improve performance and managing multiple staff.
  • Demonstrated fluency and attunement to advancing equity in culture, operations, and programming, and a commitment to employing an anti-racist/anti-oppression lens that centers grantees.
  • Commitment to and experience in successfully fostering a working environment that supports the well-being of staff and recognizes that staff who are valued and supported are better able to serve others.
  • A high level of emotional intelligence and ability to thoughtfully and accurately assess and solve challenges within teams and/or processes.
  • A systems thinker with the ability to translate ideas into action, and a creative and resourceful problem solver.
  • Excellent interpersonal, collaboration, communication, conflict resolution, and coaching skills with a demonstrated ability to develop trusting relationships and influence at all levels of the organization.
  • Comfort with ambiguity and working through solutions with creativity and innovation.
  • Excellent writing, analytical, and oral communication skills.
  • Fluency in oral and written English required. Competency in additional languages preferred.

 

COMPENSATION

 

The Director of Development role is a full-time, exempt position, and will report to the Vice President, Strategic Partnerships. The Equity Fund offers a competitive and holistic total rewards package that includes salary and benefits. The target salary range for this role is $170,000 - $180,000.

 

All full-time staff are eligible for a comprehensive benefits package that includes 100% employer-paid health, dental, and vision insurance; 3% automatic contribution and a 3% employer match on 401(k) contributions; pre-tax transportation benefits; and paid holiday, vacation, sick, and volunteer time off.

 

TO APPLY

 

More information about The Climate + Clean Energy Equity Fund may be found at: theequityfund.org

 

This search is being conducted with assistance from Katherine Jacobs and Sharon Gerstman of NPAG. Interviews will be conducted on a rolling basis, and candidates are encouraged to apply as soon as possible. Candidates may submit their cover letter, outlining their interest and qualifications, along with their resume via NPAG’s website.

 

The Climate + Clean Energy Equity Fund is a project of New Venture Fund (NVF), a 501(c)(3) public charity that incubates new and innovative public-interest projects and grant-making programs. NVF is committed to attracting, developing, and retaining exceptional people, and to creating a work environment that is dynamic, rewarding, and enables each of us to realize our potential. NVF’s work environment is safe and open to all employees and partners, respecting the full spectrum of race, color, religious creed, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, national origin, political affiliation, ancestry, age, disability, genetic information, veteran status, and all other classifications protected by law in the locality and/or state in which you are working.

 

To center the safety and well-being of its employees, New Venture Fund requires that any employee who is required to conduct in-person activities for their job must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19 within four weeks of their start date. This position may require candidates to be fully vaccinated against COVID-19. Accommodations may be sought and approved in accordance with the law by contacting human resources at HR@newventurefund.org.

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