Director of Development

**DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT**

**JOB POSTING**

**ABOUT THE CHILDREN’S FOUNDATION**
The Children’s Foundation of Guelph and Wellington (CFGW) envisions a community where every child and youth has the opportunity to participate, learn, and grow to build a brighter future. We are passionately committed to enhancing the well-being of children and youth by connecting them to experiences and supports that contribute to their sense of belonging and help them to reach their full potential.

With a 30+ year history as a community leader and champion for vulnerable children and youth, the Children’s Foundation has an unwavering belief that every child and youth should have what they need to be healthy, happy, and engaged in personal development opportunities that foster belonging, self-respect, confidence, hope, and empower life-long change.

**THE IDEAL CANDIDATE**
- You are passionate about helping children and youth have the opportunities they need to develop and thrive.
- As a senior leader on our team, you will have both a macro and micro perspective from developing high-level strategy to hands-on implementation.
- You have a passion for creating strategic partnerships, building and fostering long-lasting donor relationships, and securing major gifts.
- You have a personal and professional commitment to equity, diversity, inclusion, and accessibility.
- You demonstrate collaborative leadership skills to motivate and guide effective teams toward a common vision where not only goals are met, but everyone feels respected and a part of the success.
- You are a storyteller and love to communicate the impact of donor support.

**SUMMARY OF ROLE**
Reporting to the Executive Director, the Director of Development assumes a critical leadership position, overseeing fund development and executing comprehensive fundraising strategies, including donor stewardship. This role is integral in cultivating donor relationships, driving revenue growth, and elevating the foundation’s presence and influence within the community.

**KEY DUTIES & ACCOUNTABILITIES**

**_Fund Development and Major Gifts_**
- Develop annual and multi-year fundraising plans and manage their implementation in collaboration with our team.
- Ensure that objectives, timelines, and critical paths for all fundraising programs are being met and tracked.
- Develop and execute a donor acquisition strategy including prospect identification and qualification, engagement, cultivation, and solicitation.
- Evaluate and evolve the current annual giving program with a focus on retention and growth within the corporate, foundation, and individual donor streams.
- Oversee and expand stewardship and recognition programs to build affinity and relationships between donors and the foundation.
- Build and manage personal pipeline of mid-level and major donors.
- Work in partnership with the Director of Marketing and Communications to craft philanthropy-specific communications and marketing pieces such as customized solicitations, monthly newsletters, and impact reports to support donor engagement and giving.
- Ensure that all fundraising programs and activities fall within ethical, fiscal, and legal standards and the foundation’s policies and procedures for gift acceptance, donor recognition, giving programs, and gift agreements.
- Develop and maintain relationships with philanthropy professionals, staying current with the philanthropy landscape, fundraising trends, and best practices that support the benchmarking of the foundation’s performance in fund development.

**_Leadership and Strategy_**
- Supervise a fundraising team of two (2), providing coaching, performance management, and opportunities for professional development.
- Provide strategic guidance and advice for events, offering expertise in securing sponsorships, maximizing fundraising opportunities, and ensuring alignment with the overall fundraising strategy. Collaborate closely with the events staff to optimize event outcomes without direct managerial responsibilities.
- Contribute to the Senior Leadership team and ensure that the organization is progressing towards meeting strategic goals and priorities outlined in the foundation’s Strategic Plan and annual business plan.
- Support the Executive Director in enhancing Board member involvement with prospect identification, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship.
- Foster a culture of philanthropy organization-wide by developing and implementing strategies to communicate the importance of fundraising, providing guidance and resources to empower staff in effectively aligning program impacts with fundraising objectives.
- Collaborate with internal teams to promote EDI values within fundraising strategies and advocate for a more inclusive and diverse philanthropic landscape.

**_Financial Reporting and Analysis_**
- Build and manage the fundraising department budget, report on progress towards KPI goals, and present those reports at board and committee me