Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Los Angeles

Director of Philanthropy

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Los Angeles (BBBSLA) seeks an accomplished philanthropic leader to serve as the Agency's Director of Philanthropy, with a focus on individual and institutional giving.

BBBSLA serves close to 1,500 at-risk children and youth (ages 6-22) annually with aspirations to materially grow our footprint, while continuing to lead the Big Brothers Big Sisters national network in metrics that measure the quality and effectiveness of our work. Over the next twenty-five years, BBBSLA intends to improve the lives of a significant proportion of our county's at-risk youth and become a potent force for a positive transformation of Los Angeles' most challenging neighborhoods and schools.

BBBSLA manages a professional staff of 35 and an annual budget of approximately $4.5-$5M. 40 influential community leaders serve on the governing Board of Directors or as Trustees.

POSITION OVERVIEW

Reporting to the Senior Director of Development, the Director of Philanthropy's core function is to raise funds from individuals and institutions to grow BBBSLA's mission impact. This newly established role will be responsible for driving fundraising revenue in association with individual and major donors, foundations, and government (city, state, and federal).

The Director of Philanthropy will identify, cultivate, solicit, and steward current and prospective donors to expand their financial support of BBBSLA. The selected candidate will oversee a portfolio of individuals and institutions and manage a small team, which includes a Donor Relations Manager and external Grant Writer.

The Director of Philanthropy will work closely with the President & CEO, Board of Directors, Trustees, Senior Director of Development, and other staff leaders to diversify and significantly increase BBBSLA's revenue. The Director of Philanthropy will be responsible for developing, implementing, and managing the strategy and activities to drive growth and increase opportunities for individual gifts, major gifts, planned gifts, and institutional fundraising. This role is highly visible, both internally with the Agency's staff and governing Board and externally as a business representative of the organization.

ESSENTIAL JOB ACTIVITIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

The activities and responsibilities described are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the core functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Achieve fundraising goals for Individual Gifts, Major Gifts, Recurring Donations, Planned Giving, Foundation Grants, and Government Grants. FY23-24 Goal = ~$2 million, and moderate to significant growth is expected in subsequent years.
Create and implement strategies to solicit, receive, and steward Individual, Major, and Planned gifts with an emphasis on strategies that maximize gift potential and align donors' philanthropic objectives with BBBSLA's vision, strategies & operational plan.
Assist in the development and annual refinement of BBBSLA's Case for Philanthropic Support, in partnership with the Senior Director of Development.
Develop and implement a comprehensive Donor Stewardship Plan.
- Execute stewardship and solicitation of existing partners and individuals.
- Maintain high quality, high touch, high impact relationships with donors, partners, prospects and supporters.
Conceptualize and implement detailed campaigns and events aimed at increasing donor engagement and participation.
Organize and host donor cultivation events.
Build a Planned Giving Program, including the organization of estate planning seminars and develop relationships with financial advisors.
In partnership with an external Grant Writer, plan, develop, direct and execute a strategy to attract foundation and government support aligned with Agency programs, priorities, initiatives and resource needs.
Oversee research on local foundations and individuals and their giving history to identify potential opportunities for new partners and supporters. Prepare and present proposals.
Develop relationships and attend site visits with current and prospective funders both when requested and proactively to maintain strong communication.
Oversee compliance with government funding (local, state, federal).
Supervise direct reports and serve as the liaison to external consultants, as follows:
- Donor Relations Manager
- External Grant Writer
Construct annual plans, timelines, performance benchmarks, and progress reports to guide activities, achievements, and emerging opportunities.
Maintain appropriate reports and documentation to ensure accurate forecasting and reporting. Maintain pristine records for all incoming revenue, as well as prospects.
Cultivate the values of integrity, inclusiveness, stewardship, safety, and continuous quality improvement within the organization.
Model and encourage a Culture of Philanthropy across the Agency.

QUALIFICATIONS AND EXPERIENCE:

The Director of Philanthropy should have the following experience and qualifications:

Bachelor's degree.
5-7+ years of substantial work experience in Fund Development roles at non-profit organizations, with growing responsibilities and achievements. Transferable skills will be considered when coupled with significant nonprofit volunteer experience.
Proven track record of achieving fundraising goals and securing 6+ figure gifts.
Knowledge of effective fundraising strategies and trends.
Ability to develop/maintain effective partnerships with community constituents, corporate executives, nonprofit groups, and private individuals. A natural ability to build and maintain genuine relationships.
Aptitude to innovate and remain creative.
Ability to track and analyze success metrics.
Ability to think strategically, anticipate future consequences and trends, and incorporate them into the Fund Development plan.
Understanding of IRS regulations regarding nonprofits; proficiency in intermediate financial analysis and related business skills.
Excellent interpersonal communication skills, both written and verbal.
Strong listening and retention skills.
High level of organization and exceptional time management skills.
Proactive and ambitious nature.
Demonstrated advanced computer literacy with MS Office programs and CRM platforms.
Willing to travel locally and nationally, as needed.
Emotionally mature with a sense of humor.

COMPETENCIES:

Customer/Client Focus-Is dedicated to meeting the expectations and requirements of fellow staff, volunteers, children, parents and agency partners; talks and acts with them in mind; establishes and maintains effective relationship with customers/clients and gains their trust and respect; views the role as adding value to the experience of volunteers and children in their match relationship; builds parental support for the match; deals effectively with diversity; demonstrates high degree of flexibility and adaptability.

Listening-Practices attentive and active listening; has the patience to hear people out, can accurately restate the opinions of others even when he/she/they disagree; understands child safety issues and is vigilant in recognizing signs of problems.

Interpersonal Savvy-Relates well to all kinds of people; builds appropriate rapport; listens carefully to all points of view; builds constructive and effective relationships; uses diplomacy and tact; capable of diffusing difficult situations comfortably; doesn't show frustration. Ability to mediate and create middle ground understanding.

Approachability-Is easy to approach and talk to; spends the extra efforts to put others at ease; can be warm, pleasant and gracious; is sensitive to and patient with the needs and interests of others; builds rapport well; is a good listener.

Priority Setting-Spends her/her/their time and the time of others on what' s important; quickly zeros in on the critical few and puts the trivial many aside; can quickly sense what will help or hinder accomplishing a goal; eliminates roadblocks; creates focus.

Commitment to Task - Willing and able to pursue goals with commitment and takes pride in accomplishment. Willing and able to take action to achieve goals and strives to exceed goals.

Results/Outcome Oriented - Is motivated by results; can be counted on to meet and exceed goals successfully; bottom-line oriented; pushes self for results; sets clear objectives and measures and monitors process and progress.

Organizing-Marshals resources to get things done; orchestrates multiple activities at once to accomplish a goal; uses resources effectively and efficiently; identifies informal and incomplete information in time to do something about it.

Commitment to JEDI (Justice, Equity, Diversity, Inclusion) - A deep commitment to fostering a safe, equitable, inclusive environment where diversity is celebrated, and justice is ensured for all. A commitment to JEDI expands beyond staff and internal operations to our matches, parents/guardians, community partners, constituents, and community in general.

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Physical Demands: The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions. While performing the duties of this job, the employee is frequently required to sit, stand, walk, bend and drive. Job requires frequent verbal and computer communication. Computer, telephone and fax use are required.

Americans with Disabilities Act: Applicants as well as employees who are or become disabled must be able to perform the essential duties & responsibilities either unaided or with reasonable accommodation. The organization shall determine reasonable accommodation on a case-by-case basis in accordance with applicable law.

Working Location: Location is based on a percentage of where work time is spent. Indoors - 70%. Travel (local) - 30%: job requires local travel to communities, corporations, institutions and individuals. Occasional out-of-state travel to applicable approved conferences. Currently, BBBSLA is operating on a hybrid work schedule, with employees selecting 2+ days per week to work in one of our office locations (Koreatown, Lakewood, Northridge), with the opportunity to work remotely up to 3 days per week.

Equal Employment Opportunity: BBBSLA is committed to the principle of equal employment opportunity for all qualified individuals. All employment decisions are based on business needs, job requirements and individual qualifications, without regard to race, color, religion, national, social or ethnic origin, sex (including pregnancy), age, physical, mental or sensory disability, sexual orientation, gender identity and/or expression, marital, civil union or domestic partnership status, past or present military service, family medical history or genetic information, family or parental status, or any other status protected by the laws or regulations in the locations where we operate.

Compensation, Hours, and Benefits: Exempt, full-time position (approximately 40 hours / week) with a starting annual salary in the range of $80,000 - $95,000 DOE. Typical work schedule includes weekday and some weekend work, depending on activities and engagements. Benefits include 21 days paid PTO, 14 paid holidays, comprehensive health plans covering 100% of the employee cost of medical, dental and vision insurance, as well as STD, LTD, life insurance and an employee assistance program. Optional pet insurance, critical care, and flexible spending accounts. Eligible for 403(b) retirement plan(s) immediately, with salary matching benefits (up to 4% of salary) after one year of service.

Big Brothers Big Sisters of Greater Los Angeles is an Equal Opportunity Employer

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Director of Philanthropy