Development Director

Environmental Volunteers (EV) seeks a Development Director who will manage all aspects of the development office: annual fund, major gifts, special events, grants, direct mail, and online giving. The Development Director reports to and works closely with the Executive Director to create and implement development strategies and practices that will help EV sustain and grow its operations and fulfill its mission.

The Development Director provides both the overall leadership and the hands-on implementation of EV’s comprehensive development and communications platform. The Development Director is accountable for the strategy, implementation and results for all of EV’s external communications and contributed income programs including: the annual fund; major gifts program; grant writing; corporate sponsorships; direct mail; legacy giving; donor database management; fundraising events; board giving; and online giving. The Development Director also provides support to the EV’s board development and special events committees. The Development Director is a member of the senior leadership team and manages two staff members, three volunteer consultants, and a grant writer.

Primary Responsibilities:

• Strategy: Develops and implements EV’s fundraising strategies. Works closely with the Executive Director on our annual development plan, outlining specific goals for each contributed income program. Monitors the development department income and expense budget. Support the strategic planning, outreach, and community engagement at the EcoCenter.
• Communications: Work closely with the Director of Marketing and Communications in design and communications that builds the EV’s presence and profile among diverse donor and prospect audiences including local, corporate, education, science, philanthropic, and non-profit communities.
• Grants: Research and submit applications, write follow-up reports, and develop relationships with grantors.
• Corporate: Develops corporate sponsorship relationships including possible paid volunteer opportunities.
• Special Events: Manages our annual spring Wake Up to Nature (WUTN) breakfast and all other fundraising events, and donor appreciation events. 
• Direct Mail: Implements our summer, fall appeal, and end-of-year campaigns. 
• Board: Guides the development committee’s work to reach fundraising goals and actively engages some of the board in fundraising activities. Manages ongoing reporting and serves as staff liaison to the development and WUTN committee.
• Relationships: Develops and maintains relationships with individual, foundation and corporate funders.
• Admin: Directs timely and accurate response to donor concerns, requests, and gifts. Supervises the work of the Development Associate. Oversees the management and maintenance of the donor database.
• Measurement: For all development activities, track analytics and data aligned with tangible measures of success.

Requirements:

• Proven organizational and prioritization skills necessary to manage a small development and communications office to achieve optimal results. Attention to detail is a must.
• Ability to motivate and coordinate individuals and groups to support EV’s mission.
• Skilled in using a variety of prospect research tools.
• Ability to develop winning strategies for donor cultivation and solicitation.
• Capital and annual campaign management experience preferred.
• Great communication skills, both written and oral. Recognizes and uses best practices in donor communications, ethics and confidentiality.
• Demonstrated ability to function well as an independent worker and self-starter, team builder, problem-solver and strategic thinker.

We are looking for:

• A warm leader who exudes confidence and care for others, and who builds enduring relationships.
• A person oriented toward the greater good of the organization and the natural environment.
• Someone with a respectful and accessible leadership style, self-assured and comfortable with situations of ambiguity, and able to easily relate to a wide range of constituencies.
• A highly competent team player who finds enjoyment in the workplace, and who is honest, open and balanced.
• Someone with a high degree of emotional intelligence.
• Someone comfortable asking others for money, and helping others who are not as comfortable do the same.
• An entrepreneurial and resourceful leader who is able to recognize and act on new and potential opportunities.
• A ‘get-it-done’ attitude who will not only provide strategic direction, but do the nitty-gritty work too.

Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in business, nonprofit management or related field.
• 5+ years of communications and direct fundraising management experience including annual fund, donor prospecting and cultivation, major gifts, capital campaign, planned giving, grant writing and restricted gift management.
• Excellent computer skills with proficiency in Microsoft Office, Salesforce or equivalent database, Adobe Creative Suite (InDesign, Photoshop, Acrobat), and Google Suite
• Committed to and enthusiastic about EV’s mission and values. Previous work for environmental and/or educational organizations and organizations serving youth and families is a plus.
• Ability to attend events and networking opportunities, including some evenings and weekends.

About the Environmental Volunteers

Since 1972, the Environmental Volunteers (EV) has been sharing the wonders of environmental science with youth, sparking their interest in lifelong learning through discovery of the natural world. Our mission is to promote understanding of, and responsibility for, the environment through hands-on science education. We fulfill our mission in three primary ways: a school-based program that reaches over 10,000 students annually; a college-volunteer led program called Sprout Up; a nature center in the Palo Alto Baylands; and community outreach programs. EV is a volunteer-based organization. Our 125+ volunteers conduct almost all of our programming. The EcoCenter, our headquarters located in the Palo Alto Baylands Nature Preserve, is a new community resource for environmental education and a place that inspires a love of nature and stewardship. We are now growing across the country with EV Sprout Up chapters at UC Santa Barbara, UC Davis, Cal Poly, UCLA, Columbia University /Barnard College, and New York University. 

Our organizational values include:

The Passion of our Volunteers – We believe that nature is awesome, everywhere and for all.  We develop and empower future stewards of nature. Passion for the experience of volunteering continues to spread, inspiring remarkable contributions from our volunteer leaders, staff, partners, and the rest of the EV community.

Collaboration – Internally, we are a highly collaborative and mutually-supportive team.

Externally, we are committed to mutual trust and respect with our partners. We resolve

differences when they may emerge with respect and civility.

Integrity – Our success and reputation depend on our integrity as an organization.

Therefore we use consistent, reliable decision-making to guide our efforts. We apply

common sense and good judgment to our work, and recognize our essential responsibility to use contributions and resources.

Learning – We believe that learning and curiosity are at the core of everything we do. 

Stewardship and Philanthropy – We could not achieve our mission without the generosity, commitment and philanthropic support of our volunteers and donors who share these values.

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion – EV acknowledges systemic racism and other social injustices and their impact on the EV community. We have begun the journey of understanding racism and injustice and their impacts on people of color and others. We are committed to making change within our organization and to supporting change within the EV community towards a more just and equitable future.

EV will also be updating our strategic plan in 2021.

Typical Working Conditions and Travel

The Director of Development will work either in the EV headquarters in Palo Alto, CA, our South Bay Office in Santa Clara, CA, or remotely from the Bay Area. If working remotely, the Director of Development should be available to attend several full days of meetings at the headquarters office in Palo Alto at least once per month and occasionally more often.

Salary and Benefits

The salary range for this position begins at $85,000. Benefits include paid holidays, vacation, sick time, and health, dental, vision, life and long-term disability. Eligible for 401(k) plan after one year of employment.

Equal Opportunity Employer. EV provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, national origin, age, disability, genetic information, marital status, amnesty, or status as a covered veteran, in accordance with applicable federal, state and local laws.

EV complies with all applicable state and local laws governing non-discrimination in employment. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including, but not limited to, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation, and training.

How to apply:

This position is open until filled. 

All interested individuals, including people of color, women, LGBTQ persons are encouraged to apply.

Submit a cover letter and resume in PDF format to: Search@EVols.org 

Subject line: please reference your last name followed by “Development Director”