Senior Director of Development

National Forest Foundation (NFF) is pleased to offer a regular, full-time position to manage and grow unrestricted fundraising at the NFF.

About the NFF: As the official national partner to the USFS, the National Forest Foundation was chartered by Congress in 1993 and today, advances forest resiliency, clean watersheds, and recreation for all. The Foundation has grown significantly in the last few years in programmatic impact, revenue and support, and organizational capacity. NFF leads with impact, deploying roughly 90% of its expenses towards projects and programs across the country’s 193-million-acre National Forest System. NFF is forward-thinking and innovative, seeking ambitious strategies to advance and prepare national forests and grasslands for the future.

Position Function: The NFF seeks an experienced and strategic individual to strengthen and expand the NFF’s unrestricted funding including philanthropic support from individuals, foundations, and corporations. Reporting to the Chief Advancement Officer, this position will serve both as front-line fundraiser focused on growing the NFF’s major donor program, and as a supervisor of a growing team tightly focused on raising unrestricted funds from multiple sources. The position will coordinate closely with all C-Suite members, Director of Conservation Partnerships, and others across the organization to foster the strongest possible culture of philanthropy at the NFF. Among the various sources of unrestricted funds, this position will be chiefly focused on individuals. 

Position Duties and Responsibilities: The Senior Director of Development will: 

• Meet or exceed annual unrestricted revenue goals from all sources.
• Design and build out the team of unrestricted fundraisers needed to achieve aggressive goals. 
• Supervise the team to achieve annual and long-term goals. 
• Strengthen donor acquisition efforts and achieve retention and renewal targets.
• Strategize and foster cohesion among all aspects of unrestricted fundraising to be able to project year-over-year growth from various sources. 
• Recommend annual budgets and goals.
• Maintain a portfolio of 60-80 prospects with focus on Trailblazer Club Members (individual, unrestricted major donors) and other five- and six-figure unrestricted opportunities. 
• With the Chief Advancement Officer, establish short- and long-term philanthropic objectives for the NFF, matching individual prospect interests to institutional priorities for budget-relieving opportunities if unrestricted is not possible. 
• Lead monthly Major Gifts Strategy meetings with President and key staff present. Ensure the mid-level giving program provides a consistent pipeline of major giving opportunities.
• With development staff, ensure a robust stewardship program for individuals tailored for various giving levels.
• Provide support to Board members who secure funds and leverage their connections in the cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship of individual gift prospects.
• Collaborate across departments to strengthen the NFF’s growing culture of philanthropy.
• Encourage and support staff across the NFF to become proficient in and excited about unrestricted fundraising. Serve as an ongoing resource to staff regardless of department. 
• Support the NFF’s brand voice both in visual representation and editorial style to ensure consistency of messaging.
• Represent the NFF’s mission, vision, and impact to constituencies as opportunities arise.

Location: The location for this position is flexible throughout the lower 48 states in close proximity to a major airport. This position is a remote/work-from-home position and requires reliable internet access and a dedicated workspace.

Compensation: The NFF offers competitive compensation and benefits and has recently implemented a new compensation program as part of its commitment to transparency. The salary for this position starts at $124,600 with the ability to grow to $160,200 and above. NFF is committed to internal salary equity.

To Apply: Applications must include both a cover letter and resume. Incomplete packages will not be considered. Please apply by April 4th. Please visit our careers site to apply online.

The National Forest Foundation is an equal opportunity employer – meaning, we provide equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to any characteristic protected by applicable law. Further, we prohibit discrimination, harassment, and retaliation in all aspects of employment, including recruitment, hiring, promotion, compensation, benefits, training, and termination. We strive to foster a work environment where every individual is respected, valued, and treated fairly. This statement reflects our unwavering dedication to fairness, respect, and equality in employment practices and sets the foundation for a positive work environment.

Education and Qualifications: The NFF expects the Senior Director of Development to possess the following qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience.
• Minimum of ten years’ experience in nonprofit fundraising, including annual giving, prospecting, cultivation, proposal development, stewardship practices, and working with Board members.
• A demonstrated track record of successful direct solicitation of gifts of five figures or more. 
• Supervisory experience, including a history of coaching and mentoring to lead staff on to greater effectiveness.
• Familiarity with how marketing and digital strategies integrate into a holistic development strategy.
• Demonstrated proficiency in common office procedures and software, including Microsoft 365 and Office Suite, including PowerPoint, Word, & Excel. 
• Experience and comfort with sophisticated CRM systems, preferably donor databases. 
• Familiarity and/or experience in conservation issues a plus. Passion for public lands and/or outdoor experiences a strong plus.

Abilities and Skills: NFF expects the Senior Director of Development to possess:

• Exceptional communications skills, including strong persuasive written and verbal abilities.
• Exceptional judgment and discretion including the ability to quickly earn the trust and confidence of the NFF’s most important donors. 
• Ability to cultivate new donor relationships.
• Comfort moving between different departments and bridging different goals/strategies within the organization.
• Ability to effectively set priorities, while managing a variety of projects and tasks to successful completion.
• Display creativity and initiative; respond quickly to last-minute needs and changing priorities.
• A team player that is detail-oriented, organized, motivated and creative.