Associate Director, Private Fundraising Communications

International Rescue Committee•New York, NY

About The Position

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) responds to the world's worst humanitarian crises, helping to restore health, safety, education, economic wellbeing, and power to people devastated by conflict and disaster. Founded in 1933 at the call of Albert Einstein, the IRC is one of the world's largest international humanitarian non-governmental organizations (INGO), at work in more than 40 countries and 29 U.S. cities helping people to survive, reclaim control of their future and strengthen their communities. A force for humanity, IRC employees deliver lasting impact by restoring safety, dignity and hope to millions. If you're a solutions-driven, passionate change-maker, come join us in positively impacting the lives of millions of people world-wide for a better future. Job Overview: Marketing & Mobilization (M&M), a part of External Relations (ER) is a dynamic team, tasked with overseeing and creating communications and marketing, building the IRC’s global profile and brand, increasing private revenue from deeper donor engagement and partnerships, and influencing our target audiences. In alignment with our Strategy100 commitments, M&M has launched ambitious multi-year campaigns that raise funding, profile and influence and will improve our share of voice and resonance in key geographies and globally. The Content and Creative team, a part of M&M, consists of award-winning creative specialists and idea partners, developing powerful communications and experiences to engage audiences and ultimately to deliver on ER ambitions and objectives. Our mission is to be a leading provider of brand creative and storytelling products about the IRC’s clients, staff and programs. The Associate Director, Private Fundraising Communications is a strategic leader focused on building a best-in-class grant writing and philanthropic communications arm within the IRC, ensuring content is compelling, on brand, and aligned with the organization’s programmatic goals. This person oversees the development and execution of concept notes, proposals, pitch decks, reports, and other fundraising content for private sector partners (High Net Worth Individuals (HNWI), Corporates, Foundations, Trusts, Global New Business).

Requirements

Work Experience: 7-8 years of editorial experience, preferably in a leadership role within a nonprofit, agency, or media environment.
Demonstrated Skills and Competencies: Experience in crafting compelling proposals for high-net-worth donors, foundations, and corporations.
Exceptional writing, editing, and storytelling skills, with an eye for detail and an ability to translate complex ideas into clear, impactful messages.
Strong project management skills, with the ability to manage multiple projects and meet tight deadlines.
Leadership experience with a demonstrated ability to mentor and develop a team.
Strong interpersonal skills and the ability to collaborate with diverse stakeholders.
Able to work across cultures and understand different expectations, norms of a diverse global community of funders, ensure awareness of differences in language and culture when reporting across different localities.

Responsibilities

Strategic Direction, Proposal & Grant Writing and Business Development Strategic Direction and Business Development: Drive the strategy for the Private Fundraising Communications team in close partnership with fundraisers and program leaders, ensuring alignment with IRC’s fundraising goals and organizational priorities.
Set and execute the team’s long-term vision, annual priorities, and workflow approach enabling the development of compelling cases for support across core functions—including evergreen content, emergency appeals, high-value proposals and “big bet” initiatives, restricted fundraising materials, knowledge management, and cross-team collaboration.
Fundraising Content Oversight and Writing: Oversee the development of compelling, donor centric content that showcases IRC’s impact and advances fundraising goals.
As an editor and writer, partner closely with colleagues across the organization to translate complex programmatic information into clear, persuasive narratives tailored to diverse private sector audiences.
Creative Operations and Project Management: Lead and continuously refine the writing cycle, production processes, and review systems for all private sector fundraising materials.
Ensure smooth coordination across teams, clarity of roles, and adherence to timelines for proposals, reports, concept notes, pitch decks, and emergency appeals.
Editorial and Quality Assurance: Provide editorial oversight, coaching, and structured feedback to ensure all written products meet IRC’s standards for excellence, accuracy, tone, and ethical storytelling.
Champion adherence to branding, style guidance, and safeguarding principles.
Ensure deliverables strengthen IRC’s positioning as a leading humanitarian and development actor to Global HNWI, Corporate, and Foundations & Trusts audiences.
Team Management & Leadership Creative Leadership: Provide strategic and day-to-day leadership to a high-performing team of four philanthropic communications professionals, cultivating strong writers and innovative thinkers through coaching, mentorship, and professional development.
Foster a culture of excellence, accountability, equity and growth.
Team Culture and Professional Development: Cultivate a culture of creativity, collaboration, and continuous improvement.
Encourage experimentation and innovation in business development writing, reporting, and donor communications.
Promote learning and professional growth by identifying internal development opportunities, strengthening team members’ networks, and ensuring access to relevant training.
Project Allocation: Oversee team resourcing and assign projects through the Salesforce Case system, ensuring balanced workloads, equitable distribution, timely delivery, and strong client service to internal partners.
Performance Measurement and Reporting: Develop and maintain reporting mechanisms to track workload, quality, outputs, and donor facing results across the Private Fundraising Communications portfolio.
Analyze trends and performance data to inform strategic planning, improve workflows, and optimize content development processes across Global HNWI, Corporate, and Foundations & Trusts. ‑facing results across the Private Fundraising Communications portfolio.
Analyze trends and performance data to inform strategic planning, improve workflows, and optimize content development processes across Global HNWI, Corporate, and Foundations & Trusts.
Cross IRC Collaboration: Build and maintain strong partnerships with fundraising leads (Global HNWI, Corporate, Foundations & Trusts) and with teams across the IRC—including M&M, Finance, Crisis Response Recovery & Development, Resettlement, Asylum and Integration, and Research and Innovation.
Facilitate feedback loops, run regular check‑ins with senior partners, and ensure the team’s content reflects IRC’s best‑in‑class programmatic work and strategic direction.

Benefits

10 sick days
10 US holidays
20-25 paid time off days depending on role and tenure
medical insurance starting at $163 per month
dental starting at $6.50 per month
vision starting at $5 per month
FSA for healthcare and commuter costs
a 403b retirement savings plans with immediately vested matching
disability & life insurance
an Employee Assistance Program which is available to our staff and their families to support counseling and care in times of crisis and mental health struggles