Development Strategist

Humane Society for Tacoma & Pierce County•Tacoma, WA

4h•Onsite

About The Position

Are you a relationship-builder with a passion for animals? The Humane Society for Tacoma & Pierce County is looking for a Development Strategist to help create better futures for pets and their people. In this hands-on, on-site role, you'll drive multi-channel fundraising campaigns, craft compelling impact stories, manage a portfolio of mid-level donors, and work to strengthen our annual fund. We welcome candidates from a variety of backgrounds — including recent graduates, career changers, and those with journalism or storytelling experience. A bachelor's degree or three years of nonprofit fundraising experience is required. Ready to make a difference? If you're entrepreneurial, detail-oriented, and energized by connecting donors to a cause they love, we'd love to hear from you. The Development Strategist is responsible for advancing the organization’s financial and relational goals with end-to-end support of direct mail, digital campaigns, recurring gifts, donor stewardship, and events. Working to renew and upgrade support, they will also manage a portfolio of mid-level donors, strengthening relationships through personal cultivation and solicitation. The Development Strategist is an engaged team member, collaborating within the Development and Marketing departments on strategies, events, and activities.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree from an accredited institution or three years of non-profit fundraising experience.
Ability to relate to people of diverse backgrounds, training, and experience.
High attention to detail and the ability to audit work for accuracy and quality.
Ability to handle confidential information with discretion.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
Finalist applicants must satisfactorily complete a pre-employment background check.

Nice To Haves

Two year’s experience in fundraising or related field, preferably with an animal welfare organization or other non-profit organization.
Strong knowledge of fundraising principles.
Passion for animal welfare and creating better futures for pets and their people.
Posses an entrepreneurial spirit, crafts creative solutions and opens doors to new donor relationships.
Ability to work independently with proven adeptness at collaborating with cross-functional teams.
Outstanding interpersonal and relationship-building skills, with the ability to develop and advance relationships with a diverse community of internal and external interestholders.
Strong working knowledge of Microsoft Office (especially Outlook, Teams, Word, Excel, and PowerPoint).
CRM database and communication systems experience, preferably with Raisers Edge/NXT, FreeWill, Monday, Word Press, Tatango, Gogo Photo, Give Butter and/or Brevo.

Responsibilities

Create and implement donor-centric content for multi-channel fundraising campaigns to support retention, renewal, and acquisition including direct mail, giving days, texting program, and photo contests.
Track results of campaigns and events, compiling data to measure progress towards organizational goals. Create and distribute outcome reports that present campaign analytics and results in a timely fashion.
Steward a portfolio of mid-level donors and prospects (35-50), including: identification, qualification, cultivation, solicitation, and recognition for assigned donors and prospects.
Develop and maintain relationships, stewarding and expanding the reach of the Kennel Sponsorship and Love Lives Forever Memorial programs.
Manage and maintain contest, communication and giving platforms as assigned, including Gogo Photo, Give Butter, Tatango, Brevo and Fundraise Up.
Support best in class stewardship by coordinating quarterly impact reports and donor-facing newsletters, and making weekly thank you calls as assigned.
Partner with the Director of Development to lead fundraising events, taking responsibility for planning, logistics, audience development, materials, and outcome reporting.
Lead the collection of urgent need, impact stories, and related photos by monitoring animal care database and collaborating with other departments, community adopters, and foster volunteers.
Assist planed giving efforts by coordinating with FreeWill representative(s) to deploy planned giving campaigns as advised.
Participate in strategic funding discussions, assessing donors’ giving history and philanthropic capacity, to increase donor engagement and build a pipeline between annual, major, and planned giving.
Support the creation and implementation of new fundraising strategies in collaboration with the Development and Marketing teams, maximizing the use of data, current best practice, and other resources to inform decisions.
Provide complete and accurate data entry in Raisers Edge/NXT, recording actions and mailings, maintaining up-to-date contact information, personalized solicitation plans (opportunities) and all other relevant details.
Partner with Development and Marketing teams to ensure all communication is consistent with brand standards and organizational messaging.
Support donor-centered stewardship and cultivation events as assigned.
Represent the organization at community events, networking functions, and engagement opportunities as assigned, effectively articulating its mission, programs, and funding needs.
Give tours of the shelter as appropriate and/or assigned.
Cross train and serve as back-up for the Donor Systems Specialist, to cover time off and/or assist with gift entry during heavy donation seasons.
Keep informed and up-to-date about the shelter’s program work.
Handles animals in the shelter’s care as required.
Contribute to team efforts by accomplishing other tasks and special projects as assigned.