Director of Development (Remote)

Institute for Human Studies•Arlington, VA

2d•Remote

About The Position

Director of Development Job Summary: The Director of Development leads IHS’s fundraising execution and has direct oversight of Development Operations, ensuring that fundraising strategy, systems, and execution operate as a cohesive and sustainable whole. The Director is accountable for clarifying priorities, establishing decision-rights, coaching fundraisers, and ensuring that Major Gifts, Foundations, and Annual Giving function effectively as an integrated system. This role works closely with Communications & Marketing, Programs, Finance, Executive leadership, and the Board to ensure high-quality donor-facing deliverables, aligned engagement efforts, and strong fundraising execution.

Requirements

8+ years of progressive experience in nonprofit fundraising.
Demonstrated success cultivating, soliciting, and stewarding donor relationships.
Strong understanding of end-to-end development execution across major gifts, foundations, and annual giving.
Direct experience working within these philanthropic functions strongly preferred.
Proven people management experience and ability to coach teams through growth or change.
Strong operational, systematic, and data-driven fluency, including CRM-enabled fundraising and reporting; Salesforce and Asana experience highly preferred.
Strong cross-functional leadership and collaboration skills.
Excellent writing, editing, and quality-control instincts for donor-facing materials.
Comfort representing the organization externally in donor and partner settings.
Alignment with IHS’s mission and values.

Responsibilities

Lead day-to-day execution of fundraising across Major Gifts, Foundations, and Annual Giving, aligned with organizational priorities and departmental strategy set by leadership.
Manage, coach, and develop fundraising staff by setting clear priorities, expectations, and performance goals.
Coach fundraisers toward ambitious moves management and upgrade strategies, ensuring follow-up and next steps are tracked and executed.
Provide leadership and direction to Development Operations, ensuring systems, workflows, staffing, and processes support effective fundraising execution.
Establish and maintain clear ownership, handoffs, and decision frameworks across fundraising functions to support efficient execution and appropriate oversight.
Ensure Salesforce data integrity, reporting readiness, and compliance expectations are met across fundraising activities.
Use reporting and dashboards to guide prioritization, coaching, and performance management, translating pipeline signals into clear actions and accountability.
Oversee the quality, clarity, and consistency of donor-facing materials (including proposals, reports, briefs, decks, and stewardship touchpoints) in coordination with Communications & Marketing.
Collaborate cross-functionally with Communications, Finance, and Programs to support aligned fundraising execution and donor-facing deliverables.
Partner with the Executive Director and Board to strategically support donor cultivation, stewardship, and upgrades.
Escalate strategic, reputational, or cross-functional issues to leadership as needed.
Manage a portfolio of major or transformational donors, modeling effective cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship.
Up to 25% travel required.