Senior Director of Major Gifts

Upwardly Global • Los Angeles / San Francisco, CA

2d • Remote

About The Position

Upwardly Global (UpGlo) is a national nonprofit that helps immigrants, refugees, and asylees rebuild their professional careers in the United States. We work at both the direct service and system-change levels, building a more inclusive workforce and economy by ensuring everyone can fully use their skills and talents. This is a build role, not a maintenance role, focused on finding, qualifying, and closing new major donors. The case for support is concrete and measurable, showing donors the economic return on a placed professional. The prospect universe is genuinely underworked, with individual giving currently accounting for roughly $2M of the $14M in annual revenue. The acquisition mandate is explicit, with new donor acquisition being the primary success measure. The role is supported by a CEO, CRO, Board, and program leadership who actively open doors, and resources include prospect research, wealth screening, and Salesforce.

Requirements

• A documented record of acquiring new major donors, not only growing inherited portfolios.
• Personal closes at the six-figure level, with seven-figure experience or a credible path to it.
• 10+ years in nonprofit fundraising or comparable relationship-based revenue work, including 5+ years focused on major or individual giving.
• Experience building a pipeline from thin inventory: prospect identification, qualification discipline, and moves management you designed rather than inherited.
• Experience managing and developing frontline fundraisers, with evidence that your team's numbers improved under you.
• Fluency with CRM-driven pipeline management and data-informed portfolio decisions (Salesforce NPSP preferred).
• The judgment and presence to earn trust quickly with high-net-worth individuals, executives, and Board members.
• Real interest in UpGlo's mission, and the ability to speak about immigration and economic mobility with nuance and care.
• Must reside in the SF Bay Area or Los Angeles.

Nice To Haves

• Campaign experience, particularly in the quiet phase.
• Networks in technology, finance, immigrant-serving philanthropy, or family foundations.
• Lived or professional experience with immigration, resettlement, or workforce development.

Responsibilities

• Source, qualify, and convert new major donors at the $10K+ level, personally carrying relationships from discovery through close.
• Design and run a disciplined prospecting engine: wealth screening, peer and Board referral, network mapping, event follow-up, DAF and family foundation research, and conversion of annual and mid-level donors.
• Build re-engagement pathways for lapsed and dormant donors and upgrade paths for existing supporters with untapped capacity.
• Partner with the CRO to set and hold the Individual Giving team's qualification standards: visits, moves, pipeline velocity; ensuring acquisition is never crowded out by renewal work.
• Manage a personal portfolio of high-net-worth donors and prospects, securing six- and seven-figure gifts.
• Craft tailored solicitation strategies that connect each donor's motivation to UpGlo's program and policy work.
• Represent UpGlo externally with authenticity, articulating our mission and results credibly to sophisticated audiences.
• Partner with the CRO and lead the major gifts and individual giving program end to end: strategy, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship.
• Partner with the Director of Annual Giving and the Director of Stewardship to build one coherent donor journey from first gift to transformational commitment.
• Build, supervise, and coach a team of gift officers and donor engagement staff, building a culture that rewards pipeline-building, not only renewal.
• Work with our talented Development Operations team to ensure Salesforce, pipeline reporting, and forecasting remain genuinely useful for relationship management as we scale.
• Collaborate with the CEO, Board, and leadership team to open new philanthropic networks, and with Finance, Communications, and Program teams to align priorities and impact storytelling.
• Partner with the Director of Stewardship on the stewardship and recognition strategy that makes donors want to give again, and larger.
• Help shape donor events, briefings, and campaigns that create qualification opportunities rather than one-off touchpoints.

Benefits

• Comprehensive medical, dental, and vision insurance.
• 401(k) with employer match.
• 160 hours PTO, 72 hours of sick leave, 16 hours of health and wellness time, your birthday off, and an organization-wide paid closure from December 24 through January 1.
• 12 weeks paid parental leave, gender inclusive.
• Dedicated travel and cultivation budget.
• Prospect research and wealth screening tools.
• CEO and Board who show up for donor meetings.

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Senior
• Education Level: No Education Listed