Vice President, Development

Blessings in a Backpack•Chicago, IL

1d•Hybrid

About The Position

The Vice President of Development is the architect of the organization’s central fundraising engine and a key driver of enterprise-wide growth. Reporting to the Chief Development Officer (CDO), this role is responsible for directing the foundation of central fundraising services, including individual giving, grants, and special events, to ensure fundraising teams are equipped with the infrastructure and strategy needed to scale. The Vice President bridges the gap between high-level strategy and tactical execution by directly managing a high-impact portfolio of national and multi-market donors. This role ensures that Blessings in a Backpack’s fundraising operations are consistent, sophisticated, and high performing across the entire 'One Team' landscape.

Requirements

10+ years of progressive fundraising experience, including senior-level leadership or strategy roles.
Demonstrated success across individual giving, events, and/or grants in a multi- market or complex organization.
Experience partnering with senior leaders to shape fundraising direction.
Strong strategic, analytical, and facilitation skills.

Nice To Haves

Experience in a nonprofit with regional, chapter-based, or federated structures.
Experience supporting enterprise fundraising initiatives with local execution.
Comfort working across teams with shared accountability.

Responsibilities

Partner closely with the CDO to shape the organization’s overall fundraising vision and identify opportunities that can be activated locally and scaled across markets.
Direct Individual/Leadership Giving, Grants, and Special Events, participate in corporate giving initiatives and standardize the core pillars of the development department.
Create and deploy the centralized frameworks, toolkits, and scalable models that support local execution of campaigns that incorporate the local touch but sophistication reflective of our national size and presence.
Directly manage and grow a curated portfolio of high-capacity individual donors and national corporations and foundations.
Identify and close multi-market opportunities and partnerships in collaboration with national partnerships, marketing, and regional teams.
Act as a senior thought partner to Regional Vice Presidents, supporting regional performance through strategy, insight, and collaborative problem- solving.
Translate enterprise fundraising priorities into clear, adaptable frameworks that support local decision-making and execution.
Identify common challenges across regions and elevate solutions that drive consistency and performance.
Work in close partnership with the Development Operations Director to ensure systems, data, and reporting inform strategy and goal-setting.
Use performance data to assess effectiveness, identify trends, and recommend strategic adjustments.
Influence across teams and functions without direct operational control, building alignment through trust and clarity.