We are seeking an experienced and strategic Senior Director, Individual Giving to set and drive the vision for Common Cause's individual giving program. This leader will oversee a comprehensive strategy spanning major gifts and direct response, including monthly giving, direct mail, telemarketing, and emerging channels, to grow our donor community and advance our organizational revenue goals. The Senior Director will lead and develop our Major Gifts team and build a culture of fundraising across the organization by equipping senior leaders and staff to engage donors effectively while also personally cultivating and stewarding a portfolio of individual donors.

This is a full-time role reporting to the Vice President, Development. The position is based in Washington, DC, with an expectation to work in our office at least two days per week and to travel nationally for donor meetings and other business needs. We hope our new Senior Director, Individual Giving will start in December.

Responsibilities

Set and drive the strategic vision for our individual giving work at Common Cause

Develop and implement a comprehensive and impactful major gifts strategy to increase our revenue through driving alignment between our development and communications teams

Supervise a Major Gifts team, collaboratively setting clear, actionable goals to ensure consistent growth of Common Cause’s major gifts community

Coach and develop team members towards personal goals, and support their career progression and retention at Common Cause

Manage team budget and establish systems to track and report on all major gifts fundraising activities

Set our strategic approach for long-term donor and prospect engagement, and expand our approach to direct response donor acquisition, including expanding our approach for monthly giving, and integrate direct mail with digital campaigns, email marketing, telemarketing, and Common Cause’s websites

Identify and implement new channels and emerging fundraising opportunities (for example, workplace giving, donations of stock, qualified charitable distributions, and retirement accounts)

Establish a culture of fundraising across the organization

Create and drive strategy for how the Major Gifts team will partner with senior leaders and other teams

Drive the strategy for how senior leaders can engage with their own major donor portfolios

Establish systems and processes to ensure senior leaders and other teams have the resources they need to engage with major donors

Drive changes across our organization that increase internal support for our fundraising initiatives

Establish systems to ensure all staff interactions with major donors are tracked appropriately

Establish and grow a personal portfolio of individual donors

Build an individual portfolio of donors to total $1.25 million or more annually

Develop strategic approach to cultivate and maintain these relationships, focusing on increasing gifts over time

Design and execute major donor fundraising campaigns to increase engagement

Build and nurture relationships with Donor Advisors and Donor Advised Funds

Other duties as assigned

You will thrive in this role if you have:

A strong commitment to Common Cause’s nonpartisan mission and to advancing civil rights through our pro-democracy agenda

Ability to compel action through both written and verbal communication, including distilling complex concepts for a broad audience, and to differentiate communications as needed for various audiences

A track record of working collaboratively with others, with the ability to build rapport, trust, and credibility with multiple stakeholders with diverse interests – including board members, senior management, volunteers, and others

Innovative and strategic thinking skills, with the ability to navigate through ambiguity to achieve goals, and a resourceful approach to solve problems

Ability to navigate organizational and power dynamics, respectfully navigate conflict while maintaining your values, and influence others to adopt changes to meet common goals

Ability to manage and meet deadlines for multiple short- and long-term priorities at once, with high attention to detail; strong organization skills, and the ability to manage your time independently

A commitment to equity in the goals of your work and in how you work with others

Openness to feedback and awareness of your own strengths and areas for growth

Familiarity with office productivity tools including Microsoft Office and Zoom, and a working knowledge of CRM software (Common Cause uses ROI Solutions and Action Network)

The following is required:

Experience cultivating and closing five-, six-, and seven-figure major gifts, developing donor strategies, and effectively cultivating and stewarding major donors

Experience fundraising through multiple direct response channels

Experience conceiving and hosting successful fundraising events

Knowledge of how to differentiate between 501(c)(3) and 501(c)(4) fundraising practices

Demonstrated knowledge of the philanthropic landscape, prospect research methodology, best practices, and evolving trends in philanthropy

Have managed and developed a team; set strategic direction for a team, and built a unified approach to achieve goals

A track record of leading organization-wide change initiatives

Ability to travel at least 10 times per year for meetings with donors, as well as team and/or all staff retreats

Ability to work in-person in the DC office at least two days per week

Willing to have a social media presence on behalf of Common Cause, including being tagged on posts and creating content on behalf of the organization (as needed, Common Cause will provide accounts for staff members to use)

Per our nonpartisan policy, Common Cause staff members may not currently be in elected office (or running for office); on the Steering Committee or Finance Committee for any political candidate; or affiliated with the leadership of a political party

Additional Information about this role:

This position is classified as supervisory and therefore not included in the union-represented collective bargaining unit

Common Cause is unable to sponsor or take over sponsorship of an employment visa at this time; please note that if hired, you will be asked to produce documentation for authorization to work in the US

Common Cause is an equal opportunity employer and welcomes applicants of any race, creed, color, religion, ethnicity, national origin, income class, political affiliation, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, disability, veteran status, or marital status, as well as applicants who have been previously incarcerated.

Common Cause (501(c)(4)) and Common Cause Education Fund (501(c)(3)) are nonpartisan, nonprofit grassroots affiliate organizations dedicated to upholding the core values of American democracy. We work to create an open, honest, and accountable government that serves the public interest; promote equal rights, opportunity, and representation for all; and empower all people to make their voices heard in the political process.  

Founded in 1970 and headquartered in Washington, DC, Common Cause has members and supporters living in every congressional district in the United States, and offices in 23 states around the country. 

Senior Director, Individual Giving

You will thrive in this role if you have:

The following is required:

Additional Information about this role:

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