Position Overview

Pride of Baltimore, Inc. seeks a highly collaborative individual to lead fundraising activities in support of the organization’s operating, capital, and special projects budgets, to expand our capacity to identify, cultivate, and sustain varied sources of funding, and to grow our corporate and individual relationships. The development director provides energetic and creative leadership to enhance and enlarge philanthropic investments in Pride, Inc. and fully engages in strategic decisions that guide the direction of the organization. The development director works with the executive director and the board of directors to institutionalize best practices of philanthropy and fund development within the organization. The development director reports to the executive director.

Principal functions of this position include 1) raising funds for annual operating purposes, capital projects, and other special projects through close collaboration with the executive director, the board of directors, and other staff; 2) developing constituencies through a comprehensive program of cultivation and recruitment of community leaders and prospects; and 3) managing all infrastructure aspects of development and fundraising for the organization.

Pride, Inc’s mission is to promote historical maritime education, foster economic development and tourism, and represent the people of Maryland in ports throughout the world. Pride of Baltimore II set sail as the goodwill ambassador for the state of Maryland in 1988. She was built to continue the mission of her predecessor, Pride of Baltimore, tragically lost in a storm in the Atlantic Ocean in May 1986. Today, with support from individuals, businesses, the city of Baltimore, and the state of Maryland, Pride of Baltimore II sails around the U.S. and overseas to share the rich maritime history of Baltimore and to promote Maryland’s vibrant economic development opportunities. Pride’s annual budget is approximately $1.25M.

If you are the right candidate for this position, you are an engaging, strategic, optimistic, and outgoing individual with a proven track record of development success, who can envision, plan for, and manage growth, as well as adapt quickly in a fast-paced environment. You are a superior communicator who is passionate about Pride’s mission and vision and whose enthusiasm inspires others.

Primary Duties and Responsibilities

Raising funds for annual operating purposes, capital projects, and other special projects through close collaboration with the executive director, the board of directors, and other staff

• Plans and implements efforts to raise funds for operations, capital projects, and other special projects through innovative and traditional methods, including:
  • Leading implementation and analysis of the annual giving program, including online, direct mail, and other activities, with a focus on growth
  • Establishing and administering a planned giving program
  • With executive director, managing all capital campaign activities including engaging the board of directors and other volunteers in readiness for a major capital campaign
  • Overseeing annual fundraising events
  • With executive director, overseeing and directing all aspects of grant funding opportunities and reporting

• Develops annual plans and timelines for growth-oriented fundraising, creates strategies, assigns staff and recruits volunteers, and sets expectations for achieving goals. Follows up to assure results.
• Regularly reports to executive director on status of fundraising effort, using comprehensive metrics that reflect “best practices.” Monitors and reports on own and delegated responsibilities to staff and board.
• Stays current on trends, evaluates the effect of internal and external forces, keeps informed of best practices and essential laws and regulations impacting nonprofit fundraising.
• Ensures that philanthropy and fund development are carried out in keeping with Pride, Inc’s mission, vision, values, and plans.

Developing constituencies through a comprehensive program of cultivation and recruitment of community leaders and prospects

• Partners with and motivates the board of directors and other volunteers to be effective fundraisers; develops and implements strategies to build a broad base of supporters beyond the board who will be advocates of, solicitors for, and donors to Pride, Inc.
• Works collaboratively with the staff and board of directors to recognize and leverage opportunities for prospect and funder cultivation.
• Manages cultivation activities and programs to increase awareness and involvement of community members and public officials in affairs of Pride of Baltimore, Inc., engaging board, executive director, and staff as appropriate.
• Helps set naming opportunities, match prospects, and design annual giving incentives to corporations, foundations, and individuals.
• Advocates for Pride, Inc. at community events.

Managing all infrastructure aspects of development and fundraising for the organization

• Implements systems to achieve research, cultivation, recognition, and stewardship of donors and prospects. Establishes and monitors appropriate record keeping systems for timely and accurate processing, reporting, acknowledging, and collecting of gifts.
• Helps develop a balanced and efficient funding mix of donor sources and solicitation programs tailored to the needs of the organization that will enable it to attract, retain, and motivate donors and fundraising volunteers and grow its revenue base.
• Prepares short- and long-range strategic and operational growth-oriented plans with measurable growth indices for all aspects of the development effort.
• Develops and regularly monitors and evaluates revenue and expense budgets.
• Creates written policies and procedures in line with “best practices” in the field and ensures that such documentation is regularly reviewed and updated.
• In coordination with other staff, develops constituent communication strategies, and plans and oversees development of all fundraising-related print and online collateral materials.
• Acts as coach and advisor on fundraising practices for all employees and board members of Pride, Inc. and models behavior that supports fundraising goals.
• Motivates the board of directors and other volunteers to grow philanthropic support for the organization.
• Meets regularly with board leadership to guide, counsel, and report on fundraising priorities and efforts.
• As assigned by the executive director, may be responsible for approving, managing, and evaluating fundraising vendors and consultants.
• Maintains proper security and quality controls of donor gifts and donor private information.
• Serves as a Salesforce administrator, handling all basic administrative functions, including user maintenance, modification of page layouts, generation of reports and dashboards, creation of new fields, and other routine tasks.
• Maintains accurate accounting of all gifts (unrestricted & restricted) to fulfill information requests, grant deliverables, and to ensure reporting accuracy.
• Provides stewardship to current donors with regular written updates to corporate and foundation donors in order to keep them informed and engaged.
• Maintains knowledge and understanding of institutional history and programs.
• Coordinates appointments for/with the executive director with foundation/corporate officers and other prospects and arranges for onsite tours for existing and potential supporters (foundation officers, foundation trustees). Conducts meetings with donors in harmonious professional way, keeping executive director fully informed and engaged.
• Tracks statistics relevant to development and provides written materials necessary for donor stewardship (visitor attendance and diversity, educational program attendance, etc.).
• Becomes fully versed in all areas of Pride, Inc’s philosophy, mission, education goals, general history, core values, and special programs to better articulate and identify appropriate funding sources and to be a knowledgeable and articulate representative for the organization.
• Serves as a partner to the executive director in sharing Pride of Baltimore II’s story.

Qualifications

Knowledge:

• BA required, MA or CFRE certification and membership in at least one professional fundraising organization preferred
• At least 7 years of fundraising experience in a professional position required
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office (Word, Excel, etc.) and Google (Gmail, Google Drive, Google Calendar, etc.) products
• Proficiency with Salesforce, or equivalent fundraising software, with the skills or a proclivity to become a Salesforce system administrator

Experience:

• Broad experience in multi-faceted fundraising efforts and success in producing charitable contributions
• Extensive knowledge of fundraising principles and experience building and maintaining relationships with donors through cultivation and stewardship
• Familiarity with the Baltimore philanthropic community is strongly preferred
• Proven ability to be appreciative of multiple diverse perspectives, and lead a commitment to Pride, Inc’s initiatives regarding diversity, equity, accessibility, and inclusion.

Abilities:

• Superior written and oral communication skills
• Strong relationship-building skills
• An optimistic, can-do attitude, flexibility, and an ability to negotiate and work comfortably with diverse internal and external stakeholders; excellent listening skills
• Ability to set priorities; attention to detail; keen analytic, organizational, and problem-solving skills
• Ability to motivate others
• A passion for the mission and history of Pride of Baltimore, Inc./Pride of Baltimore II
• Ability to work from home with minimal direct supervision – at the time of this posting, Pride of Baltimore, Inc. staff continue to work from home the majority of the time due to the pandemic
• A sense of humor is a plus

Pride of Baltimore, Inc. provides equal opportunity to all applicants for employment. No applicant shall be discriminated against on the basis of race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy), national origin, age, disability, genetic information, sexual orientation, or any other legally protected classification.