Overview
Director of Development Jobs in Park Ridge, USA at The Harbour Inc
Position Title:
Director of Development
Reports to:
Executive Director
Classification:
Full-Time/Exempt/In-person
For over 50 years, The Harbour has provided emergency housing, transitional living programs, and supportive resources to youth experiencing homelessness across Chicagoland. We are a $3.3M agency committed to trauma-informed,strength-based, and equity-centered practices in both our programming and organizational leadership.
As we expand our impact and work toward increasing private revenue to one-third of our operating budget, we areseekinga strategic, relational, and growth-oriented Director of Development to lead our next chapter of philanthropic engagement.
The Harbour’s private revenue has grown steadily at a rate of 10% over the past few years.
Thisis an exciting opportunity tobuildon this success, shaperevenuestrategy, and ignite further growth.
Role Summary
The Director of Development (DoD) is a senior leadership role responsible for designing and executing a comprehensive fundraising strategy that strengthens and diversifies The Harbour’s revenue streams.
This roleleadsthemajorgifts strategy, board engagement in fundraising, prospect development, donor cultivation, and stewardship efforts. The Director partners closely with the Executive Director, Board of Directors, and Marketing &Development Committee to build long-term philanthropic relationships that advance The Harbour’s mission to end youth homelessness.
The Director of Developmentsupervises Development team members and collaborates across departments to ensure fundraising efforts reflect program impact and organizational values.
Key Responsibilities
- Strategic Leadership & Revenue Growth
- Develop and implement athree-year private revenue growth strategy aligned with organizational sustainability goals.
- Lead annual fundraising planning, revenue forecasting, and performance tracking.
- Build systems for prospect identification, donor segmentation,and move management.
- Monitor fundraising metrics and regularly report progress to the Executive Director and Board.
- Partner with Finance to align revenue projections and reporting.
Major Gifts & Prospect Development
- Manage and grow a portfolio of major donors and high-capacity prospects.
- Lead prospect research, qualification, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship strategies.
- Partner with the Executive Director on top-tier donor relationships.
- Design personalized engagement plans to deepen donor commitment.
- Expand individual giving and giving society participation.
- Identify and cultivate new individual and corporateprospects.
Board Engagement & Fundraising Partnership
- Partner with the Executive Director to build a strong culture of philanthropy within the Board.
- Support Board members in developing confidence and capacity in fundraising.
- Work closely with the Marketing &Development Committee tosetstrategy andmonitorprogress.
- Equip Board members with tools, messaging, and engagement opportunities.
- Create meaningful roles for Board members in cultivation and stewardship efforts.
Institutional & Corporate Giving
- Oversee strategy for foundationgiving with grant staff.
- Work with the Board to identifycorporate fundraisingopportunities and develop corporate relationships.
- Work withthe Development team toidentifynew funding opportunities aligned with mission priorities.
Events & Donor Engagement
- Work with Events and Volunteer Managerto develop strategies for:
- Annual Benefit
- Cultivation events
- Giving Society Stewardship Event
- Donor appreciation gatherings
Communications & Storytelling
In partnership withthe Executive Director and organizational leadership:
- Ensure alignment of fundraising messaging with The Harbour’s trauma-informed values.
- Work with Development team, graphicdesignerand communications specialist to guide development of:
- Annual Report
- End-of-Year Appeal
- Fundraising materials
- Impact storytelling
- Annual video
- Translate program impact into compelling donor narratives.
- Experience fundraising in ways that center the dignity of our participants.
Team Leadership & Cross-Department Collaboration
- Supervise the Development staffoftwo-four
- Facilitate regular Development team meetings.
- Collaborate with Program, Operations, and Finance…
Title: Director of Development
Company: The Harbour Inc
Location: Park Ridge, USA
Category:
