Director of Development

A Place Called Home is a dynamic, non-profit youth and community center in South Central Los Angeles.

APCH provides educational programs, counseling, mentoring, music, dance and art classes, fitness and health and wellness opportunities.

As youth participate in our programs, they discover interests and talents and develop a better sense of themselves and their place in the world around them.

Our goal is to increase the likelihood that youth will stay in school, pursue higher education, attain viable jobs, and become active community members capable of making positive change in the world in which they live.

Our mission is to serve youth and families directly and the optimal way to do that is in person.

The majority of our positions require employees to work onsite at our facilities.

We will always comply with or exceed government and public health safety mandates.

Our priorities and policies to protect the safety and health of our staff and members may require special protocols on our campus and/or may require us to work remotely on a temporary basis.

APCH COVID-19 Vaccination Policy

A Place Called Home will be mandating COVID-19 vaccines for our staff.

Consistent with our mission and values, and the duty to provide and maintain a workplace free of recognized hazards, A Place Called Home (“APCH”) has adopted this policy to safeguard the health and well-being of our staff and our families, members and their families, volunteers, vendors, and others who spend time on our campus, and the community, from the risks associated with COVID-19. All new hires must provide proof of their first dose of the vaccine on the first day of employment, if not fully vaccinated, and will have 30 days from their date of hire to complete their COVID-19 vaccination and submit proof of completion to the organization’s HR department.

Our commitment to our staff wellness, development and experience:

A Place Called Home is committed to supporting our hard working staff by creating a work environment that builds relationships, careers and experiences through collaboration and transparent communication.

We don’t just talk the talk but we walk the walk.

Below are just some ways in which we support our staff:

• Health and Wellness

• HMO & PPO Medical and Dental Plans with APCH covering the majority of the group costs

• 25K Basic & Accidental Life Insurance-no cost to the employee

• FSA, DFSA and Supplemental Insurance to support your out of pocket costs

• 401K Retirement Plan with employer match

• Generous Time-off: Paid winter break, 2 wellness days, 13 holidays, 2 weeks+ vacation, 88 hours for sick days, Incentive time off opportunities

• Assistance and funds for emergencies

• Employee Assistance program to support your work life balance

Professional Development

• Gallups Strengths Assessment for all employees

• Quarterly Employee Training

• Specialized Manager Training

• Leadership Training through our Leaders In Training Program (LIT)

• Professional development support and financial assistance

• CPR & First Aid Training certification

Collaboration 

• Employee Engagement Committees: employee recognition, new hire experience, supporting community organizations, creating fun staff events, justice, equity, diversity & inclusion and wellness.

• Monthly Employee Acknowledgment by Colleagues and Supervisors

• Employee Portal
– Staff Communication & Resources available at any time

• TouchPoint-Monthly all staff meetings

SUMMARY

Under the direction of the Chief Development Officer, the Director of Development actively raises philanthropic support for the agency through exceptional relationship management, dynamic leadership for fundraising initiatives and other activities under their purview, and directly manages a team that includes the institutional giving staff.

In addition to their supervisory responsibilities, they will maintain and expand the agencys major gift program, build relationships with individual donors to secure philanthropic support for the agency, and develop a strong and diversified pipeline of support.

The Director of Development will work with the CDO to develop annual short
– and long-term fundraising targets and execute fundraising goals as per A Place Called Homes development plan in alignment with the agencys overall strategic plan.

This is a highly collaborative role in which the Director of Development will work across teams and domains to develop and deliver on multi-dimensional fundraising strategies.

As a member of APCHs Executive Management Team (EMT), the Director of Development will demonstrate transparency, model accountability and commitment to mission and ongoing learning.

At all times, they will lead with integrity and work to create and maintain a sense of team unity and stability as the agency and the greater landscape evolve.

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES:

Fundraising and Development

• Adeptly manage a personal portfolio of assigned prospects; build and manage relationships with individual donors and prospects with the capacity to give major gifts ($10,000+) and leadership gifts ($50,000+); formulate and implement effective strategies to secure new and increased gifts (both unrestricted and restricted); conduct regular and personalized donor outreach to identify, qualify, cultivate, solicit and steward donors toward annual and multi-year pledges.

• Produce cogent and compelling fundraising proposals and supporting documents, including gift agreements as needed to solicit and close major gifts.

Produce personalized letters and messages to thank and engage donors, and ensure that donors receive excellent customer service and stewardship.

Develop and implement strategies to re-engage lapsed donors.

• Collaborate with the Sr.

Director of Special Initiatives and External Relations to ensure that all areas of overlap are communicated, planned and executed, particularly around the solicitation of event sponsorships, ticket sales and donations from individual donors.

Recruit and coordinate with event chairs, board members, committee members, volunteers and event honorees and their representatives.

• Work collaboratively with the Communications and Marketing team to refine Annual Fund messaging, marketing and collaterals, and to develop a pipeline that moves annual fund donors toward becoming recurring and/or major gift donors.

Coordinate activities to raise unrestricted funds via email campaigns, social media, crowdfunding and peer-to-peer fundraising and other means.

• Build and maintain strong working relationships with key staff in Programs, Operations and Data to understand program needs and opportunities, scout potential donor stewardship and cultivation opportunities, and develop fluency with the agencys story and substantiating data.

• Monitor industry best practices and trends, filter and propose innovative fundraising strategies and tactics for implementation at A Place Called Home.

• Other related duties as assigned by the CDO.

Organizational and Administrative

• Serve as a member of the APCH Executive Management Team, and contribute insight and input on agency-wide strategy, prioritization and problem-solving.

• Directly supervise two staff (Senior Manager and Assistant Manager of Grants); provide mentorship and coaching to the Associate Director of Development in their capacity as a junior gift officer with a new portfolio.

Manage team and work using agreed upon metrics; ensure that team members are fully informed of plans, campaigns, schedules, communications collateral, goals and benchmarks; track progress toward goals and support a culture of continuous improvement through working smarter with current resources.

• Provide visible leadership, inspiration and direction to the combined development and communications staff (current team of 12).

Foster an enthusiastic and collaborative spirit of learning.

Mentor, coach, encourage and serve the team, providing support for personal and professional development.

Actively support and contribute to a healthy culture and ecosystem at APCH, including through employee engagement initiatives via committee work and professional development initiatives.

• Work in close partnership with the CDO and others on the development and monitoring of the annual budget.

• Monitor progress toward goals for all campaigns, analyze results, and report to the CEO, CDO, Board, senior management, and others.

Supervise and execute all reporting to donors in their purview.

• Because data hygiene is everyones responsibility, collaborate with the Associate Director of Development and the Assistant Manager of Development Operations to ensure that donor and gift records reports are maintained accurately and updated in a timely fashion.

Conduct appropriate research on donors and prospects and file key findings in Salesforce.

The Expectation

Qualifications

The ideal Director of Development will be an individual who carries high personal and professional standards, is high energy by nature, and enjoys partnering with others to achieve successful outcomes.

To be successful in this role the Director will focus on achieving excellence of service and performance in the five core competencies identified by the agency:

• Integrity & Trust

• Widely trusted and seen as a direct, truthful individual.

Able to present the truth in an appropriate and helpful manner.

• Adaptable

• Adapts to change and considers new approaches with an open mind.

• Accountable

• Demonstrates impeccable work ethic.

Consistently and reliably performs tasks as required and above all takes ownership of completing assigned duties and responsibilities to the highest degree.

• Learning & Development

• Actively investigates and pursues new perspectives, learning opportunities, training and development.

Is committed to investigating new information, skills, and behaviors and actively works to improve performance, accomplish tasks, achieve excellent results, and share knowledge.

• Compassion

• Demonstrates care and concern for the challenges and circumstances of others.

Makes organizational spirit-tending a consistent priority and proactively seeks opportunities to help others according to humanistic and organizational values.

As a Director, it will also be expected to excel in the five management competencies of: motivating others, communication, managing systems, leadership, work quality and innovation.

The Director will embrace the APCH culture of a learning organization and strive to constantly improve upon systems and services for the benefit of our employees and our constituents; and will be demonstrably committed to their own ongoing personal and professional development.

Our culture encourages individuals to speak up, we respect diversity of thought, and we look to our staff to be candid with concerns and constructive suggestions.

Together, we can continue to take APCH to even higher levels of excellence and service to the community.

Technical and Performance Skills

• Excellent Oral and Written Communication

• Professionalism

• Customer Service

• Time Management & Delegation

• Ability to Multitask

• Flexibility

• Mission-Driven

• Dedicated to excellence

• Detail-Oriented

• Strong Project Management Skills

• Microsoft Office Skills

• Google Suite Skills

• Bilingual (Spanish/English) a plus

Education/Training/Experience

• Bachelors degree or equivalent work experience

• 8-10 years of non-profit fundraising experience required

• Minimum 4-5 years of management experience required

• Proven track record of successfully cultivating, closing and retaining gifts of $25,000 and up from individuals required

• Budget management experience a significant plus

• Grant solicitation and management a significant plus

• Experience with fundraising events and communications a plus

• Knowledge and experience with Salesforce preferred

• Experience in support or leadership position for a capital campaign preferred

Physical and Mental Demands

• Able to work in a dynamic and high energy environment typical of a youth center

• Walking, standing required on daily basis

• Sitting and use of hands/vision for computer work for extended periods of time

• Lift up to 25 pounds occasionally

• Able to communicate and convey accurate information

Additional Information

• Strong commitment to personal and team excellence, innovation and constant growth and improvement

• Ability to think strategically and creatively, as well as to innovate, implement and follow-through

• Deep appreciation for and personal interest in the APCH mission and community

• Ability to work under pressure, with grace, diplomacy and joy

• Ability to be a compelling advocate and ambassador for A Place Called Home

A Place Called Home provides equal employment opportunities (EEO) to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex (including but not limited to pregnancy), gender expression, gender identity or sexual orientation, military and veteran status, medical condition, ancestry, marital status, citizenship national origin, age, physical and/or mental disability or genetics.

In addition to federal law requirements, A Place Called Home complies with applicable state and local laws governing nondiscrimination in employment in every location in which the company has facilities.