Regional Director of Fundraising, Southeast

TITLE: Regional Director of Fundraising, Southeast

LINE OF BUSINESS/DIVISION: Operations/Strategic Giving

FLSA STATUS: Exempt

REPORTS TO: Vice President, Strategic Giving

NUMBER OF POSITIONS REPORTING TO THIS POSITION: None

LOCATION: Based in the Southeast region near a metropolitan airport

JOB HIGHLIGHTS

The Regional Director of Fundraising, Southeast will help create and implement strategies for the identification, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship of foundation, individual and corporate donors in the Southeast region—Alabama, Georgia, Kentucky, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee—to support regional programs and projects as well as national priorities. Reporting to the Vice President of Strategic Giving, this new position will help build a more robust base of philanthropy in the region, in addition to supporting field staff across the region with their current foundation relationships. The successful candidate will be a self-starter who is growth-minded and will also enjoy working collaboratively with field staff throughout the region and Strategic Giving Team colleagues. This will be a fast-paced, exciting opportunity to join an innovative team with a 40-year history of making a real, tangible difference in the national conservation landscape.

WHAT YOU WILL BE DOING

To perform this job successfully, you must be able to perform each essential duty satisfactorily. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable qualified individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

• Responsible for the identification, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship of a portfolio of 125-150 foundation, corporate and individual donors in the Southeast region with support from Fund staff within the Strategic Giving, Marketing & Communications and Finance departments as well as field and program staff.
• Work with VP of Strategic Giving, two Southeast VPs, and two Southeast State Directors to define and implement short- and long-range fundraising objectives of the organization in the region.
• Develop a major giving and corporate giving plan for the region.
• Solicit and close gifts to support Southeast projects and operations, to expand the Working Farms Fund program in the region, and to support national priorities including the Revolving Fund and general operations. 
• Build relationships with donors and prospects via personal visits, video calls, written content, and events. 
• Develop stewardship plans that demonstrate targeted engagement of donors. 
• Develop a strong understanding of The Conservation Fund’s project and program work to keep donors up to date.
• Position is part of a very experienced and cohesive national fundraising team that will provide research and strategy support.  
• Conduct related duties for the region including coordinating closely with field staff, event planning, and grant writing and reporting.
• Assist with drafting communication materials in coordination with the Marketing and Communications team. 

WHAT WE NEED YOU TO HAVE

• Minimum of 8 years of progressive, successful fundraising/development experience with foundations, individuals, and/or corporate donors. 
• Self-starter with demonstrated ability to work well independently and as part of a team.
• Organized, detail-oriented, possessing a builder’s mentality and strong work ethic.
• Well-developed written and oral communication skills, including translating complicated project information into compelling and captivating stories. 
• Grant proposal writing experience.
• Experience working with an environmental conservation organization, community resilience, or sustainable food system organization preferred. 
• Ability and willingness to travel up to 35%. 
• Passion and interest in the mission of The Conservation Fund.

WHAT WE’D LIKE YOU TO HAVE

• Bachelor’s degree preferred.
• Blackbaud and/or Salesforce experience. 
• Event planning experience. 

PHYSICAL DEMANDS AND WORK ENVIRONMENT 

• Work is performed remotely from a home office or hybrid from a TCF regional office.
• The position does require sporadically working long hours and/or weekends.
• Overnight travel is required.
• Estimated travel – 35% per month.

COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS 

The salary range for this position is $125,000-$140,000, and the position is eligible for opportunities to earn performance-based bonus compensation. Please note: Salary range provided is an estimate and will be evaluated on an individual basis, taking into consideration the candidate's knowledge, skills, abilities, experience, and education. The final salary offer will be determined accordingly.

The Fund offers a highly competitive package of benefits including:

• Employer contributions for medical, vision and dental insurance plans.

• Retirement plan discretionary company contribution.

• Company contributions to HSA account.

• Company-paid paid life insurance, AD&D, Short-Term and Long-Term disability insurance.

• Continuing education benefit for approved programs.

• Employee assistance program (EAP). 

• Generous paid vacation, sick and floating holidays.

• Voluntary Life Insurance, AD&D, Spouse and Child plans at group rates.

• Six weeks paid parental leave

• 14 paid holidays

This job description is not designed to cover or contain a comprehensive listing of activities, duties or responsibilities that are required of the employee. Duties, responsibilities and activities may change or new ones may be assigned at any time, with or without notice.

TO APPLY

The Conservation Fund has retained the services of ThinkingAhead Executive Search.   Please submit your resume and expression of interest to: Chris Spagnola at cspagnola@thinkingahead.com.

To learn more about The Conservation Fund, visit https://www.conservationfund.org.

Frequently cited statistics show that women and people from underrepresented groups apply to jobs only if they think they meet 100% of the criteria. If you meet many but not all the criteria and feel you may be a good fit for the role, The Conservation Fund encourages you to apply.

The Conservation Fund, a nonprofit corporation, is an Equal Opportunity Employer that fully and actively supports equal access for all people regardless of Race, Color, Religion, Gender, Age, National Origin, Veteran Status, Disability, Genetic Information or Testing, Family and Medical Leave status, Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity or Expression. The Fund prohibits retaliation against individuals who bring forth any complaint, orally or in writing, to the employer or the government, or against any individuals who assist or participate in the investigation of any complaint, or otherwise oppose discrimination.