Senior Specialist, Development

Location: Remote within the United States (Pacific West Region base preferred) 

Job Type: Position type and expected hours of work, Classification 

Travel: Some international business travel may be required, including overnight stays 

Start Date: Available immediately. 

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion 

The Pacific Institute is an Equal Opportunity Employer. 

Diversity is a core value at Pacific Institute. We are dedicated to enhancing diversity, equity, and inclusion within our team and culture for two reasons: 

To stay true to our values and principles: We recognize that historical and current injustices have left out certain voices and perspectives from decision-making about accessing and managing water resources. We acknowledge that the representation of these groups in water-related decision-making and careers is an important step towards addressing past and current injustices. Because the Pacific Institute participates in water-related decision making, we acknowledge that hiring and retaining a diverse staff can contribute to a broader need to address systemic injustices.  

To better achieve Pacific Institute’s mission and vision: We know that having diverse perspectives makes for better research, creative solutions, and can help us achieve our mission. We recognize that a diverse team with varied perspectives, skills, and experiences is essential for generating and scaling innovative ideas that solve increasingly complex challenges. We make an active effort to create an inclusive environment where everyone feels respected, heard, validated, empowered, and celebrated across different identities and cultures. We aim to constantly evolve our approach to DEI to reflect best practices in this work, just as we do with our water and climate research. As part of this commitment, we request that all candidates include a short statement in their cover letter to address how your addition to our staff would contribute to our DEI efforts. 

About the Role: 

The Senior Specialist, Development will play a critical role in raising the unrestricted and flexible funding needed to accelerate the Pacific Institute’s impact in the world, and to meet its goal of catalyzing the transformation to water resilience in the face of climate change by 2030. This newly created position offers a unique opportunity to help create and manage a dynamic individual giving program.  

The ideal candidate will have a range of fundraising-specific experience (inclusive of individual giving) and a strong understanding of the philanthropic sector. The role requires an understanding of both one-to-one and one-to-many fundraising and relationship-building strategies. 

CORE Responsibilities: 

Donor Engagement and Relationship Management (60%) 

• Support the development and execution of year-round engagement and stewardship strategies for the Pacific Institute’s general level donor portfolio, ensuring strong donor satisfaction.    
• Maintain and grow a personal portfolio of major donors and prospective major donors. 
• Develop personalized engagement plans to increase donor involvement and support.  
• Serve as a Pacific Institute representative and spokesperson and effectively network in various venues and in front of a wide range of audiences.   
• Ensure the integrity of donor records in Salesforce to enable effective relationship management, and to allow for accurate reporting on fundraising activity and revenue projections. 
• In collaboration with the Director of Development and the Communications and Outreach team, participate in the planning and creation of compelling donor communications materials.  
• Maintain the Pacific Institute’s website donation pages and profiles on charity rating websites.  
• Collaborate on donor-focused event planning, marketing, and communications.  
• Work closely with other departments to ensure alignment of development strategies with overall organizational goals.  

Gift Solicitation and Proposal Writing (30%) 

• Play a key role in the creation and execution of annual fundraising appeals and multi-media fundraising campaigns.  
• Execute strategies for soliciting major gifts within the portfolio, including preparing compelling proposals and presentations. 
• Help develop and execute planned giving and recurring giving programs. 
• Research potential major donors to understand their interests, giving capacity, and philanthropic history while developing individualized donor/prospect profiles and strategies for cultivation and stewardship.    
• Organize and participate in donor meetings and other donor solicitation events. 
• Effectively communicate the impact and outcomes of gifts to donors. 
• Support the development of program-specific grants as needed.  
• Contribute to the planning and execution of other donor engagement initiatives and special projects. 
• Strategic Planning (10%) 
• In partnership with the Director of Development, create and execute a comprehensive plan for individual giving. Review and update plan annually. 
• Contribute to the holistic organizational fundraising strategy and support an annual review of the organization’s fundraising effectiveness. 

Note: Time allocations are estimates and subject to shifts as needed. 

Required experience/ Minimum requirements: 

• Equivalent to graduation from an accredited four-year college or university with a Bachelor’s degree in a job-related field. 
• Minimum of 7 years of experience in nonprofit fundraising, preferably with a focus on individual giving. 
• Proven track record of successfully growing individual giving and securing major gifts. 
• Familiarity with donor management software and databases, including Salesforce. 
• Knowledge of nonprofit fundraising best practices and ethical standards. 
• Demonstrated project management experience and ability to work effectively as part of a team as well as independently. 
• Ability to manage multiple tasks and multi-phase projects simultaneously from inception to completion. 
• Sound judgment in situations requiring independent decision-making. 
• Excellent interpersonal, communication, and writing skills. 
• Strong research and analytical skills.  

Qualifications and Skills/ Additional Requirements: 

• Familiarity with digital marketing best practices for fundraising.  
• Experience working with nonprofit board members is preferred. 
• CFRE (Certified Fund Raising Executive) certification or similar credential preferred. 
• Passion for creating a more water-secure world to benefit people and nature.