Senior Manager, Development Operations and Donor Engagement

The Senior Manager, Development Operations and Donor Engagement will strengthen The Kennedy Forum’s fundraising efforts by building and managing the systems, processes, and relationships that support consistent donor cultivation and stewardship. This role will oversee the organization’s development pipeline, maintain accurate and actionable relationship information, and ensure that opportunities, commitments, and follow-up activities move forward in a timely and coordinated manner.
Reporting to the CEO, this individual will work closely with the CEO, Founders, board members, and staff to support engagement with current and prospective donors, sponsors, foundations, and other key supporters. The role will prepare organizational leaders for funder interactions, coordinate resulting follow-up, develop donor-facing materials, and help ensure that supporters receive the information and engagement they need to understand and advance The Kennedy Forum’s mission.
As The Kennedy Forum’s first dedicated development hire, this individual will help establish a disciplined and effective approach to development operations, donor stewardship, sponsorships, grants, events, and network cultivation. The position requires someone who is equally comfortable maintaining detailed records and workflows, coordinating activity across multiple stakeholders, and engaging directly with donors and prospects. The successful candidate will understand how to translate nonprofit programs, outcomes, and impact into meaningful supporter engagement.
This is a remote position requiring domestic travel approximately 6–12 times per year for events and team activities. Trips generally last two to four days.
Responsibilities
Development Operations and Relationship Management
Maintain The Kennedy Forum’s CRM as the central, accurate record of relationships with current and prospective donors, sponsors, institutional funders, and other key supporters.
Establish and maintain consistent practices for recording interactions, relationship history, interests, commitments, next steps, and other relevant information.
Track prospects and funding opportunities through each stage of identification, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship.
Maintain clear ownership, deadlines, and follow-up actions across the development pipeline, proactively identifying stalled relationships or missed commitments and engage senior leaders to execute.
Prepare regular pipeline, activity, and fundraising reports for the CEO and other organizational leaders.
Donor Stewardship and Cultivation
Coordinate consistent and personalized stewardship of current donors, sponsors, and other supporters.
Develop and maintain engagement plans, stewardship calendars, and recommended touchpoints based on each supporter’s interests, giving history, relationship with The Kennedy Forum, and level of engagement.
Segment donors, prospects, sponsors, and other supporters to inform outreach, communications, event engagement, and sponsorship opportunities.
Draft and coordinate donor communications, acknowledgments, updates, reports, and other stewardship materials.
Identify opportunities to deepen existing relationships and engage supporters more meaningfully in The Kennedy Forum’s work.
Executive and Founder Engagement
Position the CEO and Founders for effective engagement with current and prospective funders by preparing meeting briefs, relationship histories, recommended talking points, and clear engagement objectives.
Coordinate outreach and follow-up arising from meetings, events, introductions, and other interactions involving the CEO, Founders, board members, and staff.
Ensure that substantive interactions and resulting commitments are documented in the CRM and that follow-up occurs accurately and on time.
Recommend appropriate engagement opportunities based on supporter interests, relationship stage, and organizational priorities.
Prospect and Network Development
Research and qualify prospective donors, foundations, corporate sponsors, and relevant funding networks.
Track introductions and connections across The Kennedy Forum’s broader network and develop organized pathways for cultivating promising relationships.
Identify patterns, shared interests, and connections that can support relationship development and informed outreach.
Produce concise prospect profiles and relationship briefs summarizing relevant background, interests, connections, opportunities, and recommended next steps.
Support founders and CEO in connecting with donors based on their profiles and milestones.
Grants and Institutional Funding
Maintain the calendar and workflow for foundation grants and selected state or federal funding opportunities.
Coordinate the grant application and reporting process in partnership with the grant writer and relevant policy, communications, and finance staff.
Maintain accurate records of proposals, awards, restrictions, reporting schedules, and funder communications in conjunction with grant writer.
Sponsorships and Events
Support the development and implementation of sponsorship opportunities, including prospect segmentation, outreach coordination, benefit tracking, and sponsor stewardship.
Coordinate donor and prospect engagement associated with The Kennedy Forum’s events and external convenings.
Develop strategic invitation lists, track responses, prepare relationship briefings, and coordinate pre-event outreach and post-event follow-up.
Support fundraising and cultivation event planning, including logistics, materials, attendee management, and on-site execution.
Ensure that event-related interactions, introductions, and next steps are documented and incorporated into ongoing cultivation plans.
Development Communications and Coordination
Translate The Kennedy Forum’s programs, policy work, outcomes, and impact into clear and compelling donor-facing materials.
Collaborate with communications staff to ensure that relevant website, social media, and organizational communications support donor engagement and stewardship.
Coordinate across teams to obtain timely programmatic, financial, and impact information needed for proposals, reports, donor communications, and meetings.
Contribute to annual development planning by providing accurate pipeline information, relationship insights, progress reporting, and recommendations based on development activity.
QualificationsEducation and Experience
Bachelor’s degree or equivalent combination of education and relevant professional experience.
Five or more years of progressively responsible experience in nonprofit development, donor relations, development operations, fundraising, or a closely related field.
Demonstrated experience managing donor or stakeholder information in a CRM, including tracking interactions, relationship stages, commitments, and follow-up activities.
Experience coordinating donor cultivation and stewardship activities across multiple internal and external stakeholders.
Experience managing detailed, deadline-driven workflows with a high degree of accuracy and follow-through.
Skills and Capabilities
Strong understanding of donor cultivation, solicitation, stewardship, and moves management.
Ability to organize complex relationship information, identify appropriate next steps, and ensure that follow-up occurs consistently and on time.
Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to translate organizational goals, programs, outcomes, and impact into clear and compelling donor-facing materials.
Strong interpersonal and relationship-building skills, with the judgment and professionalism required to interact with donors, prospects, organizational leaders, and other external stakeholders.
Proficiency with fundraising CRMs and the ability to use data to segment audiences, monitor development activity, and produce useful reports.
Exceptional attention to detail, organization, project management, and time-management skills.
Ability to manage multiple priorities, anticipate needs, and work independently in a fast-moving environment.
Ability to collaborate effectively across policy, communications, finance, and leadership functions.
Sound judgment and discretion in handling confidential donor, financial, and organizational information.
Flexible and willing to contribute across development activities, from detailed tracking and event logistics to direct engagement with donors and prospects.
Commitment to The Kennedy Forum’s mission of advancing equitable access to effective mental health and substance use care.
Perks:
Employee Value Proposition - An opportunity to participate in a growth oriented, values driven, and superior performance culture of impactful knowledge workers dedicated to contributing to the greater good. This involves and includes stretch assignments, the ability to work within a collaborative and inclusive environment, and the acceptance of personal responsibility for the achievement of the agreed to results and outcomes of his/her/they work efforts. In short, this is a preparatory opportunity for future personal and professional advancement.
Flexible working conditions; this is a remote position.

Work arrangement
Yes