Development Operations & Communications Manager

About Encircle
Encircle exists to bring families and communities together to enable LGBTQ+ youth to thrive. Through mental health services, community programming, and opportunities for connection, Encircle creates spaces where LGBTQ+ youth, young adults, and families can build meaningful relationships and find support.
Job Summary
The Development Operations & Communications Manager builds and manages the systems, research, communications, and project infrastructure that support Encircle’s fundraising and philanthropic growth.
This role combines fundraising operations, donor and prospect research, grant writing, donor communications, and cross-functional project management. The Manager oversees Encircle’s fundraising CRM, identifies and researches funding opportunities, develops compelling written materials, and coordinates campaigns and projects that strengthen donor relationships and support organizational sustainability.
Working closely with organizational leadership and teams across Development, Marketing, Finance, and Programs, this individual ensures fundraising efforts are organized, data-informed, and aligned with Encircle’s mission and strategic priorities.
The salary range for this position is $60,000–70,000 annually, depending on experience. This is a full-time position that includes Encircle’s full-time employee benefits package. Benefits include medical/dental/vision, employer paid life insurance, paid holidays, PTO and paid sick time, and 401k with up to 4% employer match.
Key Responsibilities
Fundraising Operations & CRM Management
Manage and optimize HubSpot as Encircle’s central fundraising CRM, maintaining accurate donor records, prospect information, pipelines, workflows, and reporting dashboards.
Develop and maintain systems that support donor relationship management, fundraising performance tracking, and timely follow-up.
Analyze fundraising data and prepare reports that provide leadership with actionable insights into donor engagement, giving trends, and revenue opportunities.
Identify opportunities to improve systems, automate processes, and strengthen the effectiveness of fundraising operations.
Prospect Research & Donor Intelligence
Research, identify, and qualify prospective major donors using philanthropic history, wealth screening, public information, relationship mapping, and CRM data.
Maintain an organized, prioritized pipeline of prospective donors and institutional funders.
Prepare concise donor research briefs and meeting materials to support leadership in donor cultivation and relationship-building.
Provide strategic recommendations on donor engagement opportunities, potential giving capacity, philanthropic interests, and relationship pathways.
Grant Writing & Institutional Funding
Research and identify grant opportunities through Utah foundations, corporate giving programs, government funding sources, and relevant national funders.
Write and coordinate grant proposals, letters of inquiry, applications, and required funder reports.
Manage the institutional funding pipeline, including submission deadlines, reporting requirements, grant agreements, and funder communications.
Maintain a forward-looking grants calendar and organized records to support timely submissions and strong funder relationships.
Collaborate with program, clinical, operational, and other subject-matter experts to develop accurate, compelling proposals for complex funding opportunities.
Donor Communications & Fundraising Campaigns
Lead donor communications and coordinate the planning and execution of Encircle’s annual fundraising and donor stewardship campaigns.
Develop campaign messaging, audience segmentation, content, timelines, and success measures in partnership with Development and Marketing.
Write engaging donor communications, including campaign materials, newsletters, stewardship messages, and other fundraising content.
Produce segmented monthly donor newsletters outside campaign periods and monitor engagement to improve future communications.
Use campaign performance data to evaluate effectiveness and identify opportunities to strengthen donor engagement and fundraising results.
Project Management & Cross-Functional Collaboration
Coordinate development and fundraising initiatives across Development, Marketing, Finance, Programs, and organizational leadership.
Maintain a centralized development calendar and manage projects using tools such as Asana to track ownership, timelines, deliverables, and progress.
Proactively identify project risks, dependencies, and potential delays to keep initiatives moving forward.
Support fundraising events, community outreach, tabling, and other development or marketing activities as needed.
Build collaborative relationships across teams to ensure fundraising projects are well-coordinated and aligned with organizational priorities.
Qualifications
At least 3 years of experience in nonprofit development, fundraising operations, CRM administration, grant writing, institutional giving, or a related field.
Hands-on experience with HubSpot, Salesforce, or a comparable CRM, including reporting, dashboards, workflows, pipelines, and audience segmentation. HubSpot experience preferred.
Experience with prospect research, donor qualification, philanthropic research, grant writing, or institutional funding.
Strong writing and editing skills, including the ability to develop persuasive proposals and clear, engaging donor communications.
Strong analytical skills and the ability to translate complex information and fundraising data into actionable recommendations.
Experience managing cross-functional projects, competing priorities, and deadlines using project management tools such as Asana or similar platforms.
Excellent organizational skills and attention to detail, with the ability to maintain accurate records and reliable processes.
Strong communication and relationship-building skills, with the ability to work independently and collaborate effectively across teams.

Employment type
Full-Time

Work arrangement
No