Associate Director of Development

The Opportunity
Essie Justice Group (Essie) is building grassroots power to dismantle the US incarceration system, the most egregious creator of racial and gender injustice of our time. We are a loving and powerful community of women with incarcerated loved ones. Our community includes cisgender women, transgender women, formerly incarcerated women, gender expansive people, elders, and young people.
After twelve years of building an active membership across California and beyond, Essie is deepening its base-building and leadership development strategies with the 1 in 4 women with incarcerated loved ones to propel bold decarceration agendas across the nation. We seek to transform the criminal legal system and create a Black feminist future rooted in care, equity, community safety, and liberation. In the midst of significant organizational growth, we are seeking an impact-driven and strategic Associate Director of Development to join our team.
As Essie grows, the Associate Director of Development will take the lead in managing the internal operations for our philanthropic efforts to support our work to end mass incarceration and build a Black feminist future. We see our donors as partners in this work, and the Associate Director of Development is a thoughtful and deliberate steward of these relationships. The Associate Director of Development is a strategic fundraising leader who is comfortable getting into the weeds while also balancing the strategic development of the team. They excel at crafting clear and compelling narratives that connect philanthropic partners and potential donors to meaningful movement work, think empathetically about their audiences, and are deeply motivated by a belief in the leadership development and liberation strategies of directly impacted people.
Core Responsibilities
Donor Program Design and Management - Help develop strategies and processes for identifying and engaging donors and nurturing and managing donor relationships.
Partner with the Interim Co-Executive Directors to establish benchmarks and goals for individual fundraising.
Iterate and oversee development infrastructure internally, including CRM features and advising on key changes to roles and make-up of our existing structures for stakeholder engagement.
Evaluate and recommend new funding opportunities in alignment with Essie’s strategic priorities and programmatic work.
Support in determining the key organizational accomplishments and aspirations we communicate in grant applications and reports.
Lead the design and management of prospect research and relevant relationship management processes.
Develop solicitation goals, cultivation strategies, and stewardship plans in a way that donors are respected, retained, and inspired to increase their support.
Develop and implement engagement strategies including, but not limited to: telephone outreach, email/mail outreach, personal visits, and small group activities.
Review and finalize grants and proposals.
Develop strategies and manage implementation of donation appeals (digital or print as strategically identified) including seasonal appeals (ex. end of year/holiday giving) and complementary fundraising appeals matching Essie’s campaigns and policy fights.
Track and report results of appeals and special campaigns, adjusting strategies as needed.
Donor Relationship Stewardship - Manage and facilitate Essie’s ongoing organizational relationships with individual donors, ensuring that they remain engaged in and inspired by Essie’s work.
Manage robust donor stewardship and cultivation touchpoints including personal thank yous, digital communications, and personalized outreach.
Prepare and distribute materials to communicate with supporters including thank you letters, event reports, and annual reports.
Ensure electronic donor records are current in the development database, including tracking moves for those within the major gifts portfolio.
Advise and prepare senior leadership for donor meetings as needed.
Manage the strategy and coordination of funder visits with Executive Leadership.
Facilitate connective and grant reporting funder calls as identified.
Lead the planning and management of donor events that combine political education and philanthropic action.
Team Leadership - Manage and evaluate team members and processes for success.
Co-hold the container of the staff team and contractors to support day-to-day development operations and achieve set organizational goals together.
Provide input on development process improvements, and work with teammates to refine collaborative systems as necessary.
Work collaboratively and consistently with other leaders at Essie to define strategic priorities, make decisions about unanticipated opportunities, and manage towards operational plan goals.
Manage departmental budgets and work systems, and co-build and manage a dynamic Communications & Partnerships staff team.
Embody and promote Essie culture and values internally and externally.
Directly manage 1-2 staff members.
Who We’re Looking For
Ideal Qualifications
5+ years of development-related work experience, including experience with individual giving campaigns and direc

Employment type
Full-Time

Work arrangement
No