The Position
Reporting to the President/CEO and serving as a member of BGCD’s executive leadership team, the Chief Advancement Officer (CAO) is responsible for setting and leading a comprehensive advancement and marketing strategy for the organization. BGCD is seeking a seasoned, well-connected fundraising executive to shape the future of an expanded advancement program — someone with deep, established relationships within Dallas’ philanthropic, corporate, and civic community who can identify, cultivate, and secure new investors and strategic partners committed to the mission.
The Chief Advancement Officer will have organization-wide responsibility for all channels of fundraising — annual fund, major gifts, planned giving, corporate and foundation relations, grants, and events — as well as marketing, communications, and public relations for the organization. S/he will also serve as a key advisor to the President/CEO and Board of Directors on philanthropic strategy, and will be responsible for donor stewardship, development operations, and driving new philanthropic investment to fuel BGCD’s growth.
Responsibilities
Executive Leadership
- Serve as a key member of BGCD’s executive leadership team, contributing to organization-wide strategic planning and decision-making;
- Act as a strategic advisor to the President/CEO and Board of Directors on philanthropic trends, donor sentiment, and advancement strategy; and
- Represent BGCD’s advancement and marketing function externally as a senior spokesperson within the Dallas philanthropic and civic community.
Fundraising, Growth & Donor Stewardship
- Drive new growth for BGCD by proactively identifying, cultivating, and securing new individual, corporate, and foundation investors — leveraging existing relationships within Dallas’ philanthropic community to expand and diversify the donor base;
- Manage all fundraising activities, including designing and implementing strategies for generating increased revenue for programs and capital needs;
- Establish development goals and objectives, and determine the priority activities to be undertaken;
- Generate tours of the facilities and meetings with current and potential donors;
- Oversee organizational events;
- Create and nurture long-term relationships with current and new funders;
- Customize communications and actions for major donors;
- Leverage the CEO and Board for meetings, calls, letters, etc. and provide preparatory materials such as bios, history, target ask, context of relationship, etc.;
- Personally participate in top-level fundraising activities, including cultivation and solicitations; and
- Ensure stewardship plan is followed where all donors are feeling engaged and appreciated, and ensure funders are well stewarded.
Board Management
- Engage Board members with mutual respect as partners;
- Lead Board Development Committee (set agenda, lead meetings, distribute materials for meetings, manage Committee members’ relationships, plan and implement fundraising activities); and
- Develop fundraising reports for the Board and make presentations at Board meetings.
Planning and Analysis
- Manage prospect lists;
- Lead bookings forecasting, ensuring extemporaneous updates, as well as highlighting known changes; and
- Track outcomes and impact and analyze results.
Financial Management, Human Resources & Team Leadership
- Manage the Development department’s annual operating budget and revenue plan;
- Participate, as required, in the annual financial audit;
- Provide direct supervision, strategic direction, coaching, and performance management to the development and marketing team.
- Set individual and team fundraising goals aligned with organizational growth targets, and hold direct reports accountable for results;
- Ensure that sound human resource practices are in place; and
- Maintain an environment that attracts, retains, and motivates a diverse team of top-quality development and marketing staff.
Development Operations
- Maintain database ensuring the accuracy and timeliness of information (capture and create action items, all major interactions, personal information, relationships);
- Partner with Finance to enhance and maintain gift processing policies and procedures, as well as to ensure thorough and accurate record-keeping; and
- Establish and maintain appropriate Development policies and procedures.
Marketing & Communications
- Provide leadership and strategic direction to the Marketing and Communications function, ensuring brand consistency and mission-aligned messaging across all channels;
- Ensure marketing and communications efforts support donor cultivation, stewardship, and new investor engagement; and
- Oversee public relations efforts that elevate BGCD’s visibility and reputation within the Dallas community.
Candidate Qualifications / Experience
Experience: Minimum eight to ten years of nonprofit development and marketing experience, including prior senior leadership or executive-level experience. Managing a team of at least three full-time employees, with demonstrated success building and scaling a development function. Experience collaborating with a volunteer Board at the executive level. Deep, established network within Dallas’ philanthropic, corporate, and civic community, with a demonstrated ability to translate relationships into new philanthropic investment. Must be able to clear a background check and history indicating fitness to work with children.
Education: A Bachelor’s degree is required, and training that would provide the knowledge, skills, and abilities required for the successful performance of the essential job duties. Advanced degree preferred.
Certifications: CFRE strongly preferred.
Competencies / Attributes
The successful professional will have or be:
- Passionate about Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Dallas’ vision and mission; personally committed to helping at-risk youth graduate from high school ready for college and/or career
- Strong executive presence, with the credibility and polish to operate confidently at the Board and C-suite level
- Well-connected within Dallas’ philanthropic, corporate, and civic circles, with existing relationships that can be leveraged to bring new investors to BGCD’s mission
- “People person,” relationship-builder personality; energized by working collaboratively with Board and other stakeholders; eager to connect with donors, Board members and other partners
- Detail oriented; obsessed with tracking all donor information and actions required
- Expertise in database management
- Able to produce professional quality documents in Word and PowerPoint
- Excellent writing skills; able to produce professional quality marketing materials, grants, press releases and donor acknowledgement letters
- Strong and highly competent manager
- Self-managed, with positive initiative
- Results-driven approach with a bias towards action
- Supportive of and inclined toward ambitious goals
- A track record of achieving results
- High level of professionalism and willingness to do “whatever it takes” to reach goals
- Adept at multi-tasking
- Demonstrated mature judgment
- Ability to work in a diverse, fast-paced environment
