Development Manager

Full-time, exempt

Reports to Executive Director

$70K-80K DOE

The Development Manager is responsible for working in partnership with the Executive Director to develop and then will lead the execution of a comprehensive annual and long‑term strategy to sustain and expand philanthropic support for Friends of the Children – Houston. This includes cultivating and stewarding relationships with individual donors, foundations, corporations, and government agencies. Reporting to the Executive Director, the Development Manager will collaborate with the team including a Development Intern, national grant writing and marketing team, and Board Development Committee.

This position is ideal for both emerging and experienced development professionals. It offers a challenging opportunity to advance skills and build a successful fundraising program with potential for career and salary growth. The role may be expanded for a seasoned fundraiser who wants to lead and significantly impact philanthropy for Friends-Houston’s mission as a Director of Development.

Friends of the Children – Houston (Friends‑Houston) is a nonprofit dedicated to impacting generational change by empowering youth facing the greatest obstacles through relationships with long‑term professional mentors from kindergarten through high school, for 12+ years, no matter what. These full‑time paid mentors, we call Friends, give 1:1 weekly support in the home, classroom, and community to ensure healthy social and emotional development, safety, educational success, and the overall well‑being of their youth.

Friends‑Houston utilizes a two‑generation approach that includes working with parents to set and achieve their own goals, access resources, and build protective factors needed to stabilize families and break the cycle of generational poverty.

Friends‑Houston, launched in March 2023, brings over 30 years of successful experience and extensive research from our national network demonstrating the effectiveness of our innovative approach to long‑term mentorship.

The Development Manager works in close partnership with the Executive Director to develop and execute strategic fundraising programs to reach established fundraising goals and achieve revenue targets.

• Work with Executive Director to create and implement a strategy to identify and facilitate an increase in individual and corporate donors.
• Make direct, face to face, solicitations from individuals, and follow‑up visits and phone calls to thank donors.
• Secure gifts and in‑kind donations to support direct services (dinners for families, admission to extracurricular activities for children, etc.)
• Develop and implement a comprehensive donor stewardship program, including managing the donor data to track gifts, donor interactions, cultivate relationships, identifying major gift prospects, ensure donor data integrity.
• Manage and grow recurring / annual giving campaigns including Giving Tuesday, Words & Wonders Summer, and year‑end giving.
• Facilitate a strategy for grant revenue, collaborating with Executive Director and National grant writing team for major requests.

• Oversee all aspects of donor data management, ensuring the accuracy and timeliness of information within Friends‑Houston’s CRM (Bloomerang); specifically, accurately recording all donor interactions, including gifts, acknowledgement, communications, volunteer activities, and event attendance.
• Utilize the CRM to segment donors, identify giving patterns, and personalize communications for maximum impact.
• Track and assess annual development plan/fundraising campaigns, provide analysis and reporting on progress towards development priorities and goals, including completing regularly requested reports on fundraising updates for the Executive Director and Board of Directors.

• In partnership with the Executive Director be a representative for Friends – Houston, to engage public relations, donor relationships, fundraising events, and other community…