Development Manager (MS)

The MusicianShip uses music to alter the life trajectory of youth, thereby creating a more vibrant, educated, empowered, and well-intentioned world. The MusicianShip is a DC-based nonprofit organization that facilitates music lessons, experiences, and opportunities to benefit youth who need us most, this year serving 1600 youth in DC, Paris, St. Maarten, and Johannesburg. In addition to our music education work, we have a suite of music experience brands, which include the Washington Youth Choir, the Wammie Awards, and the DC Funk Parade.

Position Overview:

The Development Manager is a full-time role on The MusicianShip’s team and will be responsible for bringing both structure and innovation to our growing number of fundraising activities.

Grounded in social justice, this role is both strategic and tactical, requiring the ability to think big while minding all the details. The Development Manager must be a savvy self-starter and project manager who is comfortable juggling multiple projects. This role will report to and work closely with the Executive Director (ED) on all projects, in addition to partnering with the communications, program, and events teams to coordinate organizational storytelling.

Attributes of Competitive Candidates:

Competitive candidates will have at least 3-7 years of nonprofit development experience and enjoy working on small teams whose members all wear many hats. They must be considerate listeners and believe everyone has an important story to tell. They must readily connect the dots between fundraising, communications, and programs, and they must inspire their colleagues to see those connections as well. They must appreciate structure and systems and believe they make the work easier and better. They must value anecdotes and numbers in equal measure.

Responsibilities:

Devise and Update Development Strategy

1. Work closely with the Executive Director (ED) to update existing development plan to accomplish organizational goals as they evolve.
2. Identify suspected revenue gaps and provide input on tactics to generate new leads.

Donor Development and Relations

1. Ensure a continuously robust opportunity pipeline big enough to hit growing annual revenue goals by actively managing individual prospects and current donors.
2. Research and design the moves management plans for all major donors/funders.
3. Research and design appeals and special campaigns.
4. Project manage the Executive Director’s (ED) fundraising work, directing where and how best to spend his time and efforts on a weekly, monthly, and quarterly basis.

Manage Development Operations and Revenue Tracking

1. Conduct weekly gift processing and acknowledgement letter mail merges.
2. Spearhead data input and ensure data integrity and accuracy in all records and reports in Little Green Light (LGL), The MusicianShip’s current CRM.
3. Routinely update how-to documentation to codify and safeguard systems.

Oversee Consistent and Creative Donor Stewardship

1. Manage the execution of The MusicianShip’s donor stewardship plan.
2. Think creatively about the donor stewardship plan and update it annually with new and meaningful ways to connect donors and foster a sense of community.

Develop and Share The MusicianShip’s Organizational Messaging and Stories

1. Work with Program Manager and Communications Manager to collect, organize, and share compelling stories from The MusicianShip’s programs.
2. Develop creative and mission-centric fundraising messaging that articulates the special role of The MusicianShip in the field of youth development, as well as its impact on the community.
3. Prepare all donor cultivation and solicitation materials by adapting messaging as needed relative to donors’ particular interests and specific history with The MusicianShip.

Manage Fundraising Components of Special Events

1. Create and continually update corporate sponsorship collateral including pitch decks tailored to sponsorship prospects.
2. Manage all fundraising initiatives related to all of The MusicianShip’s events including Funk Parade, Wammie Award Weekend, and the annual gala.

Managing Grant Opportunities

1. Work alongside with Grant Writer to coordinate prospect research to ensure The MusicianShip has a robust pipeline of local, regional, and national grant opportunities to pursue.
2. Review grant applications to ensure dynamic, reader-friendly, and high-quality writing free of typos, jargon, and lackluster prose.

About You

To be maximally successful in this role, you need to be:

1. A born project manager with a knack for working backwards from a deadline to create a plan.
2. Accustomed to working on multiple projects with different deadlines simultaneously.
3. A natural people person who appreciates that everyone has an important story to tell.
4. A dynamic, professional, and poised brand ambassador for The MusicianShip.
5. A reliable and friendly communicator who reaches out and follows up.
6. A practiced public speaker who can think on your toes.
7. A stickler for details and quality.
8. A caretaker of sensitive information about donors, students, and other members of The MusicianShip’s community.
9. A strong self-motivator.
10. A creative thinker willing to test out new ideas.
11. Someone who values diversity and is amenable to working alongside allies to promote social justice.
12. Experience with organizations focused on youth development, and/or the performing arts, particularly in Washington, DC, is a plus.

You need to have:

1. A Bachelor’s degree and at least 3 years of nonprofit development experience.
2. Experience managing and improving development operations, ranging from CRM management to budget monitoring to gift processing.
3. Outstanding written and verbal communication skills.
4. The ability to communicate easily, respectfully and sensitively with stakeholders of all ages, generations, ethnicities, and socio-economic backgrounds.
5. Enthusiasm to propose fresh ideas without prompting by leadership, openness to feedback on those ideas, and a persistence to bring those ideas to life.
6. An understanding of ethical behavior and organizational practices, ensuring that your own behavior and the behavior of others is consistent with these standards and aligns with the values of the organization.
7. A “teamwork” mindset and the ability to work cooperatively and effectively with others to set goals, resolve problems, and make decisions that enhance organizational effectiveness.

About Compensation and Benefits:

1. The MusicianShip operates virtually without a central office. However, our programs operate in various satellite locations throughout Washington D.C. The position may require up to 90% virtual work and up to 10% travel to engage in outreach events, recruiting efforts, student performances, site visits, etc. Expense reimbursements are available with appropriate documentation. Company communication is executed mostly through email and teleconference.
2. Salary range is $55,000 - $70,000 commensurate with experience.

To Apply

Candidates should send a resume, cover letter, and brief writing sample to with The MusicianShip Development Manager in the subject line.

The MusicianShip is dedicated to promoting diversity and inclusion in our content, work, and staff. We are fully focused on equality and believe deeply in diversity of race, gender, sexual orientation, religion, nationality, ethnicity, and every other attribute that makes us unique.