Director of Development

DIRECTOR OF DEVELOPMENT ABOUT THE EBELL LOS ANGELES The Ebell of Los Angeles is a women-led nonprofit organization that has served the Greater Los Angeles community for more than a century. Its mission is to inspire women and build community through arts, culture, education, service, and stewardship of its historic campus and collections. As The Ebell enters an ambitious new chapter, the organization is preparing to steward its historic landmark campus for its next century while expanding its philanthropic capacity and community impact. POSITION SUMMARY The Director of Development (DOD) is a seasoned, entrepreneurial leader responsible for building and scaling The Ebell’s philanthropic program at a pivotal moment in the organization’s history. Reporting directly to the CEO, the DOD will initially serve as the organization’s lead frontline fundraiser, developing relationships with individual and institutional donors, making direct asks, and building a robust major gifts pipeline in support of annual, capital, and campaign priorities. This is an opportunity for an experienced development professional to help create a culture of philanthropy across an organization where fundraising capacity and expertise are still evolving. The DOD will serve as a close partner and advisor to the CEO, Board, and senior leadership team, helping organizational leaders become more effective ambassadors, relationship-builders, and fundraisers. ROLES & RESPONSIBILITIES Fundraising & Major Gifts Serve as The Ebell’s lead frontline fundraiser, cultivating, soliciting, and stewarding major individual and institutional donors, including six- and seven-figure prospects. Build and manage a robust major gifts pipeline, using disciplined prospect identification, cultivation, solicitation, moves management, and stewardship practices. Expand The Ebell’s donor base by developing new philanthropic relationships throughout Los Angeles and beyond. Develop and execute a comprehensive fundraising strategy encompassing major gifts, annual giving, institutional giving, sponsorships, campaigns, and stewardship. Campaign Leadership Play a senior leadership role in The Ebell’s capital fundraising efforts to preserve and ensure the future of its historic campus, addressing near-term needs while building toward a larger, long-term campaign. Partner with campaign counsel, organizational leadership, and volunteers to develop campaign strategy, prospect plans, feasibility efforts, solicitations, and a compelling case for support. Identify and pursue diverse sources of capital, including individual and institutional philanthropy, public funding, historic tax credits, and government support. CEO & Board Partnership Serve as a trusted fundraising advisor to the CEO and partner closely on donor strategy, campaign priorities, and key external relationships. Engage, coach, and equip Board members to identify prospects, cultivate relationships, open doors, and participate effectively in solicitations. Provide leadership and the Board with clear reporting on fundraising performance, pipeline development, campaign progress, and opportunities. Development Operations & Team Leadership Strengthen the systems, processes, metrics, and infrastructure necessary to support significant fundraising growth and a strong culture of philanthropy. Lead, mentor, and develop the development team, including the Senior Development Manager and grant writing resources, while assessing future staffing needs. Establish clear goals, roles, workflows, and accountability across the development function. Donor Communications & Institutional Giving Oversee compelling donor communications, cases for support, proposals, campaign materials, and stewardship strategies that strengthen donor engagement and giving. Lead foundation, corporate, and government fundraising, cultivating relationships with key institutional funders and overseeing a strong grants pipeline. Collaborate across marketing, programming, membership, events, and other teams to ensure cohesive messaging and donor engagement. Technology & Data Lead the continued implementation and optimization of Salesforce as The Ebell’s central development CRM, ensuring strong adoption and data integrity. Use donor, prospect, and campaign data to manage the pipeline, evaluate performance, forecast revenue, and inform fundraising strategy. QUALIFICATIONS 7+ years of progressively responsible nonprofit development experience, with significant experience in major gifts and frontline fundraising. Demonstrated success cultivating, soliciting, and closing six-figure gifts; experience with seven-figure gifts strongly preferred. Experience with a capital or comprehensive campaign, ideally within an ambitious, multi-year fundraising effort. Experience building or significantly strengthening a major gifts program, development operation, and culture of philanthropy. Demonstrated ability to partner effectively with a CEO, Board members, campaign volunteers, and senior stakeholders, including coaching leaders in donor cultivation and solicitation. <span data-ccp-props="{"201341983":0,"335559