Development and Events Manager

Friends of the Children – Western Montana is a nonprofit impacting generational change by empowering youth who face the greatest obstacles to create a new story. We do this by providing children who have big hopes and dreams with a long-term, salaried, professional mentor, who we call a “Friend,” from kindergarten through high school graduation, 12+ years – no matter what.

We are currently seeking an extraordinary professional to embark on a new career journey with our organization. Do you want to play a critical role in helping Western Montana’s most vulnerable children change the trajectories of their lives and be a part of a dynamic and supportive national network, with a proven, evidence-based mentoring model? Are you ready to join a friendly and collaborative workplace, where work-life balance is respected?

Are you inspired by a unique opportunity to build a thriving and rapidly expanding organization and work with an engaging team of mission-oriented people who love what they do?

If your answers to these questions are yes, the impactful role of Development and Events Manager might be for you.

The Development and Events Manager will partner with the Executive Director in fundraising, marketing, and outreach efforts to sustain and grow services in Missoula County and other communities across Western Montana.

At Friends of the Children – Western Montana, we put children first and use our values to change the way the world treats and views youth facing great barriers. We are looking for an enthusiastic, caring person who is creative, has an interest in outreach and marketing, and understands the critical role that philanthropy plays in nonprofit sustainability. As Development and Events Manager, you will help our emerging chapter build systems that will nurture long-term relationships from a foundation of love, acceptance, and culturally informed practice. You will build a group volunteer program, develop a best-practice pipeline structure, and help to secure needed funding through the development of a signature fundraising event.

Curious to learn more? See the position details below:

We are hiring an extraordinary candidate looking to develop long-term, trusting relationships with local donors and manage premier events to support our transformative work. A successful Development and Events Manager in this role can expect to:

• Drive efforts to successfully implement a SMART annual and multi-year fundraising plan.
• Manage donor CRM, Little Green Light, to optimize growing relationships with individual donors.
• Lead the expansion of our individual giving and major gift program, identify prospective individual and corporate donors, and develop strategies to cultivate those relationships, and provide support to train staff and Board in these efforts.
• Represent Friends at organization functions and events, particularly fundraising events.
• Lead semi-monthly, Benevon-style gatherings at our Clubhouse to build a robust relationship pipeline.
• Work collaboratively with all staff to create a group volunteerism program, helping to engage more community members with this important work.
• Research best practices and establish a system for soliciting, tracking, and acknowledging in-kind donations.
• Engage with Friends – Western Montana staff and volunteers to develop a signature fundraising event.
• Develop and implement an outreach strategy that delivers engaging communications and awareness-building using tools like social media, email, earned media, and paid advertising.
• Take ownership over tasks big and small necessary to build the infrastructure for a successful development program.

The ideal candidate will have:

• A Bachelor’s Degree with at least 3-5 years of development or related experience in sales, communications, or marketing.
• Demonstrated experience cultivating and maintaining business or philanthropic relationships.
• A track record of executing successful fundraising events.
• Ability to meet deadlines, manage multiple projects, and prioritize effectively.
• Exceptional professional communications skills including email, phone, and in-person.
• Superior scheduling and time management skills.
• Great attention to detail including data entry and database management skills.
• Enthusiasm to be part of a growing non-profit.
• Respect for the role and value of philanthropy.
• Enthusiasm and passion to play a critical role in helping Western Montana’s most vulnerable children change the trajectories of their lives!

Compensation: $50,000-$60,000 depending on experience

Benefits

Friends of the Children-Western Montana cares about the health and well-being of our employees. We offer generous vacation and sick leave and numerous paid holidays, a comprehensive insurance package, including dental and vision, long-term disability, and life insurance, a 401(k) retirement plan, and ongoing professional development opportunities.

Deadline: Open until filled. Reviewing resumes on January 26.

Friends of the Children is an Equal Opportunity Employer, committed to addressing discriminatory practices, and working toward racial equity. The equal employment opportunity policy of Friends of the Children provides fair and equal opportunities for all employees and job applicants regardless of race, color, religious beliefs, national origin, ancestry, age, sex, gender, pregnancy, sexual orientation, marital status, familial status, disability, or genetic information, in compliance with applicable federal, state, and local law. Friends of the Children hires and promotes individuals solely on the basis of their qualifications for the job to be filled.