Director of Development & Communications
Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Inland Northwest
Location: Spokane, WA – Coeur d’Alene, ID area
Reports To: Chief Executive Officer
Classification: Full-Time, Exempt
Salary: $80,000 – $110,000 per year
Placement within the salary range will reflect demonstrated fundraising results and depth of experience.
Benefits: Paid time off, including vacation, holidays, and sick leave. Medical, dental, and life insurance. 3% Simple IRA match after 12 months.
Organization Overview
At Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Inland Northwest, we see firsthand how a caring adult can ignite a child’s confidence and unlock their potential. Since 1965, we have created and supported more than 10,000 one-to-one mentoring relationships that build resilience, foster hope, and generate new possibilities. After a period of decline from 2010 to 2020, we have spent the past five years strengthening our programs and fundraising and stabilizing our leadership. Today, our organization is characterized by a healthy culture, sound operations, and the opportunity to make a bigger difference.
Position Summary
Big Brothers Big Sisters of the Inland Northwest has served youth in Eastern Washington and North Idaho since 1965 — and after five consecutive years of fundraising growth and a doubling of new matches in 2025, we're ready to scale. The Director of Development & Communications is a new position created to drive our next chapter.
Working closely with the CEO and our Board of Directors (who collectively raised over a third of our 2025 revenue), the Director leads fundraising strategy and execution — annual giving, major gifts, planned gifts, corporate partnerships, grants, events, and strategic communications — with a clear mandate: grow from $500K to $1M+ in annual revenue by 2030 by building more sustainable, relationship-based fundraising and reducing dependence on events.
This is a hands-on leadership role. The Director sets strategy and does the work — from prospecting and donor visits to content creation and social media. Candidates who thrive here are entrepreneurial, relationship-driven, and energized by the opportunity to build something.
Core Responsibilities
1. Fundraising Strategy and Planning
- Develop and execute a comprehensive annual fundraising plan that diversifies revenue across individual donors, foundations, corporate sponsors, grants, events, campaigns, and other funding sources.
- Establish annual fundraising goals in partnership with the CEO and Board and provide regular progress reporting, including monthly reports on key fundraising indicators.
- Serve as the primary point of accountability for fundraising targets and the development calendar.
- Support expansion into North Idaho and future service areas by building donor pipelines in new markets.
2. Major Gifts and Donor Relations
- Actively manage a portfolio of 50-75 major donors and prospects.
- Cultivate and upgrade existing donors; identify major gift prospects and lead relationship-building efforts, personally qualifying, cultivating, soliciting, and stewarding gifts using professional fundraising best practices.
- Create tailored cultivation plans for top prospects and maintain thorough records in the donor database.
- Conduct 8-10 donor visits per month and make direct solicitations, as appropriate.
- Engage the CEO and Board members strategically in cultivation and solicitation of key relationships.
3. Corporate Partnerships and Grants
- Proactively identify, cultivate, and secure corporate partnerships and collaborative fundraising opportunities.
- Coordinate with a grant writer to identify relevant opportunities, prepare proposals and stewardship reports, and oversee compliance with grant requirements.
4. Campaigns and Events
- Plan and deliver annual fundraising campaigns (peer-to-peer, Year End Appeal, and 2-3 annual cause marketing opportunities) in collaboration with staff, Board, and Big Brothers Big Sisters of America.
- Lead planning and execution of fundraising events, including the annual gala and auction, as well as donor appreciation and volunteer recruitment events.
- Drive growth in recurring contributions, annual fund giving, and 3rd party fundraising campaigns.
5. Marketing, Communications, and Content Creation
- Create engaging content for digital media, including e-newsletters, email outreach, and social media posts.
- Manage social and owned media channels; pursue earned media opportunities.
- Serve as a lead storyteller connecting donors and volunteers to mission impact in public-facing events and campaigns.
- Monitor and analyze campaign performance using digital tools; refine strategies to improve engagement and reach.
- Stay current on digital marketing best practices, including AI productivity tools, and bring innovative ideas for reaching new donors and volunteers.
6. Community Engagement and Volunteer Recruitment Support
- Proactively discover and attend community events, networking opportunities, and professional gatherings to strengthen partnerships and generate leads.
- Lead outreach efforts that support volunteer recruitment, with a particular focus on male mentors, including presentations to businesses, trade unions, civic organizations, and underrepresented communities.
- Build and maintain relationships with community organizations and business partners across our current and future service area.
7. Development Operations
- Serve as the internal expert on our fundraising and CRM platform (Qgiv/Bloomerang) and continuously improve how it is used.
- Use the CRM to track donations, log relationship-building activities, record next steps, and generate performance reports.
- Conduct monthly gift reconciliations to maintain accurate financial records, in coordination with the CEO and accountant.
Qualifications
Required
- Bachelor’s degree in a relevant field, or equivalent combination of education and experience.
- Five or more years of progressively responsible fundraising experience, including demonstrated success in direct, face-to-face solicitation of major gifts ($1,000+) from individual donors.
- Proven success developing and executing annual fundraising plans and meeting revenue targets.
- Experience designing and delivering corporate partnerships, fundraising campaigns, and events.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to represent the mission in person to diverse audiences.
- Proficiency in creating high-quality digital content, including graphics, short-form video, and written copy, for social media, email campaigns, and fundraising materials.
- Experience with donor prospecting including qualification of new prospective donors; persistent, resilient, and strong on follow-through.
- Demonstrated understanding of moves management practices and robust experience with donor database/CRM systems (Bloomerang, Salesforce, or similar).
- Detail-oriented and highly organized; capable of managing multiple priorities and deadlines independently.
- Strong judgment, discretion, and respect for donor confidentiality.
- Genuine commitment to equity, youth development, and serving people from diverse backgrounds.
Preferred
- CFRE certification.
- Graduate degree or professional certificate(s) in fundraising, nonprofit management, marketing, or a related field.
- Experience managing a major donor portfolio of 50+ relationships.
- Familiarity with the Inland Northwest philanthropic and civic landscape.
- Ties to or familiarity with the North Idaho/Coeur d’Alene market.
- Experience with planned giving.
- Familiarity with WordPress, Canva, Google Analytics, and Meta Business Suite.
Our Values
We seek individuals who reflect our core values: Inclusion, Integrity, Growth, and Community. Our family of stakeholders includes the children and families we serve, our volunteers, staff, Board members, donors, business partners, and the broader community we all inhabit. These values inspire and drive us to perform, influence our organizational behavior, inform our decision-making, and guide our future planning. Together, we are defenders of human potential.
Work Environment
- Hybrid: office-based with remote flexibility.
- Local travel and occasional evening/weekend hours for donor meetings, events, and campaigns.
- Physical requirements include occasional standing, walking, and reaching; standard vision requirements.
Big Brothers Big Sisters is an equal opportunity employer dedicated to creating an inclusive environment for all employees. This role may evolve based on program needs, funding, and organizational growth.
Pay: $80,000.00 - $110,000.00 per year
Benefits:
- 401(k) matching
- Dental insurance
- Dependent health insurance coverage
- Employee assistance program
- Health insurance
- Life insurance
- Paid time off
- Vision insurance
Work Location: Hybrid remote in Spokane, WA 99207
