Ms. JD is expanding our team with the addition of a Development Director. As the organization’s
third full time staff member, this position offers a unique opportunity to expand the reach of Ms.
JD’s efforts to support women throughout the pipeline who are striving to build successful careers
in the legal profession. The ideal candidate will have a passion for advancing equity for all women
in law and enjoy the innovation, creativity, and collaboration required in a small, yet mighty,
nonprofit environment.
Reporting to the Chief Executive Officer, the Development Director will help oversee Ms. JD’s
current fundraising portfolio and help to develop additional revenue strategies and resources in
alignment with Ms. JD’s strategic plan to grow the Ms. JD community and the organization’s
impact. The candidate will engage and supervise contractors and volunteers, and ensure proper
stewardship of all donors and prospects. This role is fully remote, with required travel throughout
the year to attend Ms. JD’s scheduled fundraising, cultivation and select program events.
The Development Director is integral to the success of Ms. JD’s growth. If you enjoy working
collaboratively to build community and are excited to develop and execute fundraising strategy
that aims to advance women throughout all facets of the legal profession, we encourage you to
apply!
About Ms. JD: Ms. JD is a non-profit, non-partisan 501(c)(3) that seeks to support and improve the
experiences of women law students and lawyers. Obstacles to equal participation hinder not only
women in the law but also their colleagues, clients, children, and communities. Ms. JD
consequently strives to give voice to why it matters that women continue to overcome barriers to
achieve gender parity in the profession. In doing so, Ms. JD spreads the word: Women’s Victories
Are Everyone’s Victories! For more information regarding Ms. JD, please visit www.ms-jd.org.
Position Description
The Development Director designs, develops, and implements fundraising strategies and
resources aimed to support advancing women lawyers at all stages of their careers across the
country. The Development Director designs and provides operational leadership and day to day
management to ensure the timely stewardship of key stakeholders and successful execution of
fundraising strategies.
The Development Director’s primary duties and responsibilities include, but are not limited to, the
Following
- Ensure diversification of revenue strategies to mitigate reliance on event sponsorship
revenues.
- Manage full cycle of donor prospecting and cultivation.
- Manage portfolio of donors across various revenue channels including making direct asks
and preparing pitch decks/talking points.
- Implement technology solutions to manage all aspects of fundraising cycle.
- Manage Development Committee of the Board, provide training as needed to full Board on
fundraising activities.
- Develop and oversee fundraising projections and budgets, managing timelines to meet
monthly goals. Work with the CEO to set in-person event budgets and ticket prices.
- Track and report progress of work, goals, problems, and other issues to CEO and/or Board of
Directors.
- Convene regular virtual meetings and provide post-call reports; advise members on strategy
and procedures to ensure projects move forward.
- Negotiate contracts with outside vendors, speakers, and venues for project-based
development work and in-person development events.
- Oversee coordination of all donor event logistics including preparation of banquet event
orders, audio/visual orders and sleeping room reservations; prepare run of show for gala and
confirm the talking points and logistics for speakers and/or awardees.
- Ensure compliance with organization policies and procedures.
- Develop working knowledge of potential event speakers and topics to recommend and vet
unsolicited pitches.
- Coordinate with other entities on joint projects and seek out internal and external partners.
Education & Experience
Bachelor’s degree required. Minimum of 5-years of direct fundraising and development operations
experience is required and work experience in a non-profit association or in the legal sector is
preferred.
Skills And Abilities Preferred
- Experience: The Development Director should have demonstrated experience successfully
closing fundraising asks across various revenue channels including major gifts, corporate
sponsorships, foundation grants, special events, and digital fundraising. The Development
Director should have experience selecting, implementing and maintaining a donor CRM
(software/database) and aptitude in MS Office applications. The Development Director
requires a proven track record of leading initiatives, managing a team and maintaining
positive relationships with staff, volunteers, sponsors, and Board of Directors.
- Communication: The Development Director spends a significant amount of time
communicating with staff, committees, and others, reporting progress or problems, or
negotiating with third parties. Verbal and written communication skills are key to success.
The Development Director should communicate information clearly, especially via
presentations, reports, slide decks, memos, and other strategy-related materials.
- Leadership: The ability to lead and motivate a team is critical to progressing any project.
Development Director must occasionally resolve personality and work-style conflicts.
- Organization: The Development Director juggles many projects simultaneously and must
be organized to keep all details top of mind. This is especially true when working with event
committees composed of volunteers.
- Problem Solving: Issues that need attention regularly come up and the Development
Director must nimbly deal with unexpected problems. The Development Director must also
work to predict problems in advance and brainstorm solutions – readily available backup
plans can keep work on track.
- Strategic Thinker: The Development Director ensures the work and projects performed
align with the goals of the organization. Strategy skills include the ability to formulate plans
to stay within budgets and timelines and handle unexpected events. The Development
Director must have the professional judgment necessary to discern important details that
affect fundraising from those that do not.
- Agility: The Development Director must adapt and innovate to implement fundraising
strategy in an ever-changing world. The Development Director must embrace a “test and
learn” mindset to creatively maximize value to members and have excellent written and
verbal communication skills, including negotiation skills.
This is a full-time exempt position. The salary range for this position is $75,000 - $85,000 and is
commensurate with experience. Benefits currently include paid vacation, pack sick leave, and paid
holidays.
How to Apply
Please submit your cover letter, resume, and contact information for three professional references
to executiveassistant@ms-jd.org. Please write “Development Director Position” in the subject line.
Applications and interviews will be held on a rolling basis beginning January 15th until the position
is filled.
No phone calls or emails, please. We are unable to respond to queries about application status.
Ms. JD is an equal opportunity employer. We prohibit unlawful discrimination against any
employee or applicant for employment based on race, color, religion, sex, gender identity, age,
national origin, genetic characteristics, disability, status as a special disabled veteran or veteran,
marital status, sexual orientation, sexual identity, or any other basis prohibited by law.
Research has shown that traditionally marginalized communities (people of color, people with
disabilities, etc.) often do not apply for jobs if they do not meet every single qualification. If you think
you can do this job but do not meet every qualification, we encourage you to still apply
