Development Manager

About the organization

Resolve Philly, founded in 2018, is building a collaborative network of neighborhood-based info hubs. It’s a model for the future designed for community impact and sustainability. We center our editorial work around news and information that is made with and for Philadelphia neighborhoods, especially those that have been harmed by traditional media narratives. We are committed to deep community engagement, understanding information needs and maximizing access to news and information.

About This Role

The Development Manager will be a key member of Resolve Philly’s team, responsible for managing and growing a portfolio of institutional and individual funders while helping strengthen the systems, campaigns, and relationships that support the organization’s long-term growth and sustainability.

This is an ideal opportunity for a development professional with approximately 2–5 years of progressive fundraising experience who is ready to take ownership of a fundraising portfolio while continuing to learn and grow.

The Development Manager will work closely with the Executive Director, who maintains many of Resolve’s senior funder relationships, while taking significant responsibility for grant writing and reporting, individual donor engagement, annual campaigns, prospect research, and development operations. Project management is key to this role, and the Development Manager is responsible for maintaining and updating the calendars and systems that ensure Resolve Philly meets revenue deadlines and opportunities in a timely manner.

Required Qualifications

• You have 2-5 years of progressive fundraising or nonprofit development experience, preferably with an organization with an annual budget of at least $500,000.
• You have demonstrated experience writing successful foundation proposals and completing detailed grant reports.
• You have excellent writing, editing, research, and organizational skills.
• You pay strong attention to detail and have demonstrated the ability to manage multiple deadlines simultaneously.
• You have experience with individual giving campaigns, donor stewardship, or annual giving.
• You have an interest in prospect research and identifying new sources of philanthropic support.
• You are comfortable communicating directly with foundation representatives, donors, board members, staff and community partners.
• You have experience using fundraising databases or donor management systems, such as Givebutter and Airtable.
• You have experience using task management platforms, such as Asana, for organizing and collaboration.
• You have an interest in nonprofit journalism, civic engagement, community information, or related fields.

Core Responsibilities

Institutional Giving

Institutional fundraising will represent the largest portion of this role. The Development Manager will:

• Manage a calendar of foundation proposals, renewals, reports, and other funder requirements, ensuring that all deadlines and commitments are met.
• Draft compelling grant proposals, letters of inquiry, reports, and other funder communications. (6 hours/week)
• Work with program and organizational leadership to gather the financial, programmatic, and impact information needed for proposals and detailed grant reporting.
• Maintain ongoing communication with foundation staff regarding funding priorities, eligibility, alignment, proposal requirements, and reporting.
• Partner with the Executive Director in stewarding Resolve’s existing foundation relationships.
• Research and identify new institutional prospects, with particular emphasis on expanding Resolve’s funding base beyond traditional journalism and media funders into areas aligned with its work, including civic engagement, community development, democracy, equity, and access to trusted information.

Individual Giving & Donor Development

The Development Manager will help Resolve continue building a stronger and more engaged community of individual supporters. Responsibilities will include:

• With the Executive Director, manage ongoing communications, stewardship, and cultivation of individual donors.
• Identify donors with the interest and capacity to become larger supporters.
• Work with the Executive Director and board members to support donor cultivation and solicitation.
• Maintain accurate donor records and use donor data to identify trends and opportunities for increased engagement.

NewsMatch & Annual Campaigns

A major responsibility of the Development Manager will be leading the execution and continued growth of Resolve Philly’s annual NewsMatch campaign; preparation begins in August and the actual campaign takes place in November and December.

NewsMatch is more than a year-end appeal—it is an organization-wide, peer-to-peer fundraising effort. The Development Manager will:

• Develop and manage the annual campaign plan, calendar, communications, and fundraising activities.
• Engage and activate staff and board members as participants in the campaign.
• Recruit and support donors, volunteers, and other supporters to serve as fundraising ambassadors.
• Provide ambassadors with the tools, messaging, coaching, and encouragement needed to successfully reach their networks.
• Track campaign performance and use results from previous campaigns to strengthen future efforts.
• Help build a culture in which fundraising is understood as a shared organizational responsibility.

Earned Revenue & Sponsorship

While not the primary focus of the position, the Development Manager will support efforts to generate earned revenue and sponsorships, including:

• Assist with identifying prospective local businesses, corporations, and organizational partners.
• Support outreach, proposal development, sponsorship fulfillment, and relationship management.
• Help identify opportunities to connect Resolve’s programs, publications, events, and community engagement activities with appropriate sponsorship opportunities.

Development Operations

The Development Manager will help ensure that Resolve’s fundraising program is organized, accurate, and increasingly effective by:

• Maintain fundraising records, prospect information, deadlines, and donor activity.
• Track progress toward fundraising goals and provide regular updates to organizational leadership.
• Maintain grant and donor documentation and ensure appropriate acknowledgment and stewardship.
• Help continuously improve development systems, processes, templates, and workflows.

Desired Competencies

Experience matters, but so does how you approach the work. We’re particularly interested in someone who is:

• Curious. You enjoy learning about the organization’s work, understanding what motivates funders and donors, and finding connections others may not immediately see.
• Collaborative. Fundraising at Resolve depends on working across programs, leadership, staff, board members, and external partners.
• Coachable. You welcome feedback, ask questions, and see the role as an opportunity to continue developing your skills.
• Organized and accountable. You understand that successful fundraising requires both strong storytelling and disciplined follow-through.
• Comfortable taking initiative. You don’t need to know everything on day one, but you’re willing to research, ask questions, make recommendations, and move work forward.
• Excited by growth. You’re interested in joining an evolving nonprofit organization and helping strengthen the fundraising infrastructure that will support its next chapter.