Chief Development Officer

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Chief Development Officer

Full Time Senior Management Washington, DC, US

Salary Range: $200,000.00 To $220,000.00 Annually

Chief Development Officer

REPORTS TO President & CEO

TEAM Executive Leadership Team member; leads Resource Development, including Marketing & Communications

LOCATION Washington, DC headquarters, with regular presence in Clubs across DC, Maryland, and Virginia

STATUS Full-time, exempt

SALARY RANGE $200,000 to $220,000, plus a comprehensive benefits package

ANTICIPATED START December 2026, with flexibility for an earlier start

WHO WE ARE

Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Washington (BGCGW) is the region's largest youth-serving Club organization and a proud member of the Boys & Girls Club Movement. We operate 15 Clubs across the District of Columbia, Maryland, and Virginia, including two new Fairfax County Clubs opening this fall, and serve more than 8,000 young people each year through after-school and summer programming, athletics, academic support, workforce readiness, and health and wellness.

Every day, our Youth Development Professionals open the Blue Door for kids and teens who need us most: a safe, affordable, fun place with caring adults, great programs, and a clear path to a great future. Our Center for Transformation (CoT) and our two signature events, BlueFest, which netted $1.6 million this year and celebrates its tenth anniversary in 2027, and Youth & Real Estate (YRE), which raised more than $1.1 million last year, reflect a community that believes deeply in Club kids.

BGCGW is entering a new chapter. Under new executive leadership, we are stabilizing our operations, focusing our priorities, and preparing to grow smart. We are rebuilding our culture around clarity, accountability, candor, and shared ownership, and building a revenue model that can sustain that growth for the next decade. The Chief Development Officer will be central to all of it.

THE OPPORTUNITY

BGCGW seeks a Chief Development Officer (CDO) to lead the organization's total revenue portfolio and the brand and story that power it. This is a builder's role. The CDO will inherit strong donor relationships, a signature event with real momentum, an engaged Board, and an affiliated Foundation, and will be asked to create the strategy, systems, story, and team that turn those assets into predictable, diversified, and growing revenue.

We think about revenue in three buckets: individuals and events; foundation, corporate, and government grants; and Program & Partnership Revenue, meaning contracts, fee‑for‑service programs, and other earned income. Over the next 18 to 24 months, we intend to shift the mix so that recurring and contracted sources carry the majority of our budget, individual giving becomes routine and systematized, grant submissions run on a disciplined pipeline, and our dependence on any single event declines. The CDO owns that transformation.

The right leader is a fundraiser first: someone who has personally closed six‑ and seven‑figure gifts and built the machinery behind them. The right leader is also a storyteller and a modern marketer who understands that visibility drives revenue, and who can make BGCGW impossible to ignore in the DMV. And the right leader understands that a youth‑serving organization must sell what it does well, price it fairly, and partner with counties, school systems, employers, and families to fund it. If you have done all three, or done two exceptionally and are hungry to do the third, we want to talk with you.

POSITION SUMMARY

Reporting to the President & CEO and serving on the Executive Leadership Team, the Chief Development Officer is accountable for BGCGW's revenue strategy and results across individual giving, major and principal gifts, institutional grants, corporate partnerships, signature events, and Program & Partnership Revenue, as well as for the organization's brand, marketing, and communications. The CDO leads, builds, and develops the Resource Development team; partners closely with the Board of Directors, regional Club boards, and the BGCGW Foundation; and serves as a trusted thought partner to the CEO on the organization's financial future and public voice.

The CDO will personally manage a portfolio of the organization's most important donor and partner relationships while building a team and a system that does not depend on any one person, including the CDO.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

Revenue Strategy and Portfolio Leadership

• Develop and execute a comprehensive, multi‑year revenue plan aligned with BGCGW's strategic priorities, with clear annual and quarterly targets by revenue stream.
• Own the full revenue portfolio: individual and major gifts, planned giving, foundation and corporate grants, government funding, corporate partnerships and sponsorships, signature events, and Program & Partnership Revenue.
• Lead the deliberate shift in BGCGW's revenue mix toward recurring, contracted, and diversified sources, and report progress transparently to the CEO, Executive Leadership Team, and Board.
• Partner with the CEO and Finance on revenue forecasting, cash flow planning, and budget development, ensuring every revenue line is grounded in a named prospect, a pipeline stage, and a probability.
• Build a culture of philanthropy across the organization in which every leader understands their role in generating and stewarding resources.

Major, Principal, and Individual Giving

• Personally cultivate, solicit, and steward a portfolio of the organization's top donors and prospects, including high‑net‑worth individuals, family foundations, and philanthropists at the six‑ and seven‑figure level.
• Run a disciplined moves‑management process with clear touchpoint cadences, ask calendars, and stewardship plans, tracked in Salesforce.
• Build a systematic annual giving and mid‑level donor program that converts first‑time and event donors into loyal, multi‑year supporters, with retention and upgrade rates as core metrics.
• Establish a planned giving program and integrate legacy giving into major donor conversations.
• Ensure every gift, at every level, is acknowledged promptly, personally, and accurately.

Institutional Giving and Grants

• Build a mechanized, calendar‑driven grants pipeline covering foundation, corporate, and government (federal, state, county, and city) opportunities, from prospecting through submission, reporting, and closeout.
• Establish clear ownership at every step of the grants process across Resource Development, Operations, Programs, and Finance, so that no deadline, report, or reimbursement is ever missed.
• Grow public funding relationships in DC, Maryland, and Virginia, including county and municipal partnerships that fund Club operations directly.
• Supervise and develop grants staff, and scale the function as the pipeline grows.

Corporate Partnerships and Signature Events

• Lead the strategy for BlueFest, Youth & Real Estate, and other signature events, keeping them fresh, profitable, and connected to long‑term donor relationships, including recruiting and managing event co‑chairs, committees, and lead sponsors, while intentionally reducing reliance on event revenue over time.
• Build a robust corporate partnership program that diversifies beyond our traditional sectors into new industries across the region, with offerings that extend beyond sponsorship to workforce, volunteer, and cause‑marketing partnerships.
• Apply rigorous return‑on‑investment analysis to every event and partnership.

Program & Partnership Revenue

• In partnership with Programs and Operations leadership, identify, structure, price, and close fee‑for‑service and contract revenue opportunities with school systems, local governments, employers, and community partners.
• Evaluate and, where appropriate, launch new earned‑income offerings, including enrichment, camp, workforce, and facility‑based programs, with sound pricing, cost recovery, and margin analysis.
• Develop the business cases, proposals, and partner agreements that bring these opportunities to life, and build the internal systems to invoice, track, and report on them.
• Bring a sales mindset to the work: a defined pipeline, conversion metrics, and a clear value proposition for each customer segment.

Marketing, Brand, and Storytelling

• Own BGCGW's brand and public voice. Lead the marketing and communications function and ensure every touchpoint, from a donor proposal to an Instagram reel to a Club flyer, is consistent with BGCA brand standards and unmistakably ours.
• Build a storytelling engine, not a series of one‑off posts: a repeatable system for capturing, producing, and distributing Club kid stories, Youth Development Professional voices, and impact data across print, digital, video, social, and earned media.
• Develop and refresh the case for support and a set of signature narratives, grounded in the Movement's Future Ready agenda and in BGCGW's own outcomes, that donors, board members, partners, and staff can all tell with confidence.
• Lead a modern, data‑driven digital strategy: audience segmentation, integrated email and social calendars, paid and organic digital, search, website optimization, and conversion tracking that ties awareness directly to donors, partners, members, and revenue.
• Design and run a sustained, low‑cost awareness campaign that explains who we are and what we do to the region's donors, public officials, employers, and families, ahead of any future campaign.
• Position the CEO and BGCGW as visible thought leaders on youth, opportunity, and the future of the DMV through media relations, op‑eds, speaking, and strategic partnerships.
• Be forward thinking about the tools. Responsibly apply AI, automation, and marketing technology to produce more content, personalize donor communications, sharpen targeting, and measure what works, while protecting the privacy and dignity of the young people we serve.
• Set clear marketing metrics (reach, engagement, web conversion, donor acquisition cost, and revenue attribution) and review them with the same discipline as the fundraising pipeline.
• Champion internal communications and staff pride in the brand: our own team members should be our most credible ambassadors.

Board and Foundation Partnership

• Serve as the primary staff partner to the Board Development Committee and support regional Club boards in meeting their annual giving and fundraising expectations.
• Equip Board members to open doors, make introductions, and participate in solicitations; coach them, prepare them, and follow through on every lead they generate.
• Partner with the CEO and the BGCGW Foundation on campaign planning, gift agreements, and stewardship of endowed and restricted gifts, including preparation for a future Foundation campaign.
• Contribute to Board and Executive Committee meetings with clear, data‑driven revenue and marketing reporting.

Development Operations, Data, and Accountability

• Own the integrity of donor and revenue data in Salesforce, including data hygiene, gift processing, and reporting, and dashboards that show pipeline health, asks per month, retention, and results against goal in real time.
• Implement prospect research, wealth screening, and market analysis to identify new high‑capacity donors and partners across the DMV.
• Establish written policies for gift acceptance, restricted gifts, donor recognition, and data privacy, in coordination with Finance and legal counsel.

Team Leadership and Culture

• Build, lead, and develop a high‑performing Resource Development and Marketing team with clear roles, individual goals, and regular coaching; hire for the gaps and design the structure the strategy requires.
• Set the standard for routine and discipline: weekly pipeline reviews, monthly metrics, and a predictable rhythm the team and the CEO can count on.
• Model the culture we are building: candor in the room, alignment once decisions are made, ownership of results, and generosity toward colleagues. Bring healthy challenge to the Executive Leadership Team and support its decisions fully once made.
• Be present and visible with Club staff and young people. Like all headquarters leaders, spend regular time in a Club so that the story you tell donors is one you have seen with your own eyes.

WHAT WE VALUE IN THIS LEADER

Beyond the résumé, there are qualities the CEO will weigh heavily. We name them here so candidates can decide honestly whether this is their role.

• Routine and discipline. You run on systems, not adrenaline. You keep a calendar of asks, a pipeline that is always current, and a follow‑up habit that never slips. Colleagues can predict what you will do next week because you did it last week.
• An unparalleled work ethic and drive. You set a pace that raises the standard for everyone around you, and you sustain it. You are energized, not exhausted, by an ambitious goal and a long list.
• An impeccable track record. Your results are specific, verifiable, and repeated across more than one organization. You can walk us through the gifts you closed, the campaigns you built, and the numbers before and after, and your references will tell the same story.
• Range across the room. You are as comfortable and credible in a private dining room with a philanthropist as you are in a Club gym with a Youth Development Professional. You build genuine rapport with both and treat both with the same respect.
• A builder of teams and a great teammate. You have hired, developed, and retained strong people and built the structure that lets a team perform without you in the room. Just as important, you are a good colleague: you share credit, ask for help, tell the truth kindly, and make the people around you better. We are rebuilding our culture, and this leader must be a cornerstone of it.
• A storyteller with a modern toolkit. You know that the story raises the money. You have a portfolio of work that moved people to act, and you are curious and current on digital, data, and AI‑enabled tools that let a lean team punch far above its weight.
• Fluency in both philanthropy and enterprise. You know traditional fundraising cold, and you are experienced, or hungry to become experienced, in building fee‑for‑service, contract, and earned‑income models that make the mission less dependent on the next gala.
• Presence and follow‑through. You show up, you own your commitments, and when something is at risk you pick up the phone rather than send an email.

QUALIFICATIONS

Must Haves

• Ten or more years of progressively senior experience in nonprofit resource development, with at least five years leading a development function or a significant revenue stream, ideally in an organization of comparable scale and complexity.
• A documented record of personally cultivating and closing six‑ and seven‑figure gifts from individuals, foundations, and corporations, and of growing total revenue year over year.
• Demonstrated success building and managing a comprehensive development program spanning major gifts, annual giving, institutional grants, corporate partnerships, and events.
• Experience leading or closely directing a marketing and communications function, with a demonstrated ability to build a brand, craft a compelling case for support, and drive an integrated multi‑channel content and digital strategy that produces measurable results.
• Proven experience hiring, developing, and leading a high‑performing team, including building or restructuring a team to meet a new strategy.
• Sophisticated experience working with high‑net‑worth individuals and with Boards of Directors, including staffing a development committee and coaching board members through solicitations.
• Deep working knowledge of grants management, including public funding, compliance, reporting, and the systems needed to run a pipeline without dropped deadlines.
• Strong command of development operations and data: CRM management (Salesforce strongly preferred), moves management, metrics, dashboards, and reporting.
• Exceptional written and verbal communication, including the ability to present with credibility to donors, boards, public officials, media, and staff.
• Financial acumen: comfort with budgets, forecasts, cost recovery, and the economics of programs and partnerships.
• Unquestioned integrity, sound judgment, and discretion with confidential donor and organizational information.
• Bachelor's degree required.
• Ability to work evenings and weekends as required for events and donor engagement, travel regularly across DC, Maryland, and Virginia, and maintain a valid driver's license and reliable transportation.

Nice to Haves

• Direct experience designing, pricing, and scaling fee‑for‑service, contract, or other earned‑revenue models in a nonprofit, social enterprise, or mission‑driven business, or equivalent business development and sales leadership experience.
• Hands‑on experience with modern marketing technology and analytics (marketing automation, CRM‑integrated email, paid digital, SEO, web analytics) and with AI‑assisted content and personalization tools.
• A track record of producing or directing video and visual storytelling that has driven fundraising or awareness results.
• Media relations and public affairs experience in the Washington, DC market, or demonstrated success building visibility and press relations in another large metropolitan market.
• Experience inside a large, complex nonprofit or enterprise with a nationally recognized brand, where you learned to protect, leverage, and grow that brand across multiple sites, audiences, and markets.
• Knowledge of the DMV's philanthropic, corporate, and public‑funding landscape and existing relationships with its donors, foundations, and civic leaders, or a demonstrated ability to enter a new market and build a high‑value network quickly in a large metropolitan area.
• Experience securing and managing government funding at the county and municipal level.
• Capital or comprehensive campaign leadership, including work with an affiliated foundation or endowment.
• Experience leading a development function through a leadership transition, turnaround, or period of significant organizational change.
• CFRE certification.
• Familiarity with Salesforce Nonprofit Cloud and youth‑membership platforms such as MyClubHub.

WHAT SUCCESS LOOKS LIKE

In the first 90 days

• Complete a rigorous assessment of the current portfolio, pipeline, team, brand, systems, and data, and deliver a prioritized plan to the CEO.
• Meet the organization's top donors, Board members, regional board chairs, Foundation leadership, and key public partners; secure a smooth handoff of every critical relationship.
• Establish the operating rhythm: weekly pipeline review, monthly revenue and marketing dashboard, and a 12‑month calendar of asks, applications, campaigns, and events.
• Ensure no active grant deadline, report, or renewal is missed during the transition.

By the end of year one

• Total revenue meets or exceeds the approved plan, with visible growth in recurring and contracted sources.
• A functioning grants pipeline with named owners at every step and a measurably higher submission volume.
• Documented growth in the major gifts portfolio and in first‑year donor retention.
• At least one new Program & Partnership Revenue agreement signed and generating income.
• A refreshed case for support, a live storytelling and content system, and measurable growth in digital audience and donor acquisition.
• A fully staffed, clearly structured Resource Development and Marketing team with individual goals and a shared sense of momentum.
• A Board Development Committee that is active, equipped, and producing introductions and gifts.

COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS

The salary range for this position is $200,000 to $220,000, commensurate with experience. BGCGW offers a comprehensive benefits package including medical, dental, and vision coverage, a retirement plan, paid time off and holidays, and professional development support. This range is provided in compliance with the District of Columbia Wage Transparency Omnibus Amendment Act.

Our Commitment

Boys & Girls Clubs of Greater Washington is an equal opportunity employer. We are committed to building a team that reflects the young people and communities we serve, and we encourage candidates of all backgrounds to apply.

Employment is contingent upon satisfactory completion of background screening, as required for all staff who work with or on behalf of young people. Safety is our first priority, always.