Lead Consultant

Job Description

Job Description

Status: Full-Time, Exempt Schedule: Monday–Friday, 8:30 AM–5:00 PM (PT), with occasional evenings and weekends

Reports To: Associate Director

Salary: $103,303 (includes bay area stipend)

Location: San Francisco, CA (hybrid with 3 days per week in-office)

Lead Consultants (LCs) at A.M. Crawford (AMC) fulfill a hybrid role that advises a range of non-profit clients on fundraising strategies, grant development, donor engagement approaches, and post-award grants management to help grow impact, expand service provision, and better serve their communities. AMC works with a wide range of non-profit clients across the US, including in the industrial or trade, education, women’s empowerment, youth inclusion, environmental resilience, and social development sectors.

LCs’s primary responsibilities are to develop strategic grant opportunity pipelines, specific proposal pursuit strategies, and help write winning grant submissions to federal agencies, state actors, foundations and philanthropies, and corporate social responsibility divisions for our non-profit clients. Specific responsibilities include funder and grant application research, building opportunity pipelines, undertaking solicitation assessments and go/no go analyses, conducting compliance reviews, technical narrative and budget writing and reviews, managing funder coordination and stakeholder networking, and integrating AI approaches into the proposal design and delivery processes.

Lead Consultants furthermore are the day to day managers of AMC’s contracts with each client, responsible for ensuring compliance with monthly labor hour ceilings for all team members, monitoring of required leads, submission of the agreed-upon number of proposals, and ultimately ensuring return on investment based on the value of grant funds raised. LCs are tasked with ensuring assigned client contracts and all associated deliverables are on time, on budget, and meet AMC standards of quality. Additionally, the Lead Consultant is responsible for managing client relationships and client expectations.The Lead Consultant is evaluated based on how they carry out these responsibilities, the level of service they provide, and client success benchmarks.

Generally, Lead Consultants have at least five years of dedicated proposal writing experience working in a federal business development, nonprofit fundraising, or corporate consulting setting. Applicants must demonstrate ability to lead throughout the proposal lifecycle (i.e., from opportunity identification through to post-submission management); familiarity with non-profit fundraising databases (e.g., Candid, Instrumentl, etc.) and federal awards management processes (including from USAID, the Department of Labor, and other relevant national agencies); fluency in the Shipley proposal processes is highly preferred.

• Lead coordination with a portfolio of non-profit clients to understand their funding needs, orient them to the grants development process, and propose a strategy to help them meet their growth or impact goals through grant fundraising
• Research and identify potential funders and grant opportunities, including government and foundation grants, major donors, and other funding sources, to develop actionable funding strategies
• Analyze and assess individual grant solicitations, then develop targeted win strategies for proposal writing, budgeting, and funder cultivation
• Lead the proposal writing and budgeting process; this may include responsibility for primary writing, but may also include working with an external grant writing consultant to monitor their products and edit or revise accordingly
• Lead client/team coordination, helping to provide updates on submissions to date, contract return on investment, updates to funding strategies as needed, and outreach for funder cultivation
• Responsible for delegation of activities and team coordination (development coordinators, writers, and management), including setting up and managing all client projects in Asana (project management software) in accordance with AMC operating procedures, culminating in deliverable completion
• Manage multiple client contracts at any given time: oversees all contract budgets, objectives, and deliverables and is responsible for overall success and profitability of assigned client portfolio
• Meet or exceed 300 billable client hours goal per quarter, for a total of 1,200+ client hours per year
• Monitors progress toward all contract deliverables, manages workflow for team members, and keeps clients informed on overall contract/project progress
• Sets up project time budgets in our time keeping platform (Harvest) and monitors hours toward each project; responsible for ensuring projects stay within budget
• Identifies team member strengths and weaknesses and recommends opportunities for training and advancement
• Spearheads the incorporation of new tools (including AI platforms such as Google Gemini, ChatGPT, NotebookLM, Claude, and other AI tools) into our workflows
• Develops new service offerings in collaboration with the COO, CEO, and other team members
• Looks for opportunities to provide additional services to assigned clients (e.g., post-award grants management) and collaborate with AMC Management when appropriate to discuss the clients’ needs and develop new service offerings
• Other duties as determined by management

• A minimum of five years of experience in proposal writing, fundraising, or non-profit consulting; familiarity with non-profit fundraising databases (e.g., Candid, Instrumentl, etc.), federal awards management processes (including from USAID, the Department of Labor, and other agencies), and Shipley proposal processes is highly preferred
• Deep familiarity with proposal design and development best practices , including proposal writing, making go-no go analyses, creating compliant proposal drafts, providing actionable narrative reviews, and developing win themes
• Exceptional strategic thinking and analytical skills, with the ability to synthesize complex information into actionable insights
• Strong financial acumen — comfortable coaching nonprofit staff and colleagues to create program budgets, interpret Form 990s, SF-424s, and read financial statements
• Outstanding written and verbal communication abilities, with an aptitude for building authentic relationships and influencing decision-makers
• Proven project management expertise , balancing multiple deadlines while maintaining precision, professionalism, and grace under pressure
• Proficiency with key technological platforms including ChatGPT, workflow tasking software (e.g., Asana), Google Workspace, Candid, time tracking tools, and/or other cloud-based project management systems
• Fluency with AI and digital productivity tools — you are curious, adaptive, and comfortable using platforms such as ChatGPT, Notebook LM, Claude, or other emerging technologies to streamline work, enhance creativity, and drive results
• A collaborative, entrepreneurial mindset and a genuine enthusiasm for AMC’s mission and for helping organizations thrive

• Leadership and Team Management – You inspire confidence and foster accountability.
• Fundraising Strategy – You translate missions, projects, and programs into compelling cases for support.
• Post Award Grant Management - You ensure funder compliance, track deadlines and budgets, deliver clear outcome reports, and coordinate teams to keep grants on schedule.
• Financial Literacy – You bridge strategy and numbers seamlessly.
• Consultative Communication – You listen deeply, advise thoughtfully, and communicate clearly.
• Operational Excellence – You deliver work that reflects rigor, creativity, and impact.

AMC offers a competitive compensation package designed to reward excellence and support holistic wellbeing:

• Unlimited Vacation Time – Trust-based flexibility to rest and recharge
• Collective Disconnects – Company-wide breaks: one week between Christmas and New Year’s, plus 1–2 days around Independence Day.
• 12 Paid Holidays – Observed in accordance with the City of San Francisco calendar.
• Group Health and Dental Coverage
• 401(k) with Company Match – 100% match on the first 1%, 50% match on 2-6%.
• Matching Gift Program – Amplify your impact through philanthropy (match of up to $150/year).
• Professional Development Funding – Invest in your ongoing learning and leadership growth.
• Performance- and Business Development-Based Bonus Opportunities

This role is based in our San Francisco, CA office and collaborates with colleagues and clients across multiple U.S. time zones. The position may involve limited travel and occasional evening or weekend work. Professionalism, discretion, and adaptability are essential.

At AMC, our mission is nonprofit success. We make this our mission because we believe that nonprofits change the world for the better. AMC is the behind-the-scenes team that helps nonprofits do transformative work, and we hold ourselves to high standards. Our culture is rooted in our values - what we call our 5 GIVES: Growth; Integrity & Respect; Value Awareness; Excellence; and Spirited, Collective Effort. We’re a team of thinkers, creators, and builders who take pride in elevating the people, nonprofits and missions we serve.

If you’re a driven professional who is inspired by the work of nonprofits and values autonomy, creativity, and meaningful impact, we invite you to bring your expertise to AMC.

Please submit your résumé and a brief cover letter describing your relevant experience and why you’re excited to join AMC’s mission-driven team.