Vice President of Development

Who We Are:

Founded in 1891 by a group of visionary volunteers, The Trustees of Reservations (The Trustees) is Massachusetts’ premier conservation and preservation organization. The Trustees’ preserves, for public use and enjoyment, properties of exceptional scenic, historic, and ecological value in Massachusetts. Our properties are open to all, and we thrive by involving as many people as possible in all that we do. We aim to protect special places for future generations to enjoy in perpetuity, and have helped protect more than 50,000 acres, including 27,000+ acres on more than 120 reservations that are open to the public. As a non-profit conservation organization, we are funded and supported entirely by our visitors, supporters, volunteers, and our 85,000 Member households. We encourage you to learn more about The Trustees on our website,  

Posting Information: 

Salary: $183,750-$215,250 

Please note that new employees are placed in the range between $183,750 and $210,000 to allow for an equitable starting salary process and continual salary growth during an employee’s time at the Trustees. 

Hours per week: 40 

Job Classification: Full-time, exempt 

Job Type: Hybrid 

Location: Boston, MA 

What You’ll Do:

Your Impact: 

The Trustees is in a transformational chapter through For Everyone, Forever, our bold strategic plan to save, steward, and share Massachusetts’ special places for generations to come. As Vice President of Development, you will help translate that vision into fundraising execution — leading the people, portfolio discipline, donor strategies, and performance culture that turn philanthropic opportunity into sustained mission impact. 

This role will play a critical part in advancing The Trustees’ new and historic campaign, the largest fundraising effort in the organization’s history. Working in close partnership with the Chief Development Officer, you will help ensure that campaign priorities are translated into clear donor strategies, strong portfolio movement, timely solicitations, and meaningful stewardship. You will help build the fundraising momentum needed not only to meet campaign goals, but also to strengthen the donor relationships, team culture, and fundraising practices that will sustain The Trustees well beyond the campaign. 

This role is central to helping The Trustees move from primarily project-based giving toward broader, impact-centered philanthropy that connects donors’ passion for special places to the full scope of our statewide mission. 

The Role: 

As Vice President of Development, you will serve as the senior fundraising execution leader, partnering closely with the Chief Development Officer to advance The Trustees’ comprehensive fundraising strategy and $350M+ campaign. You will lead frontline fundraising performance, donor pipeline development, portfolio discipline, and team accountability, while partnering closely with the Director of Development Operations to ensure the team has the systems, reporting, research, and data insights needed to meet ambitious annual and campaign goals. 

You will serve as an integrator across major giving, foundation and government giving, corporate giving, and planned giving—bringing these programs together and ensuring donor strategies are coordinated to achieve fundraising targets. You will oversee donor engagement, portfolio strategy, and team performance while personally managing a portfolio of high-capacity donors and prospects. You will also translate organizational and campaign priorities into compelling philanthropic opportunities and ensure donors experience meaningful, mission-centered engagement and stewardship throughout their relationship with The Trustees. 

This role is not the operational systems owner; rather, it is the senior leader responsible for turning fundraising strategy, campaign priorities, data, and donor insight into disciplined frontline execution and measurable philanthropic results. 

Specifically, you’ll: 

• Partner closely with the Chief Development Officer to translate enterprise fundraising strategy and $350M+ campaign priorities into annual operating goals, portfolio expectations, solicitation timelines, and measurable fundraising outcomes. 

• Lead frontline fundraising execution across major gifts and donor engagement, ensuring fundraisers have clear goals, strong donor strategies, and consistent accountability for portfolio movement, campaign progress, and revenue results. 

• Manage, coach, and develop fundraising staff, fostering a culture of collaboration, preparation, accountability, professional growth, and shared ownership of Development and campaign goals. 

• Personally manage a portfolio of high-capacity donors and prospects, with a focus on significant campaign, unrestricted, and impact-centered giving opportunities. 

• Partner with the Chief Development Officer, President & CEO, and senior leaders to prepare for donor meetings, shape campaign solicitation strategies, and ensure thoughtful follow-up and stewardship. 

• Partner with the Director of Development Operations to use pipeline reports, forecasting tools, prospect research, and Salesforce data to assess campaign progress, identify opportunities, and guide fundraising strategy. 

• Set expectations for timely and accurate Salesforce documentation by frontline fundraisers, ensuring donor activity, proposals, next steps, and portfolio strategies are captured and used to advance donor relationships and campaign milestones. 

• Drive prospect identification, qualification, and moves management to continuously strengthen and expand the major gifts pipeline in support of annual and campaign goals. 

• Partner with programmatic, property, regional, and functional leaders across the organization to shape mission-driven priorities into compelling campaign and philanthropic opportunities. 

• Help advance The Trustees’ fundraising approach toward storytelling and impact-centered engagement, ensuring donors understand how their support advances both the places they love and the broader statewide mission. 

• Ensure events, stewardship, and donor communications are aligned with major gift cultivation, campaign priorities, and long-term donor engagement. 

• Support Board and volunteer fundraising efforts in coordination with the Chief Development Officer and President & CEO, ensuring leaders are prepared, informed, and effectively deployed in donor relationships and campaign activity. 

• Collaborate with Annual Giving, Planned Giving, Institutional Partnerships, Corporate Philanthropy, Membership, Events, Marketing and Communications, Finance, and Development Operations colleagues to ensure donors experience a coordinated and donor-centered relationship with The Trustees. 

• Represent The Trustees externally at donor meetings, property visits, cultivation opportunities, campaign events, and other engagement activities across Massachusetts; some evening and weekend availability required. 

This is a full-time, non-exempt position (40 hours/week) reporting directly to the Chief Development Officer.

Requirements

What You’ll Need:

Skills and Experience: 

Required: 

• 15+ years of progressive fundraising experience, including significant major gifts experience and a demonstrated track record of securing six- and seven-figure gifts, with experience supporting transformational gift strategy. 

• Experience advancing comprehensive campaigns or multi-year fundraising initiatives, including translating campaign priorities into donor strategies, solicitation plans, portfolio movement, and measurable results. 

• Experience managing and developing fundraising staff, with the ability to lead and inspire a team through periods of growth, change, and increased accountability. 

• Demonstrated ability to translate high-level fundraising strategy into team goals, operating plans, donor strategies, portfolio discipline, and measurable results. 

• Strong relationship-building skills and the ability to engage authentically with high-capacity donors, board members, volunteer leaders, organizational leaders, and colleagues across functions. 

• Strong understanding of how to move donors from specific project, property, or program interests toward broader institutional, unrestricted, campaign, and impact-centered giving opportunities. 

• Experience working across fundraising disciplines, including major gifts, annual giving, donor stewardship, planned giving, and donor engagement. 

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to shape compelling proposals, donor correspondence, briefing materials, and impact narratives. 

• Strong analytical and strategic thinking skills, with the ability to use pipeline data, donor insights, and fundraising reports to guide strategy and team performance. 

• Familiarity with Salesforce or a comparable CRM system, including experience setting expectations for frontline fundraiser use of CRM tools and donor documentation. 

• Strong organizational and project management skills, with the ability to balance strategic leadership, donor-facing work, team management, and hands-on execution when needed. 

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience. 

Preferred: 

• Experience in conservation, land stewardship, environmental, cultural preservation, or other mission-driven organizations. 

• Experience working with boards and volunteer leadership in a fundraising context. 

• Familiarity with planned giving concepts and their integration into major gift strategies. 

• Experience partnering with Development Operations, Finance, Marketing and Communications, and program leaders to support donor strategy and campaign execution. 

• Advanced degree or CFRE a plus. 

Eligibility Criteria: 

• Current authorization to work in the United States – a candidate must have such authorization by his or her first day of employment. 

• A satisfactory criminal background (CORI) check. 

Don’t quite have all the skills and experience listed above? We still want to hear from you! Research shows that historically marginalized groups are less likely to apply if they do not meet every single requirement. We are committed to building a diverse team and encourage you to apply even if you are missing some of the skills and experience above.

Questions? Contact our People Team at View email address on click.appcast.io 

Benefits

Your Benefits:

• Sick time: 15 days per year 

• Vacation time: 20 days per year (prorated) 

• 12 observed holidays, 3 floating 

• Health insurance: You are eligible to participate in the Trustees health insurance benefit via Blue Cross Blue Shield (BCBS). BCBS also offers additional benefits, such as fitness reimbursement and rewards for healthy habits.  

• Short-Term and Long-Term Disability Insurance 

• Massachusetts Paid Family Medical Leave 

• Life Insurance  

• 401k with 5% match after 1 year of employment 

• Employee Assistance Program: Free access to a confidential service that helps employees and their communities with personal and work-related issues, such as mental health support, counseling, and financial advice.  

• Reciprocity: Enjoy access to free and discounted admission and membership to more than 50 nearby museums and cultural institutions for Trustees Staff, Volunteers and Interns. 

• Discounts: Enjoy free entry to all Trustees properties, discount event tickets, and discounted merchandise at our stores and on stays at our inns.  

• Day of Wonder: Spend one workday per year to exploring a Trustees property 

• Day of Service: Spend one workday per year to helping with a project at a Trustees property  

Equal Opportunity and Diversity: 

The Trustees is a proud equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate against any protected status including, but not limited to, age, race, ethnicity, sex, gender, sexual preferences, nation of origin, religion, or disability status and strongly encourages applications from people of color, persons with varying abilities, women, and LGBTQ+ applicants. We aspire to reflect and effectively serve the residents and communities of Massachusetts, who are at the core of our mission.    

The Trustees’ commitment to advancing the organization’s vision for this work may be found here:  Diversity, Belonging, Inclusion and Equity . 

It is unlawful in Massachusetts to require or administer a lie detector test as a condition of employment or continued employment. An employer who violates this law shall be subject to criminal penalties and civil liability.  

We are committed to creating an inclusive and accessible work environment. To request reasonable accommodation during the application or interview process, please contact us at View email address on click.appcast.io .