Senior Director of Development and Communications Hour Children

Hudson Ferris has been retained by Hour Children, a leading provider of services to incarcerated and formerly incarcerated women in New York State to execute a search for their Senior Director of Development and Communications.

To be considered for an interview, please make sure your application is full in line with the job specs as found below.

Senior Director of Development and Communications

Why this role?

Hour Children needs a senior fundraiser who can convert strategy into sustained, diversified revenue while building durable systems and a high-performing team. The CDO anchors individual giving growth (our biggest potential for revenue growth), orchestrates and leads the team in executing a multi-channel development plan, including a grant calendar, direct mail program, and targeted stewardship plan. This person will also be responsible for building upon and improving department, and in some cases organization-wide) SOPs to maintain overall effectiveness in Hour Children's fundraising. 

Title & Reporting

• Title: Senior Director of Development and Communications 
• Reports to: Executive Director 
• Direct Reports: Institutional Giving Officer, Development Coordinator 

Core Responsibilities

Revenue Strategy & Planning

• Build and own the annual development plan with channel goals for each fundraising channel (individual, major/legacy, foundations, corporate, events).
• Translate strategy into quarterly, monthly and weekly operating rhythms: prospect moves, grant calendar, stewardship touches, and campaign milestones. 
• Re-evaluate and adjust development plan quarterly to align with FY 26 Budget progress. 

Individual & Major Gifts (Primary Focus)

• Lead moves management for top 50–75 prospects; partner with board and ED on joint visits and solicitations. 
• Build a recurring/upgrade ladder and a legacy/estate stewardship track. 

Institutional Giving Oversight

• Supervise the grants pipeline (foundation, corporate, government LOIs, proposals, reports) ensuring narrative alignment with program capacity, as well as on-time submission for applications, reports, and renewals. 

Team Leadership & Systems

• Manage, coach, and set clear OKRs for the Institutional Giving Officer and 
• Development Coordinator; drive SOP adoption (acknowledgments, data hygiene, grant workflow, stewardship). 
• Ensure rigorous CRM (Bloomerang) use, prospect tagging, and activity logging; maintain a shared development calendar. 

Campaigns & Events

• Plan mini-campaigns tied to storytelling and program moments; oversee an efficient, ROI-positive event plan partnered with the Coordinator. 

Cross-Functional Collaboration

• Work with Program/Impact to surface outcomes and case studies; with Finance to align revenue forecasts; with Communications to implement the brand/message roadmap. 

Qualifications

• 10+ years progressive fundraising experience with demonstrated strength in individual and major gifts. 
• 3+ years people management; proven success building team SOPs and pipeline discipline. 
• Familiarity with foundation/corporate/government funding, annual campaigns, and events. 
• CRM proficiency (Bloomerang preferred); data-driven planning. 
• Bachelor's degree required, master's degree preferred. 

Success Metrics (first 12 months)

• Meet or exceed FY26 private revenue targets, focusing on Individual: $600,000, Corporate: $100,000, Foundations: $1,438,000, Events: net positive performance. 
• 40+ substantive major-donor moves/quarter; 12–18 joint ED/Board asks annually. 
• On-time submission/reporting rate = 95% across grants; stewardship calendar executed. xhyhwjd
• SOPs implemented with >90% compliance. 

Salary Range: $110,000-$140,000