Head of Estates Development

Location: Los Angeles, CA (Hybrid, On-site as needed)

Hours: Full-Time, Exempt

Target Start Date: November 2, 2026

Most development leaders spend their careers raising money inside organizations where the donor base is established, the relationships are inherited, and the fundraising strategy has already been written. Every so often, a different kind of opportunity appears: an organization with a proven vision, growing visibility, community trust, and work capable of attracting significant investment, ready for a development leader who can take its fundraising to the next level.

The Liberty Ecosystem is entering a new chapter of ambitious, community-rooted work, and we are hiring the person who will bring the capital and relationships alongside that ambition. At the Liberty Ecosystem, we're not just building projects and providing community programs. We are igniting a movement that reimagines urban investment as a catalyst for justice, equity, and transformation. We led the largest raise for a community-owned real estate project in American history. Magazine and Next City.

We are a nonprofit and a social enterprise in the truest sense: the discipline and ambition of a growth company, the soul of a movement. Our work has earned the belief of a remarkable and growing community - impact investors, foundation partners, and individual donors who each see something of themselves in this mission. That community is ready for a leader devoted to it: someone to deepen every relationship, open new doors, and match the ambition of the work with the ambition of the resources behind it.

As our Development Director, you will be a trusted face and voice for this movement, working hand in hand with executive leadership and the Board to grow, deepen, and steward the full community of people and institutions investing in our work. Grow and diversify philanthropic revenue across major gifts, individual giving, foundations, impact investors, corporate philanthropy, sponsorships, campaigns, and other aligned opportunities

Build and actively advance a strong pipeline of donors, funders, and impact investors from identification and cultivation through solicitation, stewardship, and renewal

Track fundraising performance, forecast revenue, and keep leadership informed of progress, significant opportunities, and emerging needs

Build authentic, long-term relationships across a diverse supporter base - individual donors, foundation partners, and mission-aligned impact investors - and move fluently among them

you lead the cultivation and the ask, while executive leadership and counsel structure terms alongside you

Build relationships that belong to Liberty as much as to you - documented in our systems, connected across our team and Board, and rooted in the mission - so the trust you build strengthens the movement for the long term

The Reach: Foundations & Institutional Partnerships

Build and strengthen relationships with foundations, institutional funders, and other capital stewards

Expand the pipeline of grant and institutional funding opportunities aligned with the Liberty Ecosystem's mission and priorities, including program-related investments and other capital that flows through our philanthropic partners

Lead grant strategy from prospect identification and proposal development through award, reporting, relationship management, and renewal

Develop corporate philanthropy, sponsorship, and partnership opportunities that expand both resources and relationships

Build compelling cases for support that clearly communicate what we're building, why it matters, and what investment makes possible

Develop persuasive proposals, concept papers, donor presentations, appeals, campaign materials, and other fundraising communications

Board & Organizational Partnership

Serve as the organization's senior development leader and strategic advisor on philanthropy, fundraising, and donor engagement

Guide and grow the development function, including the staff and consultants who support fundraising and supporter relationships

Engage executive leadership and the Board as active fundraising partners, helping them cultivate relationships, open doors, and participate confidently in asks

Provide clear updates on fundraising performance, major opportunities, pipeline activity, and progress toward revenue goals

Relationships that began as introductions will have become genuine partnerships. And a community of committed supporters will be woven into the fabric of Liberty because of you: relationships built to belong to the movement, strong enough to outlast any single person in it.

You will have helped bring significant new resources into a movement working to fundamentally change how communities own, invest, and build wealth.

It is built to become the organization's senior-most development seat - a path for the leader who earns it. You've raised meaningful money and can point to fundraising goals you've owned, significant gifts you've helped close, grants you've secured, and revenue you've helped grow

You have 4+ years of progressive nonprofit fundraising, development, philanthropy, advancement, or related experience

You understand institutional philanthropy and know how to develop funder relationships beyond a single proposal or grant cycle

You can hold a room, or a call, full of very different supporters at once, moving fluently from an impact investor to a foundation officer to an individual donor without missing what each of them cares about

You can turn complex ideas into a compelling case for support, whether in writing, in a presentation, or across the table from a donor

You build momentum in partnership — reading a relationship well enough to know when to carry it forward yourself and when to bring in the CEO or Board for the moment that seals it

You move fluently between worlds: polished and credible with donors, foundations, and institutional partners; authentic and grounded with community stakeholders

You carry a genuine commitment to racial and economic justice, with the cultural intelligence to match

You think development means grant writing

You'd rather your relationships stay yours, close to you and portable, than belong to the community you're building them for

We are dedicated to our collective goals and the advancement of our community

We are proactive in our efforts and committed to seeing projects to completion

Generous paid time off, paid holidays, and comprehensive health and wellness coverage.

Professional development and continuing education support - conferences, certifications, trainings, and leadership development

Educational assistance and growth resources aligned with your development goals

Flexible work arrangements and a schedule designed for productivity, creativity, and balance, with the flexibility to be on-site and in the community as needed to host tours, make introductions, and be present for the relationships this work depends on

A ground-floor seat in a growing nonprofit social enterprise where you will shape how the organization works

Direct engagement and leadership opportunities across affordable housing, workforce development, community economic development, and economic justice

As a Black-led organization, we embrace diversity, equity and inclusion, and are dedicated to fostering a supportive environment for all team members.

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