Vice President of Philanthropic Initiatives

About Brooklyn Community Foundation

Brooklyn Community Foundation is the first and only public foundation solely dedicated to Brooklyn’s charitable community working in partnership with generous donors and community leaders to invest in racial justice and community-led change. Since its founding in 2009, the Foundation has provided over $90 million in grants to nonprofits through its Community Fund and Donor Advised Fund programs and strategic initiatives. The Foundation mobilizes people, capital and expertise to create positive change and is committed to racial justice and to challenging systemic racism through all aspects of its grant-making, advocacy, operations, and governance.

The Opportunity

The Vice President of Philanthropic Initiatives will be responsible for the oversight and execution of an asset development plan that increases and diversifies BCF’s fundraising and assets in the areas of its Donor Advised Fund program, and corporate and foundation engagement initiatives with the ultimate goal of enabling the Foundation to increase its visibility and advance its program priorities and community impact. Reporting to the President & CEO, the Vice President will oversee the Foundation’s current $54M Donor Advised Fund program and through the cultivation and fostering of relationships with new and existing fundholders, prospects and professional advisors, drive the growth and impact of the Donor Advised Fund program and other philanthropic initiatives that support BCF’s work in the Brooklyn community.

Key Responsibilities

Leadership, Strategy + Vision

• In partnership with the President & CEO and the Foundation Board, help set the strategy, vision and gameplan for overseeing, executing and growing philanthropy initiatives and fundraising in the areas of BCF’s Donor Advised Fund program and through corporate and foundation partnerships and engagement.
• Provide forward-thinking and collaborative leadership with staff and stakeholders across the Foundation to educate and inform donors about emerging community needs and funding opportunities aligned with their charitable interests.
• Lead the Foundation’s donor advised fund strategy, promoting philanthropic investment by donor partners and setting targets for cultivating and engaging prospective professional advisors and their clients.
• Establish annual fundraising goals and benchmarks to gauge success for the Donor Advised Fund program and corporate and foundation support in alignment with the Foundations broader objective of growing its asset portfolio.
• Work with the Communications team to develop a marketing and communications strategy to help elevate the visibility of the Foundation to current supporters and new prospects, including professional advisors and other interested community partners.
• Serve as a trusted steward and spokesperson for the Foundation with both internal and external audiences.
• Attend Board and Committee meetings and represent the Foundation at external stakeholder and community meetings as needed.
• Keep abreast of external factors and emerging best practices that influence fundraising and philanthropy.

Fundraising + Donor Cultivation

• Grow the Foundation’s asset base and donor advised fund portfolio through the diversification of initiatives that attract and engage new donors with the Foundation.
• Secure new sources of financial support for BCF’s program initiatives through the growth in corporate and foundation funding as well as new potential partnerships with City and State agencies whose interests are aligned with the mission of BCF.
• Own the fundraising goal of increasing the donor advised asset portfolio by at least ten percent (5-$6M) per annum.
• Facilitate donor cultivation and stewardship efforts that help deepen engagement and move existing fundholders from “transactional” fundholders to “impact” fundholders who are actively involved in helping to advance the Foundation’s social impact work.
• Cultivate new prospects of donor advised funds through the coordination of referrals, marketing and relationship-building activities with attorneys, accountants and financial advisors (“professional advisors”), board members and other key stakeholders.
• Identify opportunities to represent the Foundation on various panels and networking events to build new partnership and donor opportunities and influence philanthropic decision-making.

Portfolio Management

• Provide financial oversight and management of all aspects of the Donor Advised Fund program including the administration of the fund portfolio.
• Oversee the onboarding activities and workflow of all new donor advised funds and actively involve fundholders in the Foundation’s leadership initiatives.
• Establish protocols and systems for capturing all new donor prospects, professional advisors and donor engagement in Salesforce.
• Manage all data, financial and programmatic reporting related to the Donor Advised Fund fundholders, new donor prospects, and professional advisors.
• Work with colleagues across the Foundation to define success and to ensure that reporting and metrics appropriately measure and track performance with stated organizational goals.

Team Management

• Articulate a clear and inspiring vision for the fundraising team including the Donor Services Manager, Donor Services Coordinator and all new positions to grow this work. Set clear and measurable fundraising goals for team members.
• Promote a culture of respect, equity and belonging built on collaboration, learning and accountability.
• Cultivate and provide opportunities for sharing knowledge and best practice among fundraising and development staff at the Foundation.

Candidate Profile

Strategic + Collaborative

Strategic and collaborative leader with high emotional intelligence, a commitment to personal and professional credibility and integrity, and the confidence to lead with empathy and inspire a team to rally around a shared vision, common purpose and high-performance expectations.

Content Knowledge

Fundraising leader committed to innovation and best practice and possessing content knowledge grounded in philanthropy and donor cultivation in the areas of donor advised funds, charitable giving funds, grant-making organizations, and corporate and foundation engagement.

Relationship Builder + Effective Communicator

Natural ability to engage, cultivate and build authentic, trusted and sustaining relationships with donors, team members, constituents and other key stakeholders from diverse backgrounds. Proactive relationship and community builder with a network of philanthropic connections that can be leveraged to identify prospective donors, including high net worth individuals. Superior communication skills both written and oral and able to represent the Foundation with public audiences in diverse settings.

Results Driven + Problem Solver

A self-driven leader able to set clear goals and expectations for team members and hold oneself and others accountable for results. Highly skilled at problem solving and making sound decisions based on the thoughtful and careful review and judgment of issues. An appreciation for exercising discretion in working with confidential donor and organizational information. Possesses a track record of superior organizational and project management execution with keen attention to detail, process and accountability.

Passion For The Foundation’s Mission + Values

A deep and authentic commitment to the Foundation’s mission, programs and core values and embracing the principles of diversity, equity and belonging.

Experience + Education

• A minimum of ten (10) years leadership experience managing a diverse and successful fundraising portfolio and cultivating productive donor relationships with high net-worth individuals and families for a foundation, nonprofit organization or an entity in the legal, corporate or wealth management industry.
• Experience with and knowledge of philanthropic giving tools and related tax rules related to the administration, compliance and management of donor advised funds.
• Experience engaging corporations and foundations in fundraising initiatives and familiarity with community foundations a plus.
• A proven track record of successfully building and managing high performing teams.
• Bachelor’s degree required.

Commitment to DEI + Equal employment Opportunity

Brooklyn Community Foundation is an equal opportunity employer. In alignment with its racial justice lens, the Foundation is committed to maintaining a staff that diversifies philanthropy, including lifting up the leadership of people from communities historically underrepresented in the field and those directly affected by structural racism, centering them in decision-making.

Compensation + Benefits

The Brooklyn Community Foundation strives to offer employees a competitive compensation and benefits package that reflects its core values and commitment to its staff. The salary range for this leadership role is $130 - $140K plus a robust benefits package that includes health, vision, dental and life insurance, 403(b) Plan including employer contribution, paid time off, and an employee friendly work environment. This is a full-time position, and the Foundation operates in a hybrid work environment.

To Apply

The Brooklyn Community Foundation has retained ACEUM Advisors & Search - Ira Machowsky, CEO and Heather Bivens, Senior Search Associate to conduct this leadership search. To express your interest in this opportunity, please forward a cover letter and resume to: [email protected] or [email protected].