Development Strategist

Position Summary

The Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching seeks a highly organized, strategic, and relationship-oriented Development Strategist to support the Foundation's fundraising, grant development, stewardship, and advancement operations. Reporting through the Communications and Engagement team and working in close partnership with the President, executive leadership team, program staff, and finance team, the Development Strategist will manage the end-to-end development process, from prospect identification and proposal coordination through grant submission, stewardship, reporting, and funder engagement.

This position serves as the operational hub of Carnegie's fundraising function, ensuring that opportunities are identified, prioritized, tracked, submitted, and stewarded in a disciplined and strategic manner. The role combines advancement services, prospect research, grants management, project coordination, and executive support responsibilities.

Key Responsibilities

Development Strategy and Executive Support

• Partner with the executive leadership team to implement Carnegie's fundraising strategy.

• Coordinate monthly development pipeline reviews and executive fundraising meetings.

• Prepare quarterly development updates and fundraising reports.

• Support executive outreach, cultivation, and relationship management activities.

• Coordinate funder meetings, briefings, and engagement opportunities.

• Maintain documentation, records, and development materials as the Foundation's source of truth for fundraising activities.

Prospect Research and Pipeline Management

• Identify, research, and evaluate prospective foundations, corporations, government agencies, and philanthropic partners.

• Conduct due diligence and strategic assessments of prospective funders.

• Maintain and continuously improve the Foundation's opportunity pipeline.

• Develop monthly prospect reports and funding opportunity summaries.

• Work with executive leadership to qualify, prioritize, and advance funding opportunities.

• Manage fundraising research platforms and prospect intelligence tools.

Advancement Operations and CRM Management

• Serve as primary administrator for fundraising tracking systems, including HubSpot and related platforms.

• Maintain accurate records of prospects, proposals, awards, deadlines, contacts, and stewardship activities.

• Develop and manage standard operating procedures for development operations.

• Ensure data quality, consistency, and reporting accuracy across fundraising systems.

Proposal Development and Coordination

• Coordinate proposal development from concept through submission.

• Manage proposal timelines, workflows, and deliverables.

• Collaborate with communications, research, implementation, finance, and executive teams to assemble proposal content.

• Maintain and update a library of institutional documents, templates, organizational narratives, budgets, and supporting materials.

• Review proposals for completeness, consistency, formatting, and quality assurance.

• Support editing and production of grant applications, letters of inquiry, concept papers, and funder presentations.

Grant Submission and Compliance

• Manage grant portal submissions and application processes.

• Track proposal deadlines and submission requirements.

• Maintain records of all submitted applications and supporting documentation.

• Coordinate charitable solicitation compliance and state fundraising registrations.

• Ensure adherence to funder requirements and Foundation policies throughout the submission process.

Stewardship and Funder Relations

• Coordinate funder stewardship activities and communication plans.

• Track stewardship obligations and engagement schedules.

• Support executive leadership in maintaining strong funder relationships.

• Coordinate donor and funder events in partnership with Communications and Engagement staff.

• Prepare stewardship materials, updates, and impact communications.

• Maintain records of funder interactions and engagement activities.

Grant Reporting and Award Management

• Monitor grant reporting schedules and compliance requirements.

• Coordinate programmatic and financial reporting with program and finance teams.

• Prepare reporting calendars and deadline reminders.

• Assemble and package grant reports for submission.

• Maintain complete grant files and reporting documentation.

• Support post-award grant management and funder communications.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience.

• Five or more years of experience in development, grants management, advancement services, philanthropy, nonprofit administration, or related fields.

• Demonstrated experience coordinating grant proposals and funder submissions.

• Strong project management and organizational skills.

• Exceptional written and verbal communication abilities.

• Experience managing CRM systems and fundraising databases.

• Ability to manage multiple priorities and deadlines simultaneously.

• Strong analytical and research skills.

• High level of discretion, professionalism, and attention to detail.

Preferred Qualifications

• Experience in education, research, philanthropy, or nonprofit organizations.

• Experience with HubSpot or comparable CRM platforms.

• Knowledge of foundation fundraising, grantmaking, and philanthropic landscapes.

• Experience managing charitable solicitation registrations and compliance requirements.

• Familiarity with budget development and grant financial reporting.

Required Key Competencies

• Strategic thinking

• Relationship management

• Project management

• Grant development and stewardship

• Prospect research

• Data and systems management

• Written communication

• Cross-functional collaboration

• Attention to detail

• Initiative and accountability

Success Measures

Within the first year, the Development Strategist will:

• Establish a reliable, organization-wide development pipeline management process.

• Create and maintain a comprehensive library of fundraising and proposal resources.

• Implement consistent prospect research and qualification practices.

• Improve proposal coordination and submission efficiency.

• Strengthen stewardship and reporting processes across all active funders.

• Enhance executive visibility into fundraising opportunities, progress, and outcomes.

• Support growth of Carnegie's institutional fundraising portfolio through disciplined advancement operations and strategic prospect development.

The schedule for this role is Monday through Friday at a salary range of $95,000 - $105,000.

Originally posted on Himalayas