Development Analyst

Overall Function:

The Development Analyst is responsible for managing and growing a diversified fundraising portfolio with a primary focus on grants, corporate partnerships, individual giving, and development operations. This position plays a critical role in securing philanthropic revenue to support the organization’s mission by leading proposal development, donor cultivation and stewardship, and corporate engagement efforts. The ideal candidate is a strong writer, strategic thinker, and relationship-builder with a proven track record in nonprofit fundraising.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities:

Grants Management

• Manage an annual grants calendar and tracking system to ensure timely submissions and reporting
• Identify, research, and pursue public and private grant opportunities aligned with our organizational priorities
• Manage the full grants lifecycle, including proposal development, submission, compliance, reporting, and renewal
• Collaborate with program and finance staff to gather data, budgets, outcomes, and impact metrics
• In partnership with the Director of Strategic Partnerships and Chief Advancement & Communications Officer, cultivate and steward relationships with funders
• Partner with Government Grants contractor on government grants, and manage the submission process
• Monitor development in federal, state, and local agencies and with private grant funders as they impact funding opportunities.

Corporate Giving & Partnerships

• Develop and manage relationships with corporate partners, sponsors, and foundations
• Create tailored corporate giving proposals, sponsorship packages, and partnership materials
• Coordinate corporate engagement opportunities such as employee volunteerism, sponsorships, and cause-marketing initiatives
• Steward corporate donors through regular communication, recognition, and impact reporting

Individual Giving

• Manage a portfolio of individual donors and prospects, including cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship
• Support annual giving campaigns, special appeals, and donor recognition efforts
• Collaborate with leadership and board members to support donor engagement and major gift strategies

Development Operations

• In partnership with Development Assistant, oversee organization’s CRM system (Salesforce) to ensure accurate recording of gifts, reports, and all prospect and donor interactions.
• Collaborate with Accounting to reconcile on a monthly basis.
• Proactively gain an in-depth knowledge of donors to ensure personal solicitations align with donors’ interests.
• Produce lists and reports from the database for mailings to individual donors, for newsletters/ touchpoints/Annual Reports, and Board presentations, Leadership, and Finance.
• Track fundraising progress and performance metrics across grants, corporate, and individual giving
• Maintain accurate donor and grant records in the organization’s CRM/database
• Prepare reports and dashboards for leadership and board review
• Work cross-functionally with communications, programs, and finance to align messaging, strategy, and outcomes
• Support fundraising events and other development initiatives as needed

Collaboration & Administration

• Work cross-functionally with programs, finance, and leadership to gather stories, data, and impact metrics
• Manage vendors, consultants, and freelancers (designers, printers, etc.) as applicable
• Support special events, including logistics, promotion, and follow-up communications
• Perform other duties as assigned to support the organization’s mission

Other Duties

• Other reasonable activities and duties as assigned 

Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree in Communications, nonprofit, or a related field. 

• 3-5 years of relevant fundraising/development experience

• Excellent written and verbal communication skills. 

• Experience with donor databases/CRMs and digital communications tools

• Familiarity with graphic design tools such as Adobe Creative Suite, Canva, or similar. 

• Strong organizational and project management skills. 

• Ability to work independently and as part of a team in a fast-paced environment. 

• Passion for the nonprofit sector and alignment with our mission. 

• Strong organizational and multitasking skills, with the ability to meet tight deadlines. 

• Ability to work under pressure and manage multiple priorities in a deadline driven environment.  

• All employees, regardless of position, serve as role models for children and adolescents who are served by our agency. Therefore, each employee must at all times be emotionally stable and able to function effectively with children, adolescents and adults who may have mental or behavioral health problems.
• The staff must be able to demonstrate appropriate daily behavior, appropriate expression of emotions as well as appropriate role modeling. 
• Hostility, aggression, and unnecessary or inappropriate physical actions as well as inappropriate emotional expression are not acceptable.  

• Must be able to pass criminal/fingerprinting background check, TB Test, Physical Exam and Drug Testing.   

• Must have a valid California Driver's License and a clear DMV record.  

• Must have the visual, audio, physical and technical ability to independently operate a variety of office equipment and communication equipment.  

Preferred Qualifications: 

• Strategic thinker with strong attention to detail
• Comfortable working independently and collaboratively
• Relationship-oriented with a donor-centered mindset
• Adaptable, proactive, and solutions-focused
• Experience managing corporate partnerships or sponsorships
• Familiarity with public funding and government grants
• Knowledge of fundraising best practices and donor stewardship principles

Physical Demands:

The physical demands described below are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential competencies and job duties of this position. This position primarily involves sedentary work. The employee is regularly required to sit for extended periods, use a computer and standard office equipment. The Human Resources Department will explore reasonable accommodations that could enable an employee who has a disability to perform the essential competencies of the position.

• Stand, walk, sit, stoop, kneel, crouch or crawl, utilize fingers, hands and arms up to 2/3 of the day.
• Lift items and assist clients with lifting items up to 25 pounds 1/3 of the day.
• Clear close and distance vision and be able to adjust the focus.
• Ability to operate a vehicle and recognize all street signs.
• Speak and listen to others in person and over the phone and video conferencing. 
• Use keyboard and read from computer screen. 

Environmental Conditions:

Ability to adjust to climate, outdoor and indoor conditions such as extreme heat, humidity and cold weather.

Occupational Safety & Health Standards:

Every employee must comply with occupational safety and health standards and all rules, regulations and orders pursuant to Division 5 of the California Labor Code which are applicable to his or her own actions and conduct.

Optimist Policies and Procedures:

• Every employee must comply with all organizational wide policies and procedures and those
  department specific policies and procedures that apply to this position.
• All agency employees must maintain confidentiality of client and case information and may not access information unless directly related to their job responsibilities and duties. All information in case records shall be confidential and shall be available only to the placement agency staff and personnel who need access for the performance of their duties, otherwise special consent is required.