Vice President, Development

About the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee

The DLCC’s mission is to win Democratic majorities and build Democratic power in state legislatures. To grow governing power, we battle to win and hold majorities, build their capacity to be self-sustaining, and expand the map to grow governing power. As the official party committee dedicated to state legislatures, we also represent and elevate our ballot level on the national stage.

Over the last decade, a reimagined and reinvigorated Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee has reversed electoral trends and shifted the competitive state legislative map in this new decade. While fighting from behind due to Republicans’ massive war chest, rigged maps, and historic headwinds, the DLCC still managed to outperform in 2022 – culminating in a historic midterm election cycle where Democrats flipped four chambers red to blue and the President’s party did not lose a single chamber for the first time in modern history. 

The DLCC is an all-of-the-above committee that operates year-round, providing funds for the full scope of campaign work and running significant independent advertising to win races. The data, targeting, organizing, digital, communications and fundraising support, and strategic expertise we provide to states is invaluable. Winning state legislatures doesn’t happen in a single election — they are multi-cycle plays, and the DLCC’s work with our caucuses helped deliver these stunning results this year and laid the groundwork for future Democratic wins.

With our ‘Path to the Majority’ strategy seeking to win back 50 state legislative chambers by 2030, the DLCC has proven we can beat the odds when we have the resources we need to win. And when the DLCC secures new majorities, Democrats move quickly on an agenda that protects fundamental freedoms and builds an economy for all. 

The DLCC has momentum, and we cannot let up. Extreme MAGA Republicans are showing no signs of slowing down their anti-democratic crusade and there’s a long fight ahead of us that will require more investment, attention, and resources for state legislative races. Every victory at our level of the ballot is a win for the future of the Democratic Party, and this year, we’re capitalizing on our progress so far to defend our ground and keep expanding the map for Democratic power. 

Alongside our mission, we also value our team. We are explicit about our culture and values and how they impact our work and collaboration with others. The DLCC staff, along with our Board of Directors, are committed to holding ourselves to a standard of respect, inclusion, growth, and performance that meets the political and organizational requirements of the future we want to build.  

The Opportunity 

DLCC seeks a creative, data-driven, seasoned leader to be Vice President of Development. Reporting to the COO and working in close partnership with the President and the rest of the Senior leadership team, the Vice President of Development will build upon the strengths of the current development program to ensure DLCC is surpassing the investment growth rate in the political space. 

The Vice President of Development will evolve and lead a strategic, creative, and entrepreneurial development team of 17 – three of whom are direct reports – supporting our 527 and affiliated entity. This team drives all aspects of fundraising across our grassroots, major individual, corporate, labor union, and institutional funders.

The DLCC has an ambitious goal of nearly doubling its fundraising by 2030, and the Vice President of Development will lead this effort through innovative engagement strategies, robust donor pipeline development, the implementation of creative fundraising tactics, clear and achievable goals, and data-informed decision making. The VP of Development is expected to understand and track the DLCC's various donor audiences and their preferences, including within the broader trends affecting development tactics and goals. 

The Vice President of Development will also demonstrate success in personally cultivating, soliciting, and stewarding seven-figure contributions, including guiding and supporting the President, Board, and surrogates in their own fundraising efforts, as an advisor and co-strategist for soliciting transformational gifts. The successful candidate will have a proven track record of elevating a comprehensive fundraising and engagement operation; the ability to work effectively in a complex structure; and the enthusiasm, drive, and professionalism to achieve organizational goals.

Key Responsibilities

• Develop & direct a multi-channel fundraising strategy designed to achieve ambitious, but well-founded goals, including metrics for success and overall budget.
• Align fundraising strategies with the two-year political cycle budget and the regulatory requirements of our political strategy that impact cash flow.
• Recommend action to the COO and financial management team if the adopted development strategy and revenue budget are projected to depart significantly from agreed-upon goals.
• Manage and support the administration of all fundraising efforts on an ongoing basis to ensure adherence to established plans, objectives, and priorities.
• Plan and oversee the Development Department’s annual budget; monitor and assess departmental expenditures, revenue, and return on investment on a regular basis.
• Provide timely reports on the status of development activities and lead the discussion of overall development strategy.
• Ensure acquisition strategies, prospect research, donor record keeping, data analytics, and other Development Department processes are efficient and contribute to improving ROI.
• Collaborate with the COO on oversight and delivery of database systems, especially where development database functions intersect with organization-wide data, IT and financial functions.
• Provide analysis of external and internal trends affecting the feasibility of future development goals; identify and assess future capacity needs for the development department; and recommend strategic directions that will enhance DLCC’s growth.
• Maintain familiarity with DLCC’s programs, state and national political developments, and the ways in which other PAC and Committee efforts intersect or impact DLCC.  
• Work closely with the President, Board of Directors, and surrogates to expand the success of all fundraising channels, prioritizing their participation to maximize their impact for DLCC.
• Collaborate with the Marketing & Communications team to ensure we have an organization-wide communications strategy prioritizing content and tactics that engage current and prospective donor audiences. 
• Maintain a personal portfolio of donors and prospects and represent the President with major funders as necessary.
• Travel and attend events on behalf of DLCC as needed to achieve fundraising and organizational goals. 
• Work to build an inclusive workplace culture where talented people of widely diverse backgrounds can thrive.
• Manage Development Department staff of 3 direct reports and an overall staff of approximately 17.
• Cultivate and guide your own and the professional growth of the team by establishing and maintaining thoughtful opportunities to learn, grow, and receive constructive feedback.
• Information necessary for direct reports and other departments to meet objectives is shared and understood. 
• Regularly attend training and pursue continued education in supervision skills.
• Uphold DLCC expectations for supervisors.
• Act with integrity and awareness of one’s power as a leader.
• Maintain a harassment-free and inclusive workplace for team members.
• Supervise the contracting of department consultants

Direct Reports

• Senior Director of Grassroots Giving
• Senior Director of Major Gifts
• Senior Director of Membership & Partnership 

Expected Outcomes: 

• DLCC’s fundraising strategy meets or exceeds organizational objectives for revenue cyclically. 
• DLCC’s fundraising strategy is executed with ROI regularly examined as a performance metric, understanding that innovation and growth sometimes require a short-term loss to maximize long-term return. 
• DLCC’s Development Team is well versed and understands their roles in relation to the organizational and departmental strategy, performance, and potential opportunities and challenges.
• DLCC’s Development and Marketing & Communications strategies are aligned to maximize revenue growth, investment, staff, Board, and surrogate time.
• DLCC’s financial planning and cash flow are informed by timely, accurate, projections and updates. 

Qualifications

The Vice President of Development should have a breadth of experience with different fundraising channels, demonstrated experience leading organizational development programs that have raised more than $25,000,000 annually, and should possess the following abilities and attributes:

Data-Driven Strategic Driver

The Vice President of Development is entrepreneurial and sets ambitious goals for themselves and their teams. They have successfully contributed to an organization's strategic financial planning and management. They are able to motivate a team to strive when results are great or optimism fades with positive and constructive ways forward because they are fluent in the data, operations, and practices of political and social impact organizations and how to maximize effort and resources. 

Active Learner & Thought Partner

The Vice President of Development is curious, ready to learn, interested in others’ expertise, perspectives, and motivations, and quick to seek understanding. They are able to be a thought partner in leadership, in strategic and tactical development with team members, and donors looking to prioritize investment because they are conversant on state and national politics, elections, DLCC’s work, and trends and innovations in the different channels of fundraising.

Effective Relationship Builder 

The Vice President of Development will have a track record of long-term relationships with supervisors, peers, staff members, and donors fostered through clarity about their professional goals and needs, good listening, responsiveness, collaboration, effective negotiating, credit sharing, facing challenges transparently and directly, and knowing when to push and when to compromise to achieve a result. They will be able to demonstrate how their understanding of and approach to people has produced outstanding fundraising outcomes.  

Talent Developer

The Vice President of Development has a track record of followership—colleagues whose loyalty and dedication they’ve inspired by owning their own weaknesses and strengths well enough to know how to develop the best team for them and their organization, leading them with compassion and by example, and supporting them through challenges, when others doubted them, or they doubted themselves.

Physical Requirements

The DLCC is committed to supporting employees of varying abilities and to providing reasonable accommodations to enable individuals with disabilities to thrive at the DLCC. 

The requirements of this role, related to its physical demands, described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. 

All DLCC employees must be able to operate a computer and use a cell phone. For roles at the DLCC that include frequent business travel expectations, we can discuss reasonable alternatives to travel in some instances. Most roles also require communicating with key external stakeholders of the organization in person, via the telephone, or via email. Applicants with questions about accommodations may request to speak with our ADA liaison, Nytoyia Laughlin.

Essential functions of the role include:

• Working from a computer for long periods of time;
• While performing the duties of this job, the employee is frequently required to communicate using the telephone, email, and in person with stakeholders

How to Apply

Salary for the Vice President of Development is $190,000-$230,000 on an annualized basis, commensurate with experience and qualifications. The DLCC offers a generous benefits package, including:

• More than 25 days of paid time off, including for Federal holidays, time off around Federal holidays, including the week between Christmas and New Year, vacation, sick, and personal days.
• Fully paid health/vision/dental insurance for the employee + spouse/partner + dependents.
• Up to 6% retirement employer contribution.
• Monthly use-it-or-lose-it $100 transit benefit for employees located in the DC region.
• Employer contribution of $500 to employee’s Flexible Spending Account, and opportunity to withhold pre-tax income for Dependent Care Account.
• Up to $5,000 employer-paid Health Reimbursement Account for IVF-related costs or Adoption Assistance, and up to $2,500 for employer-paid Health Reimbursement Account for out-of-pocket dental and orthodontic expenses. 
• Monthly $100 student loan payment benefit.
• Monthly $100 mobile phone reimbursement.
• and more. 

To apply for this position, please complete an electronic application by September 22, 2023. The DLCC may review applications after this deadline in limited circumstances, however this is not a guarantee that your application will be considered if it is not submitted by September 22, 2023. Only complete applications through the application portal will be accepted. You must also include a resume, cover letter, and three professional references to be considered for this position. When an applicant with a disability needs an accommodation to have an equal opportunity to compete for this position, they may request it in writing by emailing jobs(at)dlcc.org. No calls, please. Applicants will be screened on a rolling basis.

The DLCC is committed to an inclusive and equitable environment and diversity among its staff and recognizes that its continued success requires the highest commitment to obtaining and retaining a diverse staff that provides the best quality services to supporters and constituents. The DLCC is an equal opportunity employer and it is our policy to recruit, hire, train, promote and administer any and all personnel actions without regard to sex, race, age, color, creed, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, physical or mental disability, personal appearance, marital status, family responsibilities, genetic information, or any other legally protected basis. The DLCC will not tolerate any unlawful discrimination and any such conduct is strictly prohibited.