Mission
It is the mission of the Virginia Beach Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (VBSPCA) to create a more humane and responsible community by decreasing our tolerance for cruelty while increasing our capacity for compassion.
 
History
Almost 50 years ago, VBSPCA was established on donated land.  A ten-member Board of Directors led the way to raise contributed income to build its first shelter which opened in January 1969.  At the same time, VBSPCA launched the area’s first humane education program.  A spay/neuter clinic was added and a wildlife program was born with licensed rehabilitators in 1972 and five years later the Virginia Animal Welfare Act was signed into law.  The ensuing decades in the evolution of this vital nonprofit organization were transformative in VBSPCA becoming a well-regarded and prominent animal welfare organization.
 
Today, VBSPCA provides shelter and care to almost 4,000 companion animals and 2,000 wildlife annually. In 2014, The Humane Society of the United States named Virginia Beach SPCA as one of its top ten Emergency Placement Partners for the year.  VBSPCA currently benefits from the dedication and talent of 26 Board Members and a staff of approximately 60 full and part-time employees.  The current Chief Executive Officer, Dia DuVernet, joined the team in 2014.  
 
VBSPCA’s annual operating budget of $3.2 million dollars is raised from a combination of animal adoption, veterinary and other earned revenue, as well as, philanthropy.  The philanthropic portion of the current fiscal year’s budget is $925,000.  Philanthropic support has been sustained even in very difficult economic times and is a testament to the trust and belief their donors have in VBSPCA’s capabilities and accomplishments.

   
The Opportunity:  Senior Director of Resource Development
 
Reporting to the CEO, the Senior Director of Resource Development is a new leadership role to be filled by a compassionate and experienced fundraising professional with proven success in growing a major gifts/individual giving program and managing a Development team.  She/he will provide strategic direction for the overall Resource Development department strategy, integrating all philanthropic opportunities to best serve the organization and its donors.  The Senior Director will be charged with building a sustainable donor and prospect pipeline with an eye on increasingly promoting increased engagement with VBSPCA.  This position will also be responsible for conceiving of and implementing strategies to increase unrestricted, restricted and planned gifts from individuals, and will manage a portfolio of donors and prospects.  The four direct reports to the Senior Director include a Director of Annual Fund and Grants, Director of Outreach and Volunteers, Events Director, and a Development Coordinator. 
 
Performance Objectives
 
Leadership and Fundraising Management

• Work closely with the CEO and the Resource Development team to create and implement strategies and departmental goals for the identification, solicitation and stewardship of an active portfolio of high-net-worth individuals.
• Hire, manage and retain a team of fundraising professionals (currently 4) to manage specific components of the development pipeline.
• Lead, motivate, and provide strategic direction for and supervision of Resource Development staff, and, hold staff accountable for achieving their annual fundraising goals.
• Provide mentorship and guidance to actively promote the growth and development of staff, including opportunities to learn new skills and advance both personally and professionally.
• Develop and maintain productive and respectful relationships with colleagues, VBSPCA Board, other volunteers, donors, prospects, VBSPCA team members, the philanthropic community and other related constituency groups.
• Play an integral role on the senior leadership team of VBSPCA that guides the entire organization, continually advancing the role and importance of philanthropy within the organizational culture.  Specifically, collaborate closely with other staff teams to synchronize fundraising messages with the mission, and to help establish outcome measures that most effectively represent the value of VBSPCA’s mission.

 
Fund Development

• Develop and implement an annual and growing revenue generation strategy in collaboration with the CEO.
• Work with the CEO, Resource Development staff, and Board to develop a targeted list of individual, corporate, foundation and government prospects, and strategies for engagement for each.
• Build an effective individual donor base.  Oversee the foundation and corporate prospect identification, solicitation and stewardship processes.
• Work with and provide training for VBSPCA’s Board and senior leadership team to enhance fundraising activities, an overall culture of philanthropy, and to solicit and close gifts. 
• Oversee consistent regular reports of fundraising progress, communicating the goals and strategies of the overall advancement efforts, and manage that progress against established benchmarks.
• Nurture partnerships and relationships with current and prospective funders through donor recognition programs and stewardship. Cultivate long-term relationships to ensure continued funding and funder involvement.
• Prepare VBSPCA’s CEO, Board Members and the Resource Development team for donor meetings and cultivation activities.
• Assign key participants to various donor and prospect relationship-building initiatives.
• Leverage Board Members and champion relationships, and, maintain a personal portfolio of major donors while staffing and coaching the CEO and Board Members in managing their donor portfolios to increase support for VBSPCA.
• In collaboration with the Resource Development team, write powerful and inspiring letters and proposals and prepare dynamic presentations and materials customized for target audiences.
• Oversee the management all fundraising events through the lens of engaging individual donors in VBSPCA’s mission.  
• Ensure ethical and appropriate financial administration of contributed income, including overseeing the donor and prospect records, gift processing and donor stewardship functions.

 
External & Community Relations

• Serve as an articulate, passionate and visible spokesperson for VBSPCA, and as the primary face of fundraising throughout the organization and in local community.
• Maintain active membership and a strong presence in professional organizations, community groups, and other spaces relevant to the work of VBSPCA and its mission.
• Provide strategic leadership to VBSPCA’s efforts to effectively communicate the mission, goals and accomplishments to donors, prospective donors and the broader community.
• Create and implement a plan to identify and build strong relationships with key donors, community leaders and volunteers, and engage organizations with which VBSPCA should partner.

 
The Qualified Candidate
 
VBSPCA seeks an accomplished and strategic professional with a minimum of seven years of fundraising experience with a recent concentration on individual giving/ major gifts and experience managing a team of Development professionals.  She/he will be dedicated to the cause, hard-working, a self-starter, honest, friendly, approachable, adaptable, highly organized with a gift for building relationships and trust internally and externally.  The successful candidate will also play a key role in the strategic planning of a future capital campaign in partnership with the CEO, Board of Directors and Resource Development team.
Specific Requirements Include:

• Keen interest in VBSPCA’s mission and a love of animals with a genuine willingness to learn and stay abreast of its vast number of program offerings.
• A minimum of 7 years of professional Resource Development experience with a focus on individual giving; familiarity with the Virginia Beach philanthropic community preferred.
• Successful and progressive background in donor solicitation and stewardship processes with superb skills in motivating, engaging and interacting with Board and other key stakeholders.
• Best practice knowledge of strategy development and moves management systems in the cultivation, solicitation and successful closing of gifts from individual donors.
• Proven ability to effectively motivate and manage staff teams, and to build unified, collaborative partnerships in a fast-paced, complex and deadline-driven environment.
• Exceptional leadership, planning, and organizational abilities with equal and simultaneous attention to the larger perspective and day-to-day details.
• Excellent verbal, written and presentation communication skills.
• Hands-on experience with Raiser’s Edge and proficiency with Microsoft Office Suite.
• Experience with planned giving and capital campaigns desired.
• Bachelor's degree; Advanced degree and/or CFRE credential preferred.

 
VBSPCA offers a competitive salary and benefits.    
 
VBSPCA is an equal employment opportunity employer and does not discriminate on the basis of race, color, gender, religion, age, national or ethnic origin, non-disqualifying physical or mental disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, marital status, political affiliation, genetic predisposition and/or any other lawfully protected classification or occupationally irrelevant criteria. Equal Opportunity Employer M/F/D/V
 
To Apply
 
The search is being managed by Laura Weinman, Senior Consultant of Alford Executive Search. 
Questions may be addressed to lweinman@alfordexecutivesearch.com. 
 
To apply, candidates should submit their cover letter and resume and complete the online application at https://alfordexecutivesearch.applicantstack.com/x/openings.  To assure confidential tracking of all applicants, no applications will be accepted via email.
 
ALL INQUIRIES WILL BE HELD IN STRICT CONFIDENCE.  Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis, but are preferred in February, 2015.
 
Alford Executive Search, a division of KEES – Kistner Eddy Executive Services - The KEES to Effective Leadership is a retained search firm dedicated to providing placement services of exceptional quality.