Chief Development Officer

Chief Development Officer

Full-Time, 40 hours per week - Monday to Friday

Youth Empowerment and Support Services (YESS) is currently seeking a Chief Development Officer (CDO). The CDO will serve as a mentor and coach, collaborating closely with staff and Board members to formulate a strategic fund development plan aligned with YESS's overarching goals. The CDO will play a crucial role in identifying innovative funding opportunities and supporting team members in elevating their fund development capabilities beyond conventional approaches.

What We Do

YESS is a not-for-profit agency working with youth facing difficult realities. Based in Edmonton, our Youth Support Centre provides immediate and low-barrier 24/7 sleep support and individualized wrap-around supports for young people aged 15 - 24.

We work collaboratively within a network of care focused on the prevention of youth homelessness by providing youth with the necessary supports to stabilize their housing, improve their wellbeing, build life skills, connect with community, and avoid re-entry into homelessness.

What You Will Do

Reporting to the President & Chief Executive Officer, the Chief Development Officer will be responsible for providing leadership, strategic direction, and oversight for all initiatives aimed at enhancing revenue development and philanthropic engagement with YESS. This entails contributing to and aligning with the new vision, mission and 5-year road map for YESS. The Chief Development officer will be operating in a prominent, outward-facing capacity in collaboration with the CEO and other senior leaders while cultivating relationships with individuals, corporate donors and key partners. The successful candidate will be a proactive leader with an established track record with multi-million-dollar organizations for increasing revenue from diverse constituencies including personally opening doors, cultivation, and successfully closing major gifts.

Direct Reports: Director of Fund Development, Director and Marketing & Communications

Responsibilities include:

Strategic Leadership

• Collaborate with fellow members of the Executive Leadership Team to devise, execute, and advance the organization's strategic priorities, and proactively and effectively communicate and model these priorities and successes to all stakeholders within the organization.
• Partner with leaders across the organization to increase cross-departmental collaboration to achieve strategic goals and objectives.
• Interact with the Board of Directors and participate in Board meetings and initiatives.
• Enhance reporting mechanisms to provide comprehensive insights into Fund Development and Marketing & Communications outcomes, trends, and opportunities for the CEO, Board, and Executive Leadership Team.
  

Fund Development Leadership

• Develop and oversee a new Fund Development Strategy to align with the new YESS vision, mission, and 5-year road map.
• Oversee the creation of annual operational plans for Fund Development, including budgets, forecasts, metrics, and growth initiatives.
• Ensure a diverse and well-rounded revenue development mix comprising diverse donor sources and solicitation programs tailored to the organization's requirements, fostering donor retention and motivation. This will include executable strategies in annual giving, major gifts and campaigns, planned giving, grants development, sponsorship, and social enterprise.
• Monitor and provide regular reports on performance against established plans and budgets to ensure optimal ROI and financial efficiency.
  

Marketing & Communications

• Frame, model, and equip the Fund Development and Marketing & Communications teams to support the organization's Marketing & Communications Strategy and Fund Development Strategy in all areas of conducting business with stakeholders on behalf of YESS and ensure ongoing alignment to the vision, mission, values, and strategic objectives of the organization.
• Drive the establishment, implementation, monitoring, and reporting of Marketing & Communications KPIs and metrics that bolster YESS's strategic objectives and mission
• Ensure close collaboration and integration between the Fund Development and Marketing & Communications teams to support revenue development and stakeholder engagement

Employee, Stakeholder Leadership

• Establish frameworks to facilitate the cohesive operation of motivated and high functioning Marketing & Communications and Fund Development teams.
• Develop leadership and organizational structures to effectively execute the overall fund development and marketing strategies
• Focus on building a leadership practice of coaching, feedback, and difficult conversations, while embodying the YESS values of courage, connection, and commitment.

Other Responsibilities:

• Participate in performance management supervisions and ongoing constructive conversations with the CEO
• Identify and maintain growth in personal and professional competencies
• Participate in YESS identified mandatory training.
• Maintain good standing in any fundraising or marketing/communication designations or memberships.
• Demonstrate leadership and collaboration when interacting with YESS internal and external Stakeholders
  
• Other responsibilities as required

Additionally, you will provide a professional level of service to donors, promote the agency in a positive manner to the outside community and share information, communicate, and collaborate with other YESS staff.

What You Bring

Education: Degree or Diploma in a related field such as Nonprofit Management, Business Administration, Marketing or Communications.

Experience: Minimum 7 years of senior development experience including 5 years of team leadership in the Not-for-profit industry.

• 10+ years of professional Fund Development experience with progressive experience in successful development programs and knowledge of "best practices" in philanthropy.
• Demonstrated experience in driving branding and marketing strategy, as it relates to fund development.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite (Word, Excel, PowerPoint) and other relevant software and CRM database management
• Certified Fundraising Executive (CFRE) designation is preferred.

Prerequisites

• Clear police clearance (CRIM) within the last six months
• Child and Youth Intervention (CYIM) check both obtained within the last six months
• Valid driver's license
• Drivers abstract within the last three months
• $1 million personal liability vehicle insurance
  

YESS is an equal opportunity employer, committed to an inclusive and safe work environment for people of all backgrounds.

We thank all applicants for their interest, however only those shortlisted will be contacted.