Development Manager

Development Manager

Reports to: Director of Strategic Operations

Location: Atlanta, GA (hybrid)

Position Type: Full-Time, Exempt

Salary Range: $70,000 - $80,000

About GEEARS

GEEARS: Georgia Early Education Alliance for Ready Students works to ensure that all of Georgia’s children and their families are supported in their first five years of life. Through advocacy, research, partnerships, and community engagement, GEEARS rallies business, civic, and government leaders to invest in early childhood and advances policies and practices that enable young children and their families to achieve success.

Position Summary

GEEARS’ Development Manager will be responsible for seeking new donors, stewarding donors, managing sponsorships, and supporting fundraising events and campaigns. The person in this role ensures the smooth operation of fundraising systems, donor communications, and event logistics. Reporting to the Director of Strategic Operations and working in close collaboration with the CEO, the Development Manager is a community-facing role for someone who enjoys attending community and other events to promote GEEARS and build relationships.

The Development Manager plays an integral role in identifying, building, and maintaining donor relationships, conducting and managing sponsorship outreach, and ensuring accurate reporting and data management. They will be the key person responsible for executing the annual fundraising plan, identifying, collaborating with, and managing relationships with individual and corporate donors.

Why You’ll Love Working at GEEARS

GEEARS is a small but mighty non-profit that makes a big, statewide impact. While roles at GEEARS are well-defined, they’re not siloed. We’re a deeply mission-oriented bunch who all get to contribute to our organization’s success and to the advocacy that makes Georgia a place where young children and their families can thrive.

In this role, you’ll have plenty of freedom to be creative, pitch and implement new strategies, and be GEEARS’ day-to-day development lead. There will also be opportunities to grow within our organization. You won’t work in isolation. You will have plenty of opportunities for coaching, collaboration, mentoring, guidance, and institutional oversight.

The vibe at GEEARS is dynamic. Given our focus on young kiddos, we bring a playful spirit to our serious and efficient work. We also have well-seasoned chops as researchers and advocates, with relationships spanning corporate boardrooms, state and local governments, academic institutions, state agencies, and philanthropies nationwide.

GEEARS walks our talk about family-friendly workplaces by offering paid parental leave, generous vacation days and holidays, and healthcare and retirement benefits. In addition, children and pets are welcome at work! We have a playroom/nursing room and children’s books and toys throughout our office. Even when little ones aren’t in the house, these are inspiring reminders of the whys behind our work.

KEY RESPONSIBILITIES

Donor & Sponsor Engagement

• Develop and execute annual fundraising strategies to meet or exceed revenue goals across individual, corporate, foundation, and community giving.
• Research and create target donor and sponsor lists that align with GEEARS’ mission and goals.
• Support and develop relationships with corporate sponsors and individual donors throughout the state of Georgia.
• Engage as one of the primary contacts for donor stewardship and sponsor relations.
• Manage the donor and sponsor acknowledgment process, impact updates, and recognition materials.
• Maintain accurate donor and sponsor information in the CRM system (Bloomerang and Qgiv).

Fundraising Campaigns & Events

• Create an annual fundraising strategy and an actionable plan with the CEO and Operations Director.
• Be an integral part of planning and executing GEEARS fundraising events (e.g., Annual Luncheon, Spring Event, auctions, raffles).
• Manage event sponsorship prospecting, outreach, and follow-up activities.
• Support event logistics, including collateral preparation, onsite management, and volunteer coordination.
• Collaborate on digital and print communications (sponsorship packets, newsletters, event promotions) with the communications team.

Data, Systems & Reporting

• Manage internal project management systems related to development, including development document retention, convening cross-departmental teams responsible for executing grants management, and related activities.
• Manage donor and sponsor databases, ensuring data integrity and reporting accuracy.
• Track fundraising progress, donor engagement, and event participation.
• Utilize existing fundraising platforms (Qgiv, Bloomerang, etc.) to support campaigns.
• Provide regular reports for leadership and the Board.

Administrative & Collaborative Support

• Support the Director of Strategic Operations and the Executive Director with fundraising outreach, follow-up, and overall efforts. Create or standardize fundraising systems.
• Collaborate with communications staff to align messaging for fundraising campaigns.
• Collaborate with support staff for CRM updating, management, and acknowledgments.
• Contribute to development operations with consistency, accuracy, and professionalism.

QUALIFICATIONS

This role is ideal for a mission-motivated, charismatic individual who is eager to learn and comfortable in a variety of environments.

• Demonstrated success in managing donor relationships.
• Creative writing and storytelling skills for donor communications.
• Event planning and project management expertise.
• Familiarity with early childhood issues, education, or policy-related nonprofits.
• Willingness to travel statewide to build relationships.

MINIMUM REQUIREMENTS

• A minimum of 3 years of professional experience in mission-oriented fundraising, donorrelations, corporate sponsorships, or sales and marketing.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Excellent organizational and time-management abilities; able to juggle multiple projects.
• Proficiency and understanding of donor databases/CRMs and Microsoft Office Suite,notably Excel.
• Comfort with online fundraising/event platforms and eagerness to learn new tools.
• Ability to travel statewide (approximately 10% or less in the first year).
• Strong attention to detail, discretion, and ability to work independently and collaboratively.

COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS

• Salary range of $70,000 to $80,000. Most new hires will be at the low to mid-point of this range, allowing room for growth.
• Hybrid work environment with a minimum of two days per week in the office. Until role mastery is demonstrated (3-6 months), this role will be expected to report to the office at least 3 days per week.
• Health, dental, and vision insurance, including OneMedical.
• Generous paid time off, 11 paid holidays; offices closed between Dec 24 and Jan 2.
• 401(k) with employer match of 3%.