Senior Director of Development

About Arts Alliance Illinois

As the statewide advocacy and lobbying organization for arts and culture, Arts Alliance Illinois supports the creative sector by championing public policies, securing funding, and building connections that help artists and organizations thrive.

Our work includes expanding and protecting public funding for arts and culture; supporting creative workers so they can build stable and lasting careers; ensuring all K–12 students have access to quality arts education; and advancing research that demonstrates the impact of arts and culture across Illinois.

Position Description

This role is 90% remote, with required attendance at occasional Chicago office meetings, annual staff retreats, Arts Alliance events, and in-person donor meetings and cultivation activities. All employees must reside in Illinois during their employment.

The Senior Director of Development reports to the Executive Director and leads all fundraising strategy and execution for Arts Alliance Illinois. This includes frontline major gifts work, multi-year revenue strategy, departmental leadership, and management of staff across grants, individual giving, membership, and data systems.

The ideal candidate will have the following characteristics:

• A belief that arts and culture are vital to strong local communities and that it is necessary to invest in them.
• Thrives working remotely and independently, while simultaneously being a key member of a dynamic, collaborative team.
• Ability to demonstrate grace and respect for themselves and others at all times, especially when under pressure.
• Ability to self-direct and move projects forward by recognizing when to involve other staff and leadership.

Hiring Process

Selected candidates move through the following stages:

• Initial application
• 30-minute phone interview
• Panel interview with selected Alliance staff
• Paid work sample assessment
• Final interview with the Executive Director and a board member

Arts Alliance Illinois values diversity and is committed to building an inclusive workplace that represents a variety of backgrounds, perspectives, and skills. We encourage Black, Indigenous or People of Color, immigrants, LGTBQ+ individuals, people with disabilities, people without college degrees, and anyone part of a group that has been historically discriminated against, to apply.

Key Responsibilities

Frontline Fundraising – 50%

• Maintain a portfolio of 20–30 major donors, leading all cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship activities.
• In collaboration with the Executive Director, lead strategy for gifts $25,000+ and collaborate with the Development Manager to grow donors in the $1,000–$24,999 range.
• Serve as the primary solicitor for special campaigns, creative sector initiatives, and programmatic or policy-related fundraising.
• Engage the Board Fund Development Committee in identifying, cultivating, and soliciting major donor prospects.
• Lead prospecting for new individual, foundation, corporate, and government supporters.
• Conduct regular outreach to broaden the donor pipeline and deepen relationships with program officers, philanthropic partners, and civic leaders.
• Act as a public representative of the Alliance at donor, partner, and sector events.

Strategic Leadership – 50%

• Develop and implement a comprehensive multi-year fundraising strategy, including major gifts, annual fund, membership, foundation/government grants, and event revenue (including the annual benefit).
• Oversee the annual benefit and other donor events:
• Partner with the Executive Director and Board on strategy.
• Lead revenue planning, sponsorship strategy, and invitation pipeline development.
• Collaborate with the Development Manager and external vendors to ensure strong project management and execution.
• Supervise the Development Manager (FT), Grant Writer (PT), Membership Manager (PT), and Data & Technology Manager (PT).
• Oversee creation and maintenance of fundraising materials, including case statements, program overviews, annual/impact reports, and donor communications.
• Partner with Communications to develop and execute year-round donor and member engagement strategies.
• Optimize Salesforce and other tools to strengthen prospecting, donor stewardship, reporting, and pipeline management.
• Ensure timely and accurate grant reporting, compliance, and stewardship across all funding areas.
• Manage fiscal sponsorship relationships, including communication, documentation, and administrative oversight.
• Partner with the Senior Director of Finance and our external accounting partner on reconciliation, forecasting, reporting, and budgeting.
• Manage and support Board Development