Foundation Relationships Manager

Lead and manage the growing portfolio of foundations—from institutional foundations to family foundations—and secure significant financial grants to help achieve the ministry’s program goals and vision. Identify and research new foundations to build a pipeline of potential funders, cultivate and steward existing foundation relationships, lead all aspects of grant writing, including grant proposals and follow-up reports, and track progress on all grants to ensure strong compliance and stewardship. This position involves strategic planning and communicating a compelling case for support to align foundation interests with Christianity Today’s (CT) mission and goals to build long-term partnerships.

Functions and Responsibilities

• In partnership with the Vice President of Mission Advancement and the President and CEO, lead the development and stewardship of CT’s growing foundations portfolio as part of the ministry’s overall advancement goals. 
• Creatively identify, research, and cultivate relationships with prospective foundations, seeking to match new funding opportunities with CT’s stated goals and initiatives. 
• Produce clear and engaging foundation meeting requests, letters of inquiry (LOI), and grant proposals, collaborating with appropriate staff to develop objectives, theory of change, outputs, outcomes, and project budget. 
• Develop a robust foundation stewardship plan to keep current grantors engaged and informed.
• Manage grant payment and reporting schedules, tracking and ensuring grant objectives, outputs, and budget are being delivered by staff, working closely with Finance to monitor revenue and expenses for grant-funded projects, and completing required grant reports.
• Manage and update a data tracking system within Raiser’s Edge CRM to monitor communications with foundations and grant opportunities; and manage grant deadlines and related tasks. 
• Coordinate with cross-functional departments to develop grant proposals, monitor progress, and submit reports, including with mission advancement, editorial and publishing, finance, operations and analytics, marketing, technology, and program staff.
• Stays up-to-date on foundation and grant best practices and trends. Seek opportunities for professional development that will enhance job performance.
• Perform additional job-related duties as assigned.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree
• 5+ years fundraising and grant proposal writing experience
• Knowledgeable about institutional fundraising and foundation relations
• Effective communicator who connects, listen well, and engages new and existing foundation partners with regular rhythms of communication
• Willingness to invite foundations into philanthropic partnership and build rapport and trust over time
• Exceptionally strong writing skills, specifically nonprofit storytelling, proposal writing, and grant reporting to share the organization’s mission and impact
• Highly capable and detail-oriented project manager and self-starter who can effectively manage projects and systems from conception to completion
• Confidentiality and respect of donors and foundations 
• Ability to represent the Christian faith and values of Christianity Today

Employment Details

• CT headquarters are located in Wheaton, Illinois
• Work Location: Remote
• Type: Full time, 37.5 hour workweek
• Classification: Salaried, Exempt FLSA status
• Benefits: CT offers a comprehensive benefits package - check out our careers page to learn more