Development Manager

Position Overview

The Development Manager will play a key role in advancing Soccer Unity Project’s mission to reimagine the power of soccer to build community, connect people from diverse backgrounds, and promote equity in youth play. This position will support all facets of fundraising and donor engagement, including events, campaigns, donor communications, data management, and sponsorship fulfillment. Depending on experience, the role may evolve with added responsibility for strategy, portfolio management, and donor stewardship. If you are looking to be part of a collaborative team, and are passionate about supporting sport for social change work, join us. 

Key Responsibilities

Fundraising & Donor Engagement

• Support annual fundraising campaigns including the Annual Appeal, Giving Tuesday, and peer-to-peer initiatives.
• Assist with stewardship of individual donors, coordinate thank-you letters, impact updates, and personalized follow-up calls, emails, and meetings.
• Conduct donor research to identify new prospects and support cultivation strategies for major gifts.
• Manage donor acknowledgment and recognition systems to ensure timely, meaningful communications.
• Support the Director of Development and Executive Director in preparing materials for donor meetings and proposals.
• Develop new ideas and initiatives to increase individual donor giving for 2026

Events & Sponsorship

• Coordinate logistics and outreach for key fundraising events (e.g., Unity Ball, Swings for Unity Golf Tournament, Boston Unity Cup).
• Track sponsorship deliverables and ensure fulfillment for corporate partners.
• Support sponsorship outreach, managing the process from initial contact to follow up post event
• Support pre- and post-event communications, guest tracking, and on-site execution.
• Assist with creation of event materials including invitations, programs, signage, and presentations.

Development Operations

• Maintain and update the donor database (Bloomerang) to ensure accuracy of records, reports, and analytics.
• Generate and analyze fundraising reports to track progress toward revenue goals.
• Process gifts and acknowledgments in coordination with finance and administrative teams.
• Help manage grants calendar, submissions, and reporting deadlines.

Communications & Marketing

• Collaborate with the Communications team to align fundraising messages with brand identity and impact storytelling.
• Contribute to newsletters, social media, and website content that highlight donor impact and organizational success.
• Develop consistent messaging for donor stewardship and engagement materials.

Qualifications

Education & Experience:

• Bachelor’s degree in nonprofit management, communications, marketing, business, or a related field (or equivalent professional experience).
• 3–5 years of experience in nonprofit development, fundraising, or a related field.

Demonstrated experience with:

• Individual donor cultivation and stewardship with a track record of securing six- to seven-figure gifts with major gifts and high-net-worth donor engagement, peer-to-peer fundraising and/or capital campaigns, and managing corporate partnerships.
• Familiarity with donor database management and reporting.
• Experience in event management, including large-scale fundraising events, preferred.
• Experience with grant research and grant writing, preferred.

Skills & Competencies:

• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills, including donor correspondence, proposals, and presentations.
• Strong organizational skills with meticulous attention to detail.
• Strong project management skill with ability to manage multiple projects and deadlines simultaneously in a fast-paced environment.
• Self-motivated, with the ability to work both independently and collaboratively.
• Strategic thinker with strong relationship-building and problem-solving abilities.

Technical Skills:

• Proficiency with donor management systems such as Bloomerang, Salesforce, Little Green Light, or similar platforms.
• Strong working knowledge of Microsoft Office and/or Google Workspace.
• Ability to analyze fundraising data to inform strategy and decision-making.

Language Skills (Preferred): Fluency in English required, and fluency in an additional language commonly spoken in the community including as Spanish, Haitian Creole, Cape Verdean Creole, Portuguese, Arabic, or others is strongly preferred.

Values Alignment: Deep commitment to equity, inclusion, and Soccer Unity Project’s mission to make soccer accessible for all youth regardless of background or income.

Compensation & Benefits

Salary range: $55,000 – $65,000, commensurate with experience and scope of responsibilities.

Comprehensive benefits including health insurance, paid time off, flexible schedule, and professional development opportunities.

Opportunities for career growth within a dynamic and expanding organization.

To Apply

Submit a resume and cover letter to [email address] with the subject line: Development Associate/Manager – [Your Name] Jeremy Kazanjian-Amory at JeremyKA@soccerunityproject.org. Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis.