The Director of Advancement is the leader of Maryland Humanities’ (MH) advancement efforts and serves as a key member of MH’s leadership team as a Senior Staff member. The role will lead efforts to strengthen the organization’s ability to demonstrate its impact in communities. They will lead the advancement team in a unified strategy for institutional development–including all activities related to short-term and long-term advocacy, fundraising, marketing, and communications. They do this while ensuring that the advancement team works collaboratively and purposefully towards advancing the mission of Maryland Humanities and the goals of the strategic plan, Humanities Now.
They are a strategic leader who will play an important role in fostering innovation and collaboration within advancement staff. They will support the success of the department and ensure that communication lines stay open. They will actively incorporate MH’s racial equity lens in all the work that they do.
The Director of Advancement reports to the Chief Executive Officer (CEO), and supervises the Communications Specialist, Development Specialist, Grants Specialist, and Data and Evaluation Assistant. They work in close collaboration with Senior Staff to assist in leading Maryland Humanities and understanding the needs of the organization. They also lead communications, and resource growth and development to meet said needs.
Salary Range: $80,000-$85,000
FLSA Status: Exempt; Permanent; Full-time (35 hours/week)
Reports to: Chief Executive Officer
Working Conditions: Hybrid, Remote First
Supervisory Responsibilities: This position will supervise the Development Specialist, Grants Specialist, Communications Specialist, and Data and Evaluation Assistant
Duties/Responsibilities:
Organizational and Departmental Leadership
• Provide leadership in working towards MH’s strategic priorities
• Work with the Senior Staff and advancement staff to establish advancement strategy
• Meet regularly with Advancement Staff to lead efforts at cross-advancement alignment and collaboration
• Serve as a key member of organizational leadership team internally and externally
• Share learnings and contribute to outreach and partnership-building efforts through public speaking, presenting as a panelist at conferences, serving on grant panels, and engaging with community leaders
• Work with the Board of Directors’ Development and Communications Committee and ED to ensure that the board understands and is committed to Maryland Humanities’ advancement efforts
• Work closely with the Programs and Administration departments to identify and support efforts to secure funding
Advancement Management
• Develop and manage in partnership with the Advancement team the long-term institutional advancement (communications and development) goals in alignment with the strategic plan as well as annual fundraising and communications plans to achieve short-term goals
• Supervise advancement staff, conducting annual reviews and providing regular support and feedback to achieve strategic program goals and ongoing professional development
• Partner with senior leadership and external lobbyist on advocacy efforts
• Work with Chief Executive Officer to create a major gift and planned giving program
Performing additional duties as assigned by the Chief Executive Officer
Required Skills/Abilities:
• Proven and recurring success developing, implementing, and managing development and communications for a non-profit, or relevant experience where comparable knowledge, skills, and abilities were gained
• Demonstrated experience managing staff and participating in departmental or organizational leadership, or relevant experience where comparable knowledge, skills, and abilities were gained
• Demonstrated initiative to learn and enhance skills that promote equity, inclusion, and cultural responsiveness, and an understanding of systems of oppression and their impact on communities
• Demonstrated commitment to the creation of inclusive spaces and to the equitable treatment of all—including participants, audiences, supporters, staff, and board—at every level of the organization
• Attention to detail, accuracy, and consistency in executing tasks for internal as well as external audiences
• Ability to hold accountability and shared ownership of projects and tasks
• Strong communication and active listening skills with coworkers and a wide range of stakeholders
• Commitment to Maryland Humanities’ mission, vision, and values
Preferred Skills/Abilities:
• Skilled in examining and re-engineering program operations and procedures
• Strong understanding of community-centric fundraising and/or the application of a racial equity lens to development efforts
• We are in a stage of rapid development of our advancement department. The perfect candidate will be excited to contribute to an environment of change
Working Conditions and Physical Requirements:
• Maryland Humanities offices are located in Baltimore, MD. The office is open for staff to work from as needed. Each staff person is expected to join on-site team meetings at least 1 day per month.
• Must reside in or relocate to Maryland
• In-person meetings with donors, partners, and board members
• Prolonged periods of sitting and working on a computer
Additional Details:
The vision for this position is as a department leader. Advancement deliverables in the first year will include creating a major gifts and planned giving program alongside the Chief Executive Officer and Development Specialist as outlined in our Advancement Plan. Most of the work will be focused on aligning the strategic plan with the work of the Advancement Department as well as ensuring that racial equity is centered in the work.
A successful Director of Advancement is a big-picture thinker who can see how many moving parts are connected. Candidates with a strong background in marketing/communications are encouraged to apply. The candidate who is chosen for this position will have executive coaching available by an external consultant with advancement experience.
No one candidate will be perfect for this job. The skills and experience needed to be successful in this job exist on a spectrum. Frequently cited statistics show that candidates with disabilities, BIPOC candidates, women, and members of marginalized and/or systematically excluded groups apply to jobs only if they meet 100% of the qualifications. Maryland Humanities is happy to leave that statistic in the past. No one ever meets 100% of the qualifications. Please just apply.
What we are offering
• The existing advancement team is energetic, welcoming, and highly collaborative
•The annual salary for this position is $80,000-$85,000.
• 35 hour work week with flexible scheduling.
• Employees are eligible for employer-provided health and dental insurance coverage (two plans offered, including one 100% employer paid), flex benefits, retirement (including a 4% employer contribution), monthly stipend to offset parking and/or work-from-home expenses, and annual funding for professional development.
• We have 21 days of vacation per year and 12 days of sick leave per year as well as access to advance and donated leave if needed
• 15 paid holidays and 2 floating holidays prorated for part time. Access to holiday exchange (i.e. observing Eid Al-Adha instead of Christmas)
• We offer a sabbatical with up to 6 weeks after five years of service and up to 10 weeks after 10 or more years of service.
• Employees have access to Volunteer Time Off.
• We offer Extended Family and Medical Leave of 12 weeks with additional eligibility for 4 weeks of a gradual return to work.
• We traditionally close the offices at the end of the year, Dec 24–Jan 1.
Maryland Humanities’ staff have established shared working values, linked here.
What to expect
Step one: All submissions will be initially reviewed after January 29 and the initial candidate pool will be formed. Not all submissions will make it into the candidate pool. Once the pool of candidates is established, a brief phone interview will be set up with the Chief Executive Officer.
Step two: Remaining candidates will take part in an interview with members of the Maryland Humanities Team via Zoom. The final candidate will be selected after this interview.
Step Three: Selection and placement of the final candidate. Placement for this position is anticipated to occur in March 2024. Once the final candidate has accepted their offer of employment, all other applicants will be notified of their status.
To Apply: To be considered for the role, we require that you submit your résumé along with responses to the following 3 prompts. Please limit your responses to 1 page.
1) Provide a summary of your experience with leadership in communications. If you do not have prior experience, please share which skills and/or education you possess that are applicable to this position.
2) Provide a summary of your experience with leadership in development efforts. If you do not have prior experience, please share which skills and/or education you possess that are applicable to this position.
3) Provide your definition of racial equity and describe any experience you have in promoting equity, inclusion, and cultural responsiveness into your work.
We believe that the responses to these questions will give us a better understanding of your qualifications for the role, as well as your alignment with our organization’s values. We appreciate your time and effort in providing this information.
Please email materials to hr@mdhumanities.org with the subject line “Director of Advancement;” no phone calls, please. For best consideration, applications are due by January 29, 2024. Search will remain open until filled.
Maryland Humanities is an equal opportunity employer. It is committed to providing equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment. Accordingly, all terms and conditions of employment will be carried out without regard to race, creed, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, nationality, marital status, age, or disability. Maryland Humanities will not tolerate acts deemed to constitute discrimination or harassment based on gender, sexual orientation, race, creed, color, religion, national origin, marital status, age, disability, or any other characteristic protected by law.