Director of Institutional Philanthropy
International Refugee Assistance Project
New York, NY, USA
Posted on May 21, 2025
The Director of Institutional Philanthropy will develop and implement strategies to cultivate and steward relationships with institutional donors and prospects, and continue the robust growth of IRAP’s institutional portfolio that includes major U.S. and European foundations, mid-sized foundations, faith-based communities, corporate giving programs, and UN agencies in support of IRAP’s mission, vision, and programmatic priorities.
The Director of Institutional Philanthropy is a strategic leader with demonstrated success in securing gifts, directing strategy, and building genuine relationships across IRAP and with existing and prospective donors. This position reports to the SVP- Development and is an integral part of IRAP’s Development department and a member of the Development Leadership team.
This position includes supervisory responsibilities.
Responsibilities
- Develop, direct, and implement a strategy to cultivate, steward, and solicit new and existing institutional donors and to meet annual institutional fundraising goals, in collaboration with the Institutional Philanthropy Officer, who reports directly to the Director.
- Secure principal gifts (six figures-plus) and establish strong institutional revenue support through compelling and strategic donor-centered relationship building.
- Develop and execute tailored annual engagement plans for each major institutional donor, including foundations, corporations, and multilateral funders such as the UN Refugee Agency.
- As part of forging new funding relationships and stewarding existing relationships, provide strategic direction to and identify collaboration opportunities for program colleagues and Executive Leadership Team members to join virtual and in-person meetings with institutional donors and prospects. Such responsibilities include proactively proposing meetings, designing the meeting goals and determining appropriate staff involvement, preparing our colleagues (including by providing background information, meeting goals, and talking points), and handling follow-up.
- Write timely and compelling Letters of Interest, grant proposals, and reports for major institutional donors, and oversee the strategy for and execution of submitted materials and requests written by the Institutional Philanthropy Officer.
- Work with the Development Operations and Compliance Director to develop and track program-specific budgets required for restricted funding sources.
- Collaborate with the Development Operations and Compliance Director to prepare timely financial reports, as required or requested by donors.
- Alongside and in addition to formal reports, maintain warm, professional, customized communication with donors in alignment with their preferences, such as personalized VIP updates, event invitations, update calls, in-person meetings, and email check-ins.
- Regularly review program materials to stay updated on program developments and be able to knowledgeably pitch or update funders on the organization’s work.
- Maintain an annual grants calendar to track and meet deadlines for proposals and renewals, reports, and other relationship outreach.
- Work toward continued strategic growth of the portfolio, including in new geographies and emerging program areas, by networking, conducting prospect research, developing cultivation strategies, and continuing to proactively steward existing donors with additional capacity.
- Communicate regularly with the SVP- Development, EVP- External Relations and Organizational Planning, appropriate Executive Leadership Team members, and the Senior Director- Global Planning and Strategic Resourcing to understand potential programmatic funding needs, then identify and pursue institutional funding opportunities to meet those needs.
- Respond to special and one-off requests from institutions for development support, for example, to help complete prize/award applications for which IRAP or IRAP staff may be eligible.
- Work with the Development Assistant to update and maintain institutional donor records in the development CRM and the Master VIP list.
- Collaborate with the Evaluation and Learning team to anticipate and generate timely metrics data as required or requested by institutional donors.
- Collaborate with the individual philanthropy team on the stewardship of shared constituents, such as foundations with individual decision-makers, and partner with the Director of Individual Philanthropy on VIP donor and prospect engagement opportunities, including virtual learning sessions, in-person events, and other high-touch cultivation strategies.
- Work with the Development team to advance DEIA efforts in fundraising, including elevating client communities and supporting Development’s role in the achievement of organization-wide DEIA goals.
- Work with the SVP of Development to mobilize and support the virtual and in-person fundraising activities of board members and the Development Committee.
- Support and collaborate with the Senior Development Content and Legal Philanthropy Officer by contributing to plans for content development and supporting efforts to engage and solicit IRAP’s pro bono legal community as needed.
Qualifications
- Education
- Bachelor’s degree required.
- Experience
- Minimum of seven years of mission-driven experience; experience with nonprofit organizations, NGOs, and/or foundations is essential.
- Seven years plus of direct experience in the creation and management of an institutional philanthropy program, including writing and managing grants, cultivating donor relationships, organizing events, researching prospects, and implementing other forms of engagement and stewardship opportunities.
- Record of innovative and sustainable fundraising from foundations and corporations, with proven results.
- Experience working with multilateral or bilateral grants is beneficial.
- Experience working with Salesforce or other CRM database systems is a plus.
- Supervisory experience is preferred.
- Values, Competencies, Skills
- Superb writing, communication, interpersonal, and analytical skills. Experience writing about technical subjects to program officers as well as for a lay audience is essential.
- Must be highly organized and motivated, be able to multitask and manage a high-volume workload, and have excellent time management skills.
- Must have a broad and strategic mindset, with creative aptitude and effective use of independent judgment.
- Must be familiar with nonprofit financial management and program budgeting.
- Commitment to IRAP’s mission to create a world where refugees and all people seeking safety are empowered to claim their right to freedom of movement and a path to lasting refuge.
- Ability to work comfortably in person and virtually with foundation program officers, major donor prospects, attorneys, colleagues, and partner organizations with diverse cultural and social orientations.
- Ability to be flexible in a fast-paced and high-pressure work environment.
- Ability to take initiative and to develop solutions quickly and effectively.
Job-related Requirements
- The position is remote.
- This frontline, external-facing role involves in-person collaboration and community building. Thus, it will require the ability to travel up to 10% of the time to meet with potential and current supporters throughout the year and represent the organization externally to a wide range of stakeholders and constituencies.
Benefits
- IRAP’s benefits vary across office locations, and IRAP seeks to offer equitable and generous benefits to all employees.
- Fully paid family health insurance.
- Retirement options.
- Extensive PTO (20 or more vacation days, 22 and more public/ org-wide holidays).
- Comprehensive leave time for sickness.
- Disability and parenting (5 months of parental leave).
- Reimbursement for work-from-home equipment.
- Generous opportunities for professional development.
To Apply:
Please provide the following documents:
1- Updated resume,
2- Cover letter customized to IRAP,
3- Three references.
IRAP is committed to the full inclusion of all qualified individuals. As part of this commitment, IRAP will ensure that persons with disabilities are provided reasonable accommodations. If reasonable accommodation is needed to participate in the job application or interview process, to perform essential job functions, and/or to receive other benefits and privileges of employment, please refer to your request in the cover letter.
IRAP is an equal-opportunity employer; people of color and individuals from diverse backgrounds are encouraged to apply. IRAP does not discriminate based on race, color, national origin, citizenship status, ethnic background, religion, political orientation, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity, age, disability, or any other protected class. We consider all qualified applicants with criminal histories in a manner consistent with the requirements of all local, state, and federal laws related to the Fair Chance Act.