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All legitimate communication from our recruitment team will come from an official calstart.org email address via email, we will not text you about a role you have not applied to or shown interest in. We will not perform any interviews via text or Zoom chat.

CALSTART does not ask for any fees or personal information such as social security numbers or bank details during the recruitment process.

About Us:

CALSTART is a mission-driven industry organization focused on transportation decarbonization and clean air for all.

For over 30 years, it’s been CALSTART’s mission to develop, assess, and implement large-scale, zero-emission transportation solutions to mitigate climate change and support economic growth. CALSTART works with businesses, organizations, governments, and communities to create real-life impact toward clean air and equitable access to clean transportation for all. CALSTART provides scientific, technical and policy support for regulatory development and clean technology and infrastructure acceleration.

About The Role: 

CALSTART is seeking a Head of Philanthropy and Private Funding that is a strategic and collaborative leader to manage and grow the organization’s existing and future philanthropic relations.  The organization is seeking to  expand and diversify our pool of private (non-government) revenue. Achieving our mission requires growth in our impact, deeper partnerships, and a philanthropic strategy that matches the scale of our ambition.

To lead this effort, we are looking for a Head of Philanthropy and Private Funding who is highly experienced, motivated, and results-oriented.  The Head of Philanthropy and Private Funding, reporting directly to the CEO, will design and execute CALSTART’s private fundraising strategy, cultivating high-impact relationships with current and new foundations, donor-advised funds (DAFs), high net-worth individuals, corporate philanthropy, and the general public. This leader will coordinate all activities related to the lifecycle of private grants and fundraising including funder research, identification, arrangement of meetings, lead cultivation, proposal development, grant management, deliverables, and reporting. This leader will be tasked with maintaining strong relationships with the broad set of funders that CALSTART currently works with, ensuring that we are delivering on existing grants and well positioned for both renewals and growth. 

The ideal candidate will be a well-connected individual within the clean transportation and sustainability community with a passion for our mission and a track record of driving results, ideally in a nonprofit environment. They will have demonstrated success in building strong donor pipelines, growing relationships, and working collaboratively to develop a compelling vision that funders will want to support.  They will demonstrate strong writing skills, organization, follow-through, tracking and delivering on deadlines, and the ability to lead a professional support team. They will also embrace creative approaches to leveraging CALSTART’s unique perspectives as an industry builder and implementation expert, as well as its industry and stakeholder network. 

They will partner very closely with the Head of Policy and the Sr. Director for Global Drive to Zero, which are funded primarily through Philanthropic sources. 

What You’ll Do:

Strategic Leadership and Revenue Diversification:

• Develop, drive, and adapt an annual and multi-year private fundraising strategy aligned with organization goals.

• Set annual private revenue targets in partnership with the CEO.

• Develop compelling, comprehensive proposals that build on CALSTART’s strengths and seek funding support with the philanthropic community and with other private funders.

• Build a diversified portfolio of philanthropic revenue across foundations, DAFs, major donors, and corporate philanthropy.

• Manage a comprehensive fundraising pipeline and generate data-driven forecasting and reporting.

Donor Cultivation, Solicitation, and Stewardship:

• Manage a portfolio of current and prospective donors (individual and institutional) and develop and maintain meaningful relationships with CALSTART’s community of philanthropists. 

• Serve as a primary relationship manager for key philanthropic partners and prospects, working in partnership with the Senior Leadership Team to manage existing and foster new relationships.

• Ensure timely and high-quality reports to funders on delivery of all existing grants and managing grant renewal applications.

• Design and implement a stewardship strategy that deepens donor engagement and strengthens retention, with the objective of increasing levels of giving.

• Partner with the CEO, Executive CTeam, and select board members to engage their networks and prepare them for donor conversations.

• Launch and grow a robust Major Gifts program, including donor segmentation, prospecting, and personalized cultivation plans.

• Develop and launch with Marketing a robust ongoing nurture campaign that is tailored for different funder audiences: institutions, major donors/family offices, and individual supporters.

Cross-Organizational Collaboration and Thought Leadership:

• Support the CEO and senior leaders in representing CALSTART to the philanthropic community.

• Work closely with CALSTART’s Policy team, the Global Drive to Zero team, Initiatives and Regional Offices  to shape fundable concepts and articulate compelling cases for support.

• Foster a culture of philanthropy across the organization, ensuring program leaders understand and contribute to fundraising success.

• Collaborate with Marketing and Communications to develop clear, compelling philanthropic messaging and donor-facing materials.

• Partner with the Executive Team to cross-functionally create annual revenue generation plans that include existing awards and potential renewals, aiming to increase and expand into new streams of funding.

• Partner with peer NGOs to develop larger-scale campaigns for impact. 

Team Leadership and Governance:

• Lead, mentor, and develop a small team of grant specialists focused on the pursuit, preparation, and renewal of philanthropic grants.

• Strengthen fundraising systems, CRM practices, and data governance to support scalable growth.

• Ensure adherence to ethical fundraising standards and grant compliance best practices.

What You'll Bring to the Table:

• Bachelor’s degree, Advanced degree preferred 

• Extensive (10+ years) professional experience in fundraising, development, external relationship building.

• Experience working in the clean transportation, energy, and/or climate sectors. 

• A strong track record of winning major foundation funding. 

• Strong and trusted contacts and relationships with relevant foundations, industry, and institutional funders.  

• Track record of developing strong relationship, over time, with a broad set of stakeholders

• Demonstrated ability to work collaboratively at all levels to actively support development-related goals and activities

• Strong program oversight and project management experience.  Exceptional campaign and proposal development and submission experience with a high win rate. 

• Exceptional communication, public speaking, presentation, organization, stakeholder management,  and writing skills.  

• Willingness to travel 10-15%, primarily within North America but also abroad 

• Knowledge of project budgeting and organizational revenue forecasting. Ability to use software tools to enhance internal processes and drive improved results.

• Proficiency in Microsoft Office suite of applications (Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Outlook).  

$140,000 - $177,960 a year

CALSTART values transparency and strives to provide as much information regarding compensation as possible. The salary range for this role is $140,000 - $177,960. We determine pay based on several factors, including but not limited to job-related skills, qualifications, experience, education, internal equity and other factors relevant to the job.

We understand that not everyone will match the above qualifications 100%. If your background isn't perfectly aligned but you feel you would be a great addition to the team, we'd love to hear from you.

We're a tight-knit team of world-class innovators, business minds, and change agents who believe passionately in our mission and put our team ahead of self. We are committed to the continued development and growth of our employees and invest in your success!

We care about your personal well being as much as your professional success and offer generous benefits to full time employees including: 100% company paid comprehensive health benefits for Medical, Dental, Vision, Short Term Disability, Long Term Disability and Life Insurance, Retirement plan with generous company contributions, FSA for Health and Dependent Care, 3 weeks of vacation time in the first year of employment, 11 paid company holidays, paid sick time, paid family leave, and more!

Our inclusive environment focuses on making decisions based on merit without regard to race, color, hair texture, gender, religion, age, nationality, social or ethnic origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, LGBTQIA+ status, marital status, pregnancy, disability, genetics, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.