Vice President of Philanthropy and Strategic Partnerships

Summary

Join iMentor as the Vice President of Philanthropy and Strategic Partnerships, a newly created role driving significant growth in fundraising and strategic partnerships. Collaborate closely with the Chief External Officer to develop and execute a comprehensive revenue strategy ensuring long-term sustainability. Lead principal gift initiatives, cultivating relationships with high-net-worth individuals and institutional partners. Unlock new philanthropic opportunities, leveraging strategic communications to enhance iMentor's visibility and donor engagement. Oversee and optimize the institutional giving strategy, mentoring a high-performing team. Serve as a trusted advisor to senior leadership, shaping the future of this national mentoring organization. This role has an aspirational revenue target of $5M annually.

Requirements

• 15+ years of leadership experience in development, business development, or strategic partnerships, with a proven track record of securing principal gifts ($1M+) and multi-year commitments across diverse revenue streams (corporate, foundation, and individual giving)
• Deep expertise in relationship-driven fundraising, with a history of successfully engaging, cultivating, and soliciting high-net-worth individuals, institutional funders, and enterprise-level partners
• Exceptional storytelling and strategic communications skills—able to craft compelling narratives that inspire philanthropic investment and position iMentor as a top-tier funding opportunity
• Strong campaign strategist, with experience leading high-impact fundraising initiatives, capital campaigns, or major partnership efforts that have resulted in transformative growth
• Dynamic executive presence and outstanding presentation skills, with the ability to effectively engage Board members, senior leadership, and top donors in high-stakes meetings and solicitations
• Proven ability to build and lead high-performing teams—a motivational coach and mentor who fosters a culture of accountability, innovation, and excellence
• Entrepreneurial and solutions-oriented mindset, with the ability to balance big-picture visioning with tactical execution to drive results
• Comfortable navigating complexity and ambiguity, with the composure, adaptability, and problem-solving skills needed to lead during high-pressure moments
• Deep knowledge of philanthropy best practices, donor engagement strategies, and professional grantmaking, with experience managing complex funding portfolios
• Passion for non-profit innovation and social impact, with an authentic connection to iMentor’s mission and commitment to advancing educational equity
• Ability to travel for donor and partner meetings nationwide and work in-person in the NYC office at least once per month. The team operates on a hybrid schedule, with a preference for candidates based in NYC, Chicago, or Baltimore who can work in-person two days per week
• Demonstrated alignment with iMentor's mission, values, and commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion
• Views differences between individuals (race, gender, age, cultural heritage, physical ability, education, beliefs, and lifestyle) as an asset and demonstrates an appreciation of the diversity across the iMentor community
• In order to fully comply with the NYC Vaccine mandate, all iMentor employees (regardless of role or region) are required to be fully vaccinated priority to their start date

Responsibilities

• Drive transformational fundraising and strategic partnerships to enhance iMentor’s impact, visibility, and financial resources
• Strengthen iMentor’s overall fundraising capacity and position the organization for long-term success
• Implement a bold, multi-year fundraising and partnership strategy, focused on securing seven and eight figure principal gifts and growing iMentor’s institutional and individual giving portfolio
• Conceive of and execute signature fundraising campaigns, leveraging research, data, and industry insights to unlock new revenue streams
• Oversee and optimize iMentor’s institutional giving strategy, identifying opportunities for deeper engagement and multi-year commitments that unlock the full impact of 360 degree impact partnerships
• Leverage strategic communications and thought leadership to position iMentor as a top philanthropic investment opportunity
• Lead the identification, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship of top-tier institutional and individual funders, building the relationships needed to achieve long-term financial sustainability
• Build and expand a pipeline of high-impact funding opportunities, working closely with internal teams to align fundraising priorities with programmatic growth
• Partner with the Chief Executive Officer, Chief External Officer, and Board leadership to develop customized engagement strategies and directly solicit principal gifts
• Manage the Institutional Giving Team; currently a team of six, including two direct reports, fostering professional growth and ensuring high performance
• Actively engage with iMentor’s Senior Leadership Team, ensuring that fundraising strategies align with broader organizational goals

Benefits

• Salary $190-205K, commensurate with experience
• Up to 100% employer funded comprehensive medical and dental coverage
• 18 days paid annual vacation (increasing annually to 21, 23, 25), 13 paid holidays + your birthday + one floating holiday, iMentor closed between Christmas and New Year’s Day, plus 6-7 sick days annually
• 401K match up to 4%
• Flexible Home/Office/School working arrangement
• Pre-tax commuter benefits
• Dependent care and health care flexible spending plans
• 1 hour of wellness time off per week for wellness activities of your choosing
• Flexible personnel wellness budget for reimbursements or marketplace purchases
• Every staff member is eligible for organization-sponsored professional development annually
• 9 weeks of paid parental leave
• $190,000 - $205,000 a year