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Operation Food Search · 1 month ago

Director of Grants Development

St Louis,MO,US

Full-time

Onsite

Director/Executive

10+ years exp

Operation Food Search is a hunger relief organization founded in 1981 that provides food and nutrition education to reduce food insecurity. They are seeking a Director of Grants to manage a $3 million+ grant portfolio, ensuring compliance and strategic leadership in grant development and management.

Food and Beverage

Responsibilities

Lead the Grants Cycle

Collaborating with staff to develop grant revenue projections annually during budget planning, tracking, researching, writing and submitting grant applications and reports, managing stewardship, creating grant budgets, monitoring grant compliance, outcomes, and deliverables, and submitting reports and reimbursement requests

Working across OFS departments, provide strategic leadership to identify, cultivate, and develop grant relationships in support of OFS program priorities:

Conduct research to vet the applicability of new funding opportunities to OFS programs and outreach to funding agency staff to discuss funding program interests

Lead development of grant funding strategies for complex projects

Develop engagement strategies to grow organization revenue from a grant portfolio of corporate, foundation, and government donors through participation in program meetings and periodic individual program strategy meetings

Annually, this includes mid-summer establishment of grant funding priorities among leadership/program staff prior to completion of the coming year program budgets, which supports development of an overall OFS grant funding strategy with proposal and report timelines and prospect cultivation targets

Collaborate with development staff to engage new and existing corporate, foundation, and institutional partners to enhance relationships through grants, events sponsorships, volunteer opportunities, and in-kind donations

Gather information and support leadership in making recommendations for improving grantmaking processes, including identifying issues and implementing approved changes

Manage the lifecycle of funding proposals and reports, ensuring timely submissions at each step

Manage production and/or assembly of associated documents, including preparation of grant budgets, outcome forms, donor lists, receipts, data collection, etc

Work with Grants Specialist to track grants, reports, contracts, and awards in grants software, create a grant response database, and assist in keeping it timely and relevant

Communicate details of grant awards with associated program, finance, and development staff toward appropriate and timely funds expenditure and reporting

Coordinate with program staff periodically about upcoming proposals/reports; Chief Financial Officer about budget development/actual expenses; and Data Strategy Manager to compile program-related goals and actual outcomes data

Partner cross-functionally with Finance, Operations, and Program team members to ensure compliance with all applicable regulations, policies, and procedures governing grants and sponsored programs, including federal and state guidelines, and oversee the timely submission of required reports, documentation, and reimbursement requests

Supports OFS in government grant audits

Partner with the Chief Development Officer, senior management, and communications staff to lead corporate, foundation, and government stewardship, including cultivation meetings, social/media recognition, verbiage for acknowledgement letters, and mid-year follow up as appropriate to provide additional stewardship touches

Hire, train, motivate, supervise, and complete annual performance reviews for the Grant Specialist

Qualification

Grant writing expertiseGrants managementStrategic planningFinancial acumenCustomer relationship managementSt. Louis foundationsMS Office proficiencyInterpersonal skillsDetail-orientedOrganizational skillsClear writing skillsNegotiation skills

Required

A bachelor's degree is required

A minimum of 10 years of experience with increasing responsibilities in research, writing, and grants management for non-profit organizations

Strategic thinking with the ability to plan, prioritize, and manage multiple projects and deadlines independently with purpose and accuracy under tight deadlines

Clear, precise, and compelling writing skills

Demonstrated ability to write successful grant proposals and develop budgets

Strong interpersonal skills with the ability to build rapport, communicate persuasively, and negotiate effectively with diverse stakeholders

Detail-oriented, organized, deadline-driven

Strong knowledge of St. Louis area foundations and corporations

Experience in using a customer relationship management (CRM) system is required

Strong computer skills with MS Office

Occasional travel required for meetings, events, and conferences

Flexibility in working hours for occasional special events after-hours or weekend activities

Willingness to volunteer for other OFS duties that don't fall under regular job duties