Project NICU has walked alongside more than 56,000 families by building support through genuine relationships, thoughtful partnerships, and a deeply personal commitment to the NICU community. The Development & Community Partnerships Manager will help strengthen the fundraising foundation that makes this work possible. This is a relationship-first role for an experienced, hands-on fundraiser who can manage grants, cultivate donors, and grow corporate sponsorship support. The position will begin with a focused portfolio that is achievable within 20-25 hours per week, with room to assume broader development leadership as Project NICU's capacity and revenue grow. The Manager will work closely with the Founder & President, who will remain actively involved in the organization's largest and most strategic relationships. Initial Areas of Focus Grants — manage the active grant calendar and pipeline, including research, writing, submission, reporting, and funder follow-up. Donor relationships — cultivate, solicit, thank, and steward individual donors, with particular attention to Giving Hope Circle members and renewal or upgrade opportunities. Corporate sponsorships — build and manage sponsor pipelines for Night for Babies, the Wishing Flower Walk, and other approved opportunities. Development systems — maintain accurate donor and prospect information in CRM and create a reliable view of fundraising activity and next steps. Core Responsibilities Grant Management Maintain the grant calendar, deadlines, requirements, and reporting obligations for current and prospective funders. Research aligned funding opportunities and prepare compelling grant applications and reports using Project NICU's approved impact data and stories. Coordinate with the Founder on funding priorities and any opportunity that would introduce new programmatic commitments. Support thoughtful stewardship of grant funders and maintain complete grant records in Monday.com and shared files. Individual Giving & Donor Stewardship Identify and cultivate prospective and current donors, including renewal and upgrade opportunities. Personally make appropriate donor asks and manage timely follow-up, in coordination with the Founder for larger or highly strategic gifts. Maintain a consistent stewardship cadence for Giving Hope Circle members, including appreciation, impact updates, recognition, and benefit fulfillment.

PROJECT NICU DEVELOPMENT & COMMUNITY PARTNERSHIPS MANAGER

Support focused fundraising campaigns such as year-end giving, Giving Tuesday, monthly giving, and donor renewal efforts as capacity allows. Corporate Sponsorships & Community Relationships Build, prioritize, and work a corporate sponsor prospect list for Project NICU's signature fundraising events. Develop sponsor outreach, proposals, cultivation plans, and follow-up for financial and in-kind support. Represent Project NICU at select community, corporate, and hospital-adjacent meetings and networking events. Coordinate new formal partnership opportunities with the Founder & President. Collaborate with event leads on sponsor benefits and fulfillment without owning event logistics, vendors, or day-of execution. CRM, Planning & Reporting Complete an initial audit and cleanup of Givebutter donor records, then maintain accurate donor, gift, relationship, and follow-up information. Track grant, donor, and sponsorship pipelines and provide concise progress updates to the Founder. Help shape a practical annual development calendar with clear priorities, revenue goals, and cultivation activity. Qualifications Demonstrated nonprofit fundraising experience, including personally cultivating relationships and making gift or sponsorship asks. Experience writing grants and completing funder reports. Strong written and verbal communication skills, with the confidence to represent an organization in donor, corporate, and community settings. Highly organized, self-directed, and able to manage multiple deadlines and relationship pipelines without close daily supervision. True collaborative approach to work, understanding that the staff and volunteer team are the engine of the organization Comfort using donor databases and tracking systems Genuine alignment with Project NICU's mission and the ability to engage with NICU family stories with sensitivity and confidentiality. Healthcare, family-support, corporate sponsorship, or event-fundraising experience is a plus. Room to Grow As Project NICU's fundraising program and organizational capacity expand, this position may grow to include broader ownership of annual giving strategy, donor acquisition and monthly giving, board fundraising activation, major gift planning, development communications, CRM optimization, and supervision of future development support. There is potential for the role to grow into a full-time development leadership position as organizational needs, performance, revenue, and available funding allow. Project NICU is committed to building a welcoming and inclusive team. Qualified applicants will receive consideration without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, age, veteran status, or any other status protected by applicable law.

Pay:

From $30.00 per hour Expected hours: 20.0 - 25.0 per week

Benefits:

Flexible schedule

Work Location:

Hybrid remote in Broadview Heights, OH 44147