Director of Advancement

Director of Advancement

Outside The Lens | San Diego, CA

Full-time | $85,000–$93,600 annually

Help build the relationships and resources that power youth creativity.

Outside The Lens (OTL) is a San Diego-based nonprofit that creates opportunities for young people to use photography, filmmaking, and digital media to tell their stories, explore their creativity, and engage with the world around them.

Through mentorship and hands-on learning, we give young people the tools, skills, space, and support to build confidence, develop their creative practice, and make their voices heard.

We’re looking for a Director of Advancement to help us grow what’s possible. This is a senior leadership role for someone who knows how to turn relationships into lasting philanthropic support—and compelling stories into deeper engagement with a mission.

You’ll lead OTL’s contributed-revenue strategy across individual giving, foundations, corporations, government sources, and sponsorships. You’ll personally cultivate and steward key donors and funders, build a strong pipeline for future growth, and partner closely with our Executive Director, leadership team, and Board to expand OTL’s community of supporters and champions.

You’ll also lead our communications strategy, ensuring that OTL’s storytelling, messaging, brand, and donor communications work together to strengthen relationships, increase visibility, and inspire investment in our mission. This role offers significant ownership and the opportunity to help shape OTL’s next chapter.

What You’ll LeadGrow philanthropic support

• Own OTL’s annual and multi-year contributed-revenue strategy and fundraising goals.
• Cultivate, solicit, and steward individual donors and major-gift prospects.
• Lead fundraising across foundations, corporations, government sources, and sponsorships.
• Build and actively manage a strong pipeline of prospective donors and funders.
• Use fundraising data and forecasting to identify opportunities and guide strategy.
• Engage OTL leadership and Board members strategically to open doors and strengthen relationships.

Tell OTL’s story

• Lead OTL’s communications, messaging, and brand strategy in support of our mission and advancement goals.
• Strengthen our case for support by translating program impact and young people’s stories into compelling communications.
• Set priorities across digital, email, website, print, media, and donor communications.
• Identify the relationships, networks, events, media opportunities, and community spaces that can strengthen OTL’s visibility and reach.
• Partner with the Executive Director on external engagement, relationship strategy, messaging, and follow-through.

Build a strong advancement function

• Serve as OTL’s senior advancement leader and a member of the organizational leadership team.
• Supervise and coach a communications/design team member and part-time grants writer.
• Strengthen the systems behind the work, including CRM practices, fundraising calendars, reporting, workflows, and institutional knowledge.
• Partner with Programs and Finance on impact reporting, grant management, gift reconciliation, and revenue forecasting.
• Set priorities and move work forward independently while knowing when collaboration or executive involvement will create a stronger result.

What Success Looks Like

You’ll know you’re succeeding when OTL has a stronger, more sustainable advancement engine: contributed revenue is growing, relationships are deepening, opportunities are moving through a healthy pipeline, and our communications consistently reinforce why this work matters.

We’ll look for:

• Progress toward annual contributed-revenue goals and a strong pipeline for future growth.
• Increased donor acquisition, retention, renewal, upgrades, and major-gift cultivation.
• Strong institutional and corporate funding relationships.
• Reliable forecasting and consistent, on-time execution of proposals, reports, renewals, and stewardship.
• Clear, focused communications that connect OTL’s impact with the audiences who can help advance it.
• Strong systems and an accountable team that make excellent execution repeatable—not dependent on one person’s memory.

Your First 90 Days

Your first months will be about learning, listening, and identifying the highest-impact opportunities.

You’ll get to know OTL’s programs, people, supporters, and funding model; assess the existing advancement pipeline and systems; build relationships across the organization; and develop a focused advancement plan with clear priorities and next steps.

You’ll also establish a strong partnership with the Executive Director around donor strategy, external engagement, messaging, and relationship development.

Who We’re Looking For

You may be a strong fit if you’re a relationship-builder who also loves making things happen.

You can think strategically, but you don’t stop at strategy. You create the plan, establish priorities, make decisions, follow through, and help others do the same. You’re comfortable owning results while collaborating closely with colleagues, leadership, Board members, donors, funders, and community partners.

You bring:

• Approximately 4+ years of progressively responsible experience in nonprofit advancement, development, philanthropy, or a related field, including meaningful responsibility for fundraising results.
• Demonstrated success cultivating, soliciting, securing, and stewarding philanthropic support.
• Experience developing fundraising strategies across multiple revenue sources.
• Confidence building donor and funder relationships independently and knowing when executive involvement can strengthen an opportunity.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to turn organizational impact into a compelling case for support.
• Strong organizational and project-management skills and a track record of following through on commitments.
• Demonstrated experience developing and executing organizational communications, including areas such as content strategy, email/newsletters, digital content, storytelling, brand communications, or creative direction.
• Sound judgment, initiative, curiosity, discretion, and a collaborative approach to leadership.
• A genuine connection to OTL’s mission and belief in the power of youth voice, media arts, and storytelling.

Experience with major gifts, institutional fundraising, corporate partnerships, public funding, communications, or arts and youth-serving organizations is especially valuable.

And if you don’t check every box? We still encourage you to consider applying. We care deeply about demonstrated ability, potential, and alignment with our mission—not simply whether your experience follows one particular path.

Why Outside The Lens?

This is an opportunity to develop a giving program and culture of philanthropy—internally and externally. You’ll help shape a growing advancement function at an important moment for Outside The Lens, strengthening the relationships, systems, and communications that will support our next chapter.

You’ll have meaningful influence over how OTL grows its community of supporters and communicates its impact, while helping ensure that the voices, creativity, and experiences of young people remain at the center of our story.

If you’re energized by building relationships, creating opportunities, telling meaningful stories, and turning belief in a mission into sustained philanthropic support, we’d love to hear from you.

Compensation & Benefits

The salary range for this full-time Director-level position is $85,000–$93,600 annually, commensurate with relevant experience and qualifications.

Benefits include:

• Medical insurance, with 100% of the employee base plan paid by OTL
• Dental and vision insurance, with 50% of employee coverage paid by OTL
• 403(b) retirement plan
• 10 days of PTO annually for 0–5 years of service, with increased accrual based on tenure
• Paid sick leave
• 15 paid holidays
• Flexible work arrangements, as appropriate to the position
• Professional development opportunities

Ready to Apply?

Please submit a resume and cover letter describing your interest in Outside The Lens and how your experience prepares you to lead our advancement and communications efforts. Send to hr@outsidethelens.org

Outside The Lens is an equal opportunity employer committed to creating a diverse, inclusive, and equitable workplace. We do not discriminate on the basis of any characteristic protected by applicable federal, state, or local law.