Chief Development Officer

Position Title: Chief Development Officer

Department: C-Suite

Reports to: CEO

Location: Remote or Hybrid (if NYC based)

Salary Range: $243K to 280K*

*New hires are typically brought into the organization between the minimum to midpoint of the salary range posted depending on qualifications, internal equity, and the budgeted amount for the role.

Vibrant Emotional Health’s groundbreaking solutions have delivered high-quality services and support when, where and how people need it for over 50 years. Through our state-of-the-art technology-enabled services, community wellness programs, and advocacy and education work, we are building a society in which emotional wellness can be a reality for everyone.

Formerly the Mental Health Association of New York City (MHA-NYC), Vibrant Emotional Health has been a trailblazer in emotional wellness for over 50 years. We deliver high-quality, technology-enabled services and community programs that meet people when, where, and how they need support. From operating the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline to pioneering innovative solutions in emotional health, we help over 3.5 million people each year, transforming lives and communities nationwide.
We are building a future where emotional wellness is a reality for everyone—through innovation, compassion, and equity.

We are seeking a visionary, mission-driven development leader to join our executive team and drive Vibrant’s fundraising strategy to new heights. As Chief Development Officer (CDO), you will lead an ambitious, integrated development program to secure and expand philanthropic and institutional support for Vibrant’s lifesaving programs and services.
This is a unique opportunity to shape the future of mental health by cultivating transformative partnerships, driving revenue growth, and aligning donor engagement with our mission to make emotional wellness a reality for all.
Duties/Responsibilities:

Strategic Leadership & Vision

• Serve as a principal advisor to the CEO and Board on philanthropy, growth opportunities, and trends in the sector.
• Define and execute a comprehensive national development strategy to achieve annual and multi-year fundraising goals.
• Integrate fundraising goals with Vibrant’s programmatic and strategic priorities.
• Lead and diversify all fundraising streams: major gifts, corporate, foundation, government, and digital.
• Cultivate and steward a portfolio of major donors and strategic partners.
• Drive proposal development, campaign design, and donor communications to deepen engagement.
• Lead and mentor a mission-driven, high-performing development team across all functions.
• Champion an inclusive, collaborative, and accountable culture aligned with Vibrant’s values.
• Build infrastructure and systems to support scalable fundraising growth.

Operational Excellence

• Promote data-driven fundraising through CRM and analytics tools (e.g., Salesforce).
• Manage budgets, performance metrics, and KPIs to ensure efficiency and impact.
• Uphold best practices and ethical standards in all fundraising activities.

Board & External Engagement

• Partner with Board members to advance philanthropic engagement and governance.
• Represent Vibrant externally with donors, funders, partners, and the public.
• Lead donor events, speaking engagements, and other high-visibility opportunities.

Required Skills/Abilities:

• 15+ years of progressively responsible experience in nonprofit fundraising, including 5–7 years in a senior leadership role.
• Demonstrated experience personally securing major gifts and managing a donor portfolio with annual revenue targets of $5M+, including leading significant fundraising campaigns.
• Proven success leading multi-year capital or comprehensive campaigns.
• Demonstrated experience building and scaling development teams and infrastructure.
• Deep knowledge across all fundraising domains: major gifts, corporate/foundation relations, stewardship, and advancement services.
• Experience working with CEOs and Boards to cultivate and close transformational gifts.
• Expertise leveraging CRM platforms, digital fundraising tools, and emerging engagement strategies.

Leadership & Vision

• Visionary, collaborative leader with a bias for action and a commitment to equity-centered fundraising.
• Exceptional communicator and relationship builder, able to influence at all levels.
• High emotional intelligence, professionalism, and discretion.
• Experience in mental health, healthcare, or social impact sectors is a plus.

Why Join Vibrant?

• Mission with Meaning: Your work will help transform lives and communities.
• Leadership Impact: Shape Vibrant’s national growth and sustainability.
• Collaborative Culture: Join a passionate, purpose-driven leadership team.
• Flexibility & Balance: Remote/hybrid options and a supportive environment.
• Competitive Compensation: Includes comprehensive benefits and retirement plans.

Ready to Make a Difference?
If you are an inspiring leader ready to build partnerships, grow our impact, and help make emotional wellness a reality for everyone, we want to hear from you.
Physical Requirements

• Must be able to remain in a stationary position for at least 50% of the time.
• Will involve attending events that take place outside of the company\’s main office, such as conferences, trade shows, or client meetings.
• Will frequently communicate over video calls with internal and external stakeholders as well as team members.
• Will constantly operate a computer and other office productivity machinery, such as a calculator, copy machine, and computer printer.

Excellent comprehensive benefits, including medical, dental, vision, supplemental income insurance, pre-tax transit/parking, pre-tax FSA for medical and dependent care, and 401K available. 4 weeks’ vacation, plum benefits, etc.

Studies have shown that women and people of color are less likely to apply for jobs unless they believe they are able to perform every task in the job description. We are most interested in finding the best candidate for the job, and that candidate may be one who comes from a less traditional background. Vibrant will consider any equivalent combination of knowledge, skills, education and experience to meet minimum qualifications. If you are interested in applying, we encourage you to think broadly about your background and skill set for the role.
Vibrant Emotional Health is an equal opportunity employer. Applicants are considered for positions without regard to veteran status, uniformed service member status, race, creed, color, religion, gender, gender identity, sex, sexual orientation, citizenship status, national origin, marital status, age, physical or mental disability, genetic information, caregiver status or any other category protected by applicable federal, state or local laws.
\”Please be aware that fictitious job openings, consulting engagements, solicitations, or employment offers may be circulated on the Internet in an attempt to obtain privileged information, or to induce you to pay a fee for services related to recruitment or training. Vibrant does NOT charge any application, processing, or training fee at any stage of the recruitment or hiring process. All genuine job openings will be posted on our careers page and all communications from the Vibrant recruiting team and/or hiring managers will be from an @vibrant.org email address\”

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