Director of Fundraising Events

Are you looking to make a difference in the world?

Looking to take the next step in your career with an impactful organization helping people?

Join AFTD, the leading organization dedicated to ending the most common dementia under 60, known as FTD. We help families affected today, and drive research to bring hope for the future. Our work to bring about a world without FTD is only missing your passion and your expertise. AFTD is growing rapidly, with a greater ability to offer help for those affected than ever before. Join us today to make a difference for families affected by FTD, across the United States and beyond. 

Job Purpose   

The Director of Fundraising Events is responsible for developing and managing fundraising strategies and campaigns, seeking out new avenues for fundraising, and building relationships with donors and volunteers. They implement donor stewardship programs to identify, develop, retain, and nurture a portfolio of individual and institutional donors, and partner with volunteer leadership to create and grow volunteer committees to support the revenue goals. They efficiently and proactively generate year-over-year net revenue growth, creating volunteer and donor strategic engagement opportunities.

Job Summary

The Director of Fundraising Events is responsible for leading, planning, and executing a comprehensive portfolio of fundraising events designed to advance the mission of AFTD and achieve ambitious revenue goals. This leader oversees strategy, sponsorships, and participant engagement for major fundraising events, ensuring a high-quality experience that drives donor acquisition, retention, and growth. They work in collaboration with the Director of Meetings & Conferences to execute the logistics. The Director of Fundraising Events manages a team of staff and volunteers and works closely with senior leadership to align fundraising events with the organization’s overall development strategy.

FUNCTIONAL RESPONSIBILITIES

Essential Job Functions

Strategic Leadership:

• Develop and execute a multi-year fundraising events strategy aligned with organizational revenue goals.
• Set annual event revenue targets and track performance against goals.
• Evaluate event performance, donor acquisition, and ROI to continuously improve outcomes.

Event Planning & Execution:

• Lead planning and execution of all major fundraising events (e.g., gala, peer-to-peer, golf tournaments).
• Ensure events deliver financial return, meaningful mission engagement for participants, and opportunities to partner with volunteer leadership.
• Maintain strong project management systems to ensure events are executed on time and within budget.
• Annually assessing each campaign to ensure maximal revenue attainment and volunteer engagement.

Revenue Generation:

• Create and grow a portfolio of Special Event and Grassroots Events activities that meet or exceed annual revenue targets and achieve predictable and reliable revenue growth.
• Develop and execute the delivery of a new nationwide Walk campaign. The program will include multiple revenue streams and create opportunities for volunteer leadership engagement to create a community-based partnership in the delivery of the Walk campaign. Collaborate with the Volunteer, Mar/Comm and Development Departments on design and execution
• Develop and execute sponsorship strategies to secure corporate and community partners in partnership with the Corporate and Foundation Relations Manager.
• Work with the development team to integrate event participants into broader fundraising programs (major gifts, annual giving, planned giving).
• Cultivate donor, sponsor, and volunteer relationships to maximize revenue and long-term engagement.
• Create and manage event budgets, ensuring cost efficiency and strong ROI.

Team Leadership:

• Supervise, mentor, and evaluate a team of event staff, interns, and volunteers.
• Recruit and manage volunteer leadership committees to drive event success.
• Foster a culture of collaboration, accountability, and innovation.

Marketing & Communications:

• Partner and leverage SME of the marketing and communications teams to ensure consistent branding, messaging, and promotion of events.
• Partners with marketing and communications team to create fundraising event materials, digital campaigns, and fundraising toolkits for participants.
• Serve as spokesperson for fundraising events, representing the organization at public and donor-facing functions.
• Creates collaborative coordination between Mar/Comm and Development staff to plan events and communications to increase donor engagement.
• Uses technology to manage and monitor donor information and produce data-driven measurement and reporting of progress of fundraising goals. Using that data for decisions utilizing both internal and external metrics to support the development of annual growth strategies focused on supporting year-over-year growth.

 Other Job Functions

• Utilize Moves Management to steward major and mega donor relationships using opportunities created by AFTD fundraising events.
• As a member of AFTD’s Senior Team, contributes expert knowledge in support of quality decisions regarding internal planning and strategic direction.
• Conscientiously follows company policies and practices and takes care of organizational property.
• Travels for targeted local and national donor visits and organizational meetings and events as needed.
• Other special projects and duties as assigned.

SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITIES

• This position has supervisory responsibilities for the following roles:
  • Events Manager

Education

• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent experience required, relevant advanced degree or equivalent experience preferred.

Experience

• 5+ years of experience in Non-Profit special events, fundraising or related roles
• 5+ years of experience managing a team that successfully achieves both financial and strategic goals
• Proven track record in executing successful large-scale fundraising events

Special Knowledge/Skills

• Strong project management and organizational leadership skills
• Experience in executing a walk within the context of a national campaign or other national signature event
• Experience in recruiting, training, and growing volunteer leadership to support departmental goals. 
• Ability to motivate and inspire diverse groups of people
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills
• Budget management and cost control
• Proficient in Microsoft Office Suite, particularly Word, Excel, and PowerPoint
• Experience with Salesforce a plus

Travel

• Travel throughout the continental US is crucial to this position, including night and weekend travel (approximately 10-20%/year).

ADDITIONAL INFORMATION

Interview Process

• Submit an application, including cover letter and resume
• Phone screen with a member of AFTD’s HR department
• Interview with Hiring Manager
• Team interview with department staff
• Offer made to final candidate (contingent on reference and background checks)
• Additional interviews or assessments may be required depending on position             

AFTD Awards

• Platinum Seal of Transparency for 2025 from GuideStar, an organization that collects and publishes IRS-verified data about charitable organizations, issuing Seals of Transparency based on how much information each charity provides
• 4-star rating on Charity Navigator, an organization that assesses nonprofits’ organizational effectiveness through IRS filings and metrics such as, Impact & Results, Accountability & Finance, Culture & Community, and Leadership & Adaptability

Benefits and Perks

AFTD offers a competitive salary and is committed to providing a comprehensive benefits package to meet the needs of our employees and their families, including:

• Medical, Dental and Vision insurance for eligible employees regularly working 30 hours or more per week – presently AFTD covers 100% of employee individual medical coverage
• Employer paid Basic Life Insurance/AD&D
• Employer paid short-term and long-term disability insurance
• Identity Protection
• Voluntary Term Life/AD&D
• Hospital Indemnity, Accident, and Critical Illness insurance
• Pet discount program
• Employee Assistance Program
• SIMPLE IRA with company match
• Generous paid vacation and sick time
• 14 paid holidays
• 4 weeks paid parental leave
• A company culture that encourages work/life balance
• Ongoing team building opportunities, including staff retreats and days of service
• Ongoing professional development training and opportunities
• Hybrid working environment, with the opportunity to work remotely up to 3 days per week
• Business casual dress code

AFTD is committed to creating a diverse environment and is proud to be an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, gender, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics, disability, age, or veteran status.  All of your information will be kept confidential according to EEO (Equal Employment Opportunity) guidelines. 

AFTD participates in E-Verify. Learn more about applicant rights under Federal Employment Laws.