Grants Manager

Grants Manager

Kidango is an early learning nonprofit committed to setting every child on a path to thrive in kindergarten and in life. We believe that all children can reach their full potential if they and their families have access to the right opportunities and resources. As the largest child care provider in the San Francisco Bay Area, we provide thousands of children, especially those from low-income families, with safe, healthy, nurturing environments and relationships. Through our policy work, we aim to take our expertise beyond the children and families that we serve, and drive change in early childhood education at the local, state and federal levels. Our goal is to make sure all children have the social, emotional, and academic skills they need to learn, grow and realize their potential.

About The Role

The Grants Manager (GM) drives Kidango's resource development programs in several critical areas : grants, and earned income revenue lines. The GM is responsible for proactively identifying and pursuing funding sources, including the writing and timely submission of grant applications; managing post-funding reporting and audit requirements; and developing and executing plans for acquiring funding from government sources, private foundations, and other sources.

Under the general supervision of the director of development, the GM writes a wide range of grant proposals; tracks progress to meet reporting requirements; manages fundraising planning with internal and external collaborators to identify needs; gathers information and assembles project / program teams to assure grant submissions and reports are completed by their due dates. The GM is also a critical player in the planning and execution of annual fundraisers and special events and may be asked to participate in other communications and development activities.

The GM has responsibility for and demonstrates sound judgment in key areas of grant compliance and donor relations. They provide grant budgeting assistance to include modifications, spend-down monitoring, and allocation adjustments; complete donor research to identify prospective government, foundation, corporate, and other funding opportunities; and maintain comprehensive inventories of all grants submitted.

What You'll Be Doing

• Works collaboratively with the director of development to identify, develop, plan, and implement strategies for raising money.
• Fundraises and seeks opportunities to optimize and increase agency resources, and partners extensively with communications staff to design and launch campaigns.
• Supports the department director and other internal collaborators in the identification, management, and evaluation of earned income opportunities. Forms and leads committees to develop business plans, financial projections, and market assessments for earned income revenue lines.
• Plans and forecasts revenue. Develops detailed revenue / funding opportunity forecasts by program area, tracks opportunities in our CRM / development software (Salesforce), and regularly reports on progress.
• Proactively identifies and researches funding sources; evaluates opportunities in collaboration with program and senior staff; and aggressively seeks funding for existing and new Kidango programs from grants, government contracts, foundations, corporations, and other sources.
• Builds substantive relationships with a broad array of funders, and actively cultivates relationships with donors and external funders and collaborators to work towards / facilitate funding opportunities.
• Attends RFP and / or meetings for new grants, earned revenue, and funding opportunities.
• Accurately compiles, writes, and edits all grant applications exhibiting exceptional expository writing skills and a masterful command of grammar and spelling.
• Develops individual grant proposals in accordance with each grant-making organization's preferences and follows exactly each organization's guidelines.
• Prepares renewal grants as applicable with local, state, and federal government agencies; foundations; and corporations.
• Tracks existing and pending grants in Salesforce and other internal reporting systems.
• Manages scheduled and as-necessary audits, reviews, and progress / quarterly / annual reports required by a grant-making organization that has funded a project or program.
• Reviews the budget of a project or program for which funding is sought and makes recommendations to better present it to donors and funding organizations.
• Keeps in contact with donors and other funding organizations during their review of a submitted application or proposal to be available to supply additional supportive material or identify / facilitate conversations with subject matter experts.
• Remains current on critical challenges, issues, policy, and new thinking in the early care, education, and healthcare sectors that are relevant to achieving Kidango's mission.
• Detailed knowledge of grant application and audit process, including applicable laws.
• Proven skills and knowledge cultivating and soliciting major financial donations of $50,000 or more from individual, corporate, foundation, and government donors.
• Truly exceptional oral, written, and presentation communication skills with the ability to communicate effectively with people from a wide range of backgrounds.
• Sharp political acumen and an ability to understand the role of political dynamics in government funding decisions.
• Extremely strong detail-orientation and project / time management skills.
• Knowledge of research techniques, and grant / donor databases for prospecting potential funding sources and writing winning grant proposals.
• Ability to coordinate end-to-end the fundraising and grant writing process across Kidango departments.
• Ability to exercise sound judgment, work collaboratively with a large and complex team of internal and external collaborators, and work independently when needed.
• Skilled at social emotional relationships with staff, families, children, and the community.
• Works as a member of the agency team by promoting the mission and philosophy of the agency.
• Ability to work effectively with a diverse group of people.
• Provides excellent customer service to all staff, clients, and contacts of agency.
• Advocates on behalf of all children, families, and staff of agency.
• Maintains confidentiality of donors, children, families, and staff.
• Participates in activities that further professional growth of self and staff.
• Strong oral, written communication skills with the ability to communicate effectively with people from a wide range of backgrounds.
• Strong computer skills.
• All other duties as assigned by the Supervisor