Development Writer/Editor

The Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP) is a nonpartisan research and policy institute that advances federal and state policies to help build a nation where everyone — regardless of income, race, ethnicity, sexual orientation, gender identity, ZIP code, immigration status, or disability status — has the resources they need to thrive and share in the nation’s prosperity.

CBPP combines rigorous research and analysis, strategic communications, and effective advocacy to shape debates, affect policy, and inform effective implementation both nationally and in states. It works closely with a broad set of national, state, and community organizations to design and advance policies that promote economic justice; improve health; broaden opportunity in areas like housing, health care, employment, and education; and lower structural barriers for people of color and others in communities that continue to face systemic barriers to opportunity. CBPP promotes policies that will build a more equitable nation and fair tax policies that can support these gains over the long term. CBPP also shows the harmful impacts of policies and proposals that would deepen poverty, widen inequities, and worsen health outcomes.

CBPP seeks a full-time writer/editor to join its Development team. This position provides an exciting opportunity for an experienced fundraising professional who is a talented writer to join a team of skilled writers and help CBPP meet its fundraising goals.

The Development Writer/Editor will distill complex policy information and CBPP’s role in influencing policy decisions into clear and compelling letters of inquiry, proposals, reports, donor stewardship communications, and other materials that help a range of stakeholders understand CBPP’s work and drive philanthropic support for the organization.

The Development Writer/Editor will join a nine-person development team, including two other writers, and work closely with senior leaders, program directors, and policy analysts across the organization to understand and write clearly and persuasively about CBPP’s current and future work across a range of policy areas.

Responsibilities:

• Draft copy that distills complex policy information into clear and compelling language for letters of inquiry, proposals, reports, collateral, donor stewardship communications, and other materials that help current and prospective philanthropic partners understand CBPP’s work and impact.
• Edit existing copy and documents drafted by others, often under tight deadlines, and support the Development team with writing, editing, and related projects that further the organization’s fundraising, cultivation, and stewardship goals.
• Work closely with senior leaders, program directors, and policy analysts across CBPP to understand and write clearly and persuasively about policies that impact people with low incomes, and about CBPP’s current and future work and impact with regard to those policies.
• Act as the Development team’s liaison to up to two of CBPP’s policy teams, keeping up to date with those teams’ work, supporting their development needs, and working to foster a culture of philanthropy within those teams. Communicate relevant information back to the Development team in a timely manner.
• Develop an understanding of CBPP’s current funders and grants, perform prospect research to find new mission-aligned funders, and facilitate stewardship meetings with funders and prospects.
• Partner with Development colleagues and policy staff on funder stewardship strategies.
• Attend relevant meetings and read materials to stay up to date on CBPP’s current work and priorities, as well as the external political landscape, and develop a working knowledge of how CBPP’s federal- and state-level work across policy areas furthers CBPP’s overall vision.
• Perform other job-related duties within the role’s scope as assigned to support the team’s goals.

Qualifications:

• A bachelor’s degree and at least five years of experience in a development, policy, research, academic, or other nonprofit organization; a related graduate degree may be substituted for two years of work experience.
• Basic understanding of the philanthropic landscape and fundraising strategies.
• Exceptional writing, editing, and proofreading skills and attention to detail. A competitive candidate will have experience with grant writing, policy writing, or both.
• Outstanding professionalism, communication, and interpersonal skills, including diplomacy and tact.
• Commitment to achieving economic, health, and racial justice for people with low incomes so they can meet their basic needs, and a desire to deepen knowledge of how federal, state, and local policies can address institutional and structural racism and economic segregation.
• Commitment to fostering equity, inclusion, and belonging within the organization and across its policy, advocacy, and fundraising efforts.
• Ability to understand complex information and distill it into clear, compelling language for a general audience.
• Familiarity with AP style and ability to adapt to CBPP’s style guide.
• Ability to gracefully accept and respond to edits and other feedback, including flexibility to rework content as needed through multiple drafts, gleaning lessons and applying them to future work.
• Strong project management skills, including the ability to work independently and collaboratively, stay on top of multiple projects, anticipate obstacles, and meet strict deadlines; experience managing complex projects involving people at all levels of an organization.
• Strong research and interview skills, as well as persistence and a willingness to manage up and across and to ask informed questions to acquire needed information and data.
• The candidate should be inquisitive, eager to learn, and willing to develop a level of expertise about CBPP’s policy areas in general and one to two specific areas as assigned.

This position is based in the Washington D.C. office. CBPP is operating on a hybrid work schedule of two in-office days (Tuesday and Wednesday) per week as well as the first Thursday of each month in our Washington, D.C. office.

This position reports to the Deputy Director of Development.

Terms of Employment: Full-time; exempt.

Bargaining Unit Status: This is a bargaining unit position.

Compensation: Salary for this position ranges from $70,000 to $85,000 per year. Pay is based on a number of factors including job-related knowledge, skills, and experience and internal pay equity. Excellent benefits (including health insurance, vision and dental coverage, life and long-term disability insurance, retirement, MERP, and DCAP), and generous vacation, sick leave, and holiday schedules.