Director, Proposal Development (Apply By: Monday, March 3, 2025)

About JFF

Jobs for the Future (JFF) drives transformation of the U.S. education and workforce systems to achieve economic advancement for all. Seeing that millions of people are unfairly shut out of quality jobs and the chance for a better life, our goal is to align education, workforce, and employment changemakers toward a shared North Star: By 2033, 75 million people facing systemic barriers to advancement will work in quality jobs.

To achieve that goal, we design solutions, scale best practices, influence policy and action, and invest in innovation. With a staff of more than 300 people across the country working remotely and in offices in Boston (headquarters), Washington, DC, and Oakland, California, we operate at the national, state, and local levels, forging deep partnerships with employers, investors, entrepreneurs, policymakers, and education and workforce development providers to break down barriers and reimagine what’s possible.

We’re on a path of ongoing growth and expanding impact. We have an operating budget of $105 million, and we’re funded by dozens of leading government agencies, foundations, and corporations. Learn more about JFF and join us as we build a future that works—for everyone.

Equal Employment Opportunity at JFF 

Inclusion, belonging, and well-being are core to JFF’s North Star and mission, and we seek to invest in and learn from those who represent the communities we serve as it is important to the success of our work and the engagement of our staff members. We aim to cultivate a culture that centers the overall care, well-being, and success of the employee through flexible work hours, balanced workloads, professional development, and career advancement opportunities for all.

JFF is a fair chance employer and in alignment to our North Star, we strongly encourage individuals whose highest level of education attained is less than a 4-year degree; People of Color; and people with records to apply to our open roles.

About the Position

JFF has experienced a period of unprecedented growth in revenue, programming, and funding pursuit over the last 3-4 years. As such, the Development Team is expanding, both in number and function, not only to align with this growth, but also to meet significant needs for more flexible resources to support organizational capacity and innovation. One of the main elements that will drive the success of JFF’s overall fundraising efforts is the introduction of several new positions, including the Director, Proposal Development role.

Reporting to the Associate Vice President, Development, the Director, Proposal Development will serve as a critical strategic partner and point of coordination for all things proposal development. They will collaborate closely with colleagues on the Development Team and others across JFF who support enterprise-wide fundraising. The Director, Proposal Development will leverage their expertise in six and seven figure proposals to make meaningful impact at JFF.

This new position presents an exciting opportunity for a creative, highly organized individual, ideally with programmatic experience in education/workforce development and understanding of the earn and learn ecosystem, to engage with colleagues across JFF to facilitate proposal development for our growing, national nonprofit organization. As a new role at JFF, the Director, Proposal Development will have the chance to impact JFF’s fundraising aspirations, leading and supporting development of single Business Unit, multi-unit, and enterprise-wide funding proposals to private foundations and corporate funders in support of JFF’s mission and goals.

What You'll Do 

Deliver impactful results through effective proposal development, project management and relationship building

• Lead and support on assigned proposal processes, including the writing, editing, submission, and oversight of all proposal documentation and compliance with submission requirements, ensuring high-quality proposals
• Collaborate closely with Business Unit leaders on proposal design and development and leverage your field knowledge and expertise to help shape narratives that compellingly present JFF’s approach and impact, and that align with funder priorities
• Manage proposal processes in response to funder requests or competitive RFPs from project kickoff through submission
• Monitor proposal outcomes to identify effective strategies and to improve JFF’s proposal development process
• Identify opportunities to improve processes and systems needed to effectively manage the proposal life cycle
• Implement best practices in proposal writing and development and build the capacity of colleagues across the organization as needed
• Contribute to the Development Team’s boilerplate library with pertinent information from proposal submissions
• Support relationships with prospects and funders throughout the proposal development process as well as support the ongoing identification of new grant and contract opportunities
• Build and maintain close working relationships with Business Unit leaders, Business Partners, and others, for the purposes of developing high quality proposals 
• Identify, convene, and manage internal proposal teams comprised of Program, Finance, Development Team staff members, and others, to ensure appropriate engagement and collaboration in the development of high-quality, compelling submissions

Who You Are

• You bring a depth of experience leading and developing concepts and proposals to private and public funders in collaboration with project teams and subject matter experts, ideally within the workforce development and education ecosystem (New hires at the Director II level at JFF typically bring 12+ years of experience, through a combination of full time, part time, internship, and/or freelance positions)
• You have experience working on six- and seven-figure corporate and foundation proposals that have led to secured grants
• You prioritize professional development and other learning opportunities to stay current with advances in the field and to share relevant trends to inform your team’s work
• You can build new tools and systems, identify performance gaps, and implement improvement initiatives to increase effectiveness, innovation, and quality of proposal development
• You have excellent, audience-centered written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to synthesize and communicate complex issues to external audiences
• You have superb skills in both developing original content and editing others’ writing, with an outstanding attention to detail
• You are a strategic, creative, and critical thinker; You can develop, recognize, and support ideas and strategies to advance team or project goals
• You have demonstrated strong ability to manage up and laterally, work in teams, and build effective and collaborative work cultures, while making substantive contributions to the work and meeting specified performance goals and outcomes
• You possess high energy and passion for JFF’s mission and North Star, and the ability to apply JFF’s core values to all areas of your work
• You are energized by stewarding JFF’s inclusion, belonging and well-being values and practices within your day-to-day work
• You value building positive and collaborative relationships with others, including people whose identities and backgrounds differ from your own

What We Offer 

At JFF, we’re fueled by the desire to create a world where everyone has equal opportunity for economic advancement. Our team works hard to push the boundaries of what is possible, and in return, we provide a gratifying work experience, competitive salaries, and a comprehensive benefits program that includes flexibility and choice as core values in order to support people wherever they are in their lives and careers. 

JFF has offices in Boston, Oakland, and Washington, DC; employees are welcome to use JFF office space to work in-person or hybrid, or completely remote. To improve the employee experience and promote productivity while working remotely, JFF offers an annual home office stipend to all regular full-time and part-time employees. In addition, new employees receive office equipment as needed.

The hiring range for this role is $120,000 - $150,000 annually, in alignment to JFF’s Director II salary band and our compensation philosophy. Starting salaries for new hires will be determined based on a combination of the new hire’s relevant experience and market demands.

To Apply 

As part of your application, please include your resume and a thoughtful cover letter, addressed to Alex Hoffinger, Associate Vice President, Development, outlining how your skills and experience meet the qualifications of the position.

We are accepting applications through Monday, March 3, 2025, by 8pm ET. Applications submitted by that date will be reviewed, and candidates will receive candidacy updates by March 17, 2025.

At JFF, we’re also committed to accessibility and want to ensure that everyone, including people with disabilities, can fully access and engage with our application and hiring process. If you are unable to complete this application due to a disability and/or have specific access/accommodation needs in order to fully participate in our hiring process, please contact us at hiringaccommodations@jff.org.

Positions at JFF are not eligible for employer-visa sponsorship or open to F-1 student visa holders.