Development Manager

Job Title: Development Manager

Know Theatre of Cincinnati seeks a Development Manager, who, working closely with the Producing Artistic Director and other Know Theatre of Cincinnati (KTC) staff, is responsible for planning and implementing KTC fundraising efforts.  This responsibility includes foundation, government, and corporate grant writing and identifying, cultivating, soliciting and stewarding new and existing donors. The successful candidate will be detail-oriented, technologically adept, and able to plan ahead to ensure deadlines are met in a timely fashion. They will be self-motivated and will communicate well with staff and grant providers.

This is a full time, overtime exempt, salaried position with a starting annual salary of $42,500. The Development Manager is eligible for benefits: medical, vision, dental (KTC will cover 90% of employee premiums). Each Know Theatre employee is accorded 2 weeks of vacation per fiscal year, along with company-wide holidays, and 5 personal days.

Primary Duties as Development Manager:

Work with the leadership team to create goals and strategies for individual and institutional giving, using sales and spending cycles to guide fundraising decisions.  There are 4 primary areas: CRM, Individual Giving, Grant Management, and Fundraising Events.

CRM

• Serves as the primary CRM administrator and subject matter expert for the KTC’s database. Manages the database to maintain accurate and comprehensive data.
• Ongoing data mining of both the CRM and ticketing databases for donor identification and cultivation purposes.
• Implement and manage the timely acknowledgement process of all gifts.

Individual Giving

• With the Producing Artistic Director, identify key metrics for identification, cultivation, personal interactions and gift asks.

• Develop and articulate clear annual strategies for moving prospects, patrons and donors along a cultivation and solicitation path toward major gifts.
• Working closely with the Marketing Manager, design and implement physical and digital fundraising campaigns, making use of social media platforms as well.
• Develop and implement a stewardship plan for all donors.

Grant Management

• Maintain an awareness of trends in foundation and government giving to arts

organizations nationwide.

• Maintain the annual grant calendar and act as the primary contact for all institutional funding concerns.
• Work with relevant staff to develop proposal language for new and existing programs; articulate objectives and outcomes for those programs; establish evaluation methodology and program-related data to be measured and create project budgets for grant purposes.
• Generate contributed revenue for the theatre through timely submission of well-written, research and supported grant proposals.
• Foster relationships with funders and other key partners on a local, state and national level.
• Complete letters of inquiry, applications and reports for grants as well as schedule site visits as required.
• Research new grant opportunities from all institutional funders including foundations, government entities, and corporations.
• Support cross-departmental financial reconciliations and final reports for grants.

Event Management

• With KTC Board and staff, develop an annual event plan for the purpose of fundraising, cultivation, stewardship

• With full support of the Board and Development Committee, be the staff point person for all fundraising events.

Other Duties

• Participate in the season selection process.
• Assist with other departmental administrative tasks as needed
• Serve as House Manager, Box Officer, Technician, and/or Bartender as needed and available.
• Along with all staff, participate in facilities cleanup and maintenance as needed.
• Encouraged to attend any internal or external events as available
• Answers phones during regular office hours when available and assists in returning voicemails.

Qualifications: MA/MBA Arts Administration or BA/BS in English, Journalism, Communications, Marketing. Experience grant writing and/or fundraising, preferably in the nonprofit arts sector. Excellent writing and research skills, with an emphasis on crafting engaging, effective proposals and timely reports for institutional funders. Outstanding communication skills, including being comfortable dealing with grantors and donors. Experience with CRM systems, Salesforce preferred. Strong organizational skills required. Familiarity with the local arts community and knowledge of local, regional, and national philanthropic landscape, including an understanding of current trends and challenges.

To apply: Interested candidates are invited to submit their cover letter and résumé to bridget@knowtheatre.com with “Development, [Name]” in the subject line.

 

About the Know Theatre of Cincinnati:

Mission. 

The Know showcases unexpected voices, new works, and plays that embrace the inherent theatricality of the live experience. Know Theatre seeks to be a place where artists and audiences feel welcome to take artistic risks, creating work that is cutting edge and accessible. 

Values 

Community 

The Know is the synthesis of a community of artists and audience rooted in Cincinnati. We have a commitment to fostering the voices of artists within our own city. We have a commitment to the vibrancy of our changing neighborhood, ensuring that no one is overlooked. We have a commitment to building understanding through connection.

Collaboration 

Collaboration is more than simply the work of creating a production. We thrive on partnering with a diverse collection of artists, organizations, and professionals in all aspects of our company. Our theatre belongs to Cincinnati, our work is built in collaboration with the city and our audiences.

Vision 

We envision a theatre that elevates underserved voices; has a commitment to gender parity, diversity and inclusion in the playwrights it produces and artists it employs; that creates a welcoming space in which to wrestle with challenging ideas; that is accessible for everyone regardless of economic circumstances; and that pays artists a fair wage for the work that they create.

History 

The Know Theatre of Cincinnati was formed in the summer of 1997 by a cohort of Xavier University grads to make theatre more accessible to the community. They planned a bookstore tour featuring sketches and short plays by local writers.

In 1999, the Know Theatre Tribe took up its first residence in Gabriel’s Corner, a community performance space in an Over-the-Rhine church basement, Salem United Church of Christ, and produced a full season of plays. After a series of public protests of their production of Corpus Christi, in the fall of 2005, David C. Herriman, a friend and patron of Know Theatre, offered to purchase the building at 1120 Jackson Street for the company.

The purchase closed in March 2006. After 43 days in which seven staffers worked around the clock to renovate the space and install equipment, the space opened with In the Blood by Suzan Lori Parks.

In 2007, Know Theatre expanded by merging with the four-year-old Cincinnati Fringe Festival.

 

Know Theatre is now among the region’s most dynamic small arts organizations, producing an award winning MainStage Season, the Cincinnati Fringe Festival, and a SecondStage season of works focused on local artists.

In 2024 the Leadership structure shifted to include a Producing Artistic Director, Bridget Leak, and Managing Director, Ri Moodie.

 

The Know is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We believe that no one should be discriminated against because of their differences, such as age, disability, ethnicity, gender, gender identity and expression, religion or sexual orientation. All employment decisions shall be made without regard to age, race, creed, color, religion, sex, national origin, ancestry, disability status, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, genetic information, marital status, citizenship status or any other basis as protected by federal, state, or local law.