Development Communications Manager Jobs in Connecticut

About the Opportunity

Kids In Crisis is seeking a strategic, collaborative, and mission-driven Marketing & Communications Manager to lead marketing and communications that reach the people at the center of our mission: the donors and volunteers who make our work possible, and the kids and families who depend on it. This role builds and strengthens those relationships, with fundraising at the heart of the work, while also helping families and the partners who refer them find and trust our programs. Working closely with agency leadership and the Development team, the Manager builds the awareness and engagement that support all of this.

Position Summary

The agency's fundraising communications are led by the Managing Director of Development and the Development team. This role supports that work by bringing creative ideas and turning the team's fundraising and awareness priorities into finished campaigns and materials. Working from the direction Development sets, the Manager develops creative concepts, writes and produces communications across print, digital, and social channels, manages the agency brand, and leads the agency's media relations, building relationships with reporters and pitching stories. The role also promotes our programs so the families who need them, and the partners who refer them, can find and access help. Rather than focusing on day-to-day graphic design, the Manager concentrates on ideas, writing, production, and seeing the final work through.

Primary Responsibilities

• Partner with the Development team to shape and carry out communications strategies for annual giving, major gifts, grants, donor stewardship, and fundraising events.
• Develop and carry out an annual marketing and communications plan built around the organization's fundraising goals.
• Develop creative concepts and produce the finished materials for the Annual Appeal, Annual Report, fundraising campaigns, and donor awareness efforts.
• Write and edit donor stories, appeals, newsletters, impact reports, speeches, press releases, and executive communications that encourage people to give.
• Build and maintain relationships with reporters, editors, and producers across local and regional media.
• Actively pitch stories and secure earned media coverage that raises the agency's profile and supports fundraising and awareness goals.
• Promote Kids In Crisis programs and services so the families who need them, and the schools, providers, and partners who refer them, know how to find and access help.
• Serve as steward of the Kids In Crisis brand, keeping messaging consistent and building trust with donors across all communications.
• Manage content strategy and editorial calendars for the website, email, and social media, aligned with the fundraising calendar and donor engagement priorities.
• Oversee website content, digital marketing, and email as ways to acquire, retain, and engage donors.
• Plan, produce, and promote webinars and virtual events that engage donors and share the impact of our programs.
• Analyze campaign performance against fundraising results such as donor acquisition, retention, appeal response, and revenue, and recommend improvements based on the data.
• Manage marketing budgets, calendars, vendors, and agency-wide communications projects.
• Lead adoption of AI tools and new technologies to work more efficiently and improve campaigns, while keeping human review of all content.
• Coordinate designers, photographers, videographers, and other creative vendors to produce campaigns and visual storytelling.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree in Marketing, Communications, Public Relations, Journalism, or a related field.
• Five or more years of marketing and communications experience, ideally including fundraising or nonprofit development communications.
• Experience leading fundraising and donor communications.
• Experience in media relations, including building relationships with reporters and pitching stories that earn coverage.
• Strong writing, editing, and storytelling skills.
• Experience with CRM and email marketing platforms such as Salsa Engage, EveryAction, Bloomerang, Blackbaud, Virtuous, Salesforce Nonprofit Cloud, or similar.
• Experience managing websites (WordPress or comparable CMS), digital marketing, and social media strategy.
• Strong understanding of marketing analytics and reporting, with the ability to tie communications to fundraising results.
• Excellent project management, organizational, and interpersonal skills.
• Experience managing creative vendors and working with designers, photographers, and videographers.
• Comfort using AI marketing tools such as ChatGPT, Microsoft Copilot, Adobe Firefly, or similar.

A Typical Week Might Include...

• Planning messaging for an upcoming fundraising appeal across several channels.
• Working with Development to coordinate a donor stewardship event and its communications.
• Interviewing program staff to develop a story for an appeal or report.
• Pitching a story to a local reporter and following up to secure coverage.
• Reviewing creative concepts with the team and providing feedback and edits.
• Writing a press release, an executive speech, and part of the Annual Report.
• Analyzing email and digital campaign performance against fundraising goals.
• Updating website content priorities and communications calendars around the giving calendar.
• Using AI to speed up planning, brainstorming, research, and first drafts, with human review.

The Ideal Candidate

• A strategic marketer who understands how communications support fundraising.
• A strong writer and storyteller.
• A collaborative leader who works well with Development and across departments.
• Organized, adaptable, and guided by data.
• Passionate about improving the lives of children and families.

Why Join Kids In Crisis?

This role shapes the voice and visibility of one of Connecticut's leading child and family service organizations, and your work will directly support the mission. The campaigns you lead, the stories you tell, and the donors you bring in help make sure children, teens, and families have access to emergency shelter, crisis intervention, counseling, and prevention services when they need them most.