Research And Development Manager Jobs in Phoenix, AZ

Job Title: Development Manager

Work hours: Full-time

Salary Range: $57,500–$80,500/year

FLSA Status: Exempt

About the Organization

Read Better Be Better is a nonprofit organization based in Phoenix, Arizona, founded in 2014 as a response to the state's literacy crisis. Our mission is to equip youth with the skills to read and lead. Our vision is a world in which empowered communities demand equitable access to foundational skills. Our values are simple – Be Excellent, Be Kind!

Job Summary

Read Better Be Better is seeking a highly organized, mission-driven Development Manager to support fundraising, grant management, funder communications, and Development operations.

This role is ideal for someone who enjoys creating structure, managing complex projects, tracking deadlines, improving systems, and moving important work forward across teams. The Development Manager will manage an assigned fundraising portfolio while also serving as a key operational lead for grants, funding pipelines, reporting workflows, and cross-functional coordination.

What You'll Do: Top Responsibilities

Manage an assigned portfolio of foundation, institutional, corporate, individual, multi-year, and other funding opportunities

Own and maintain the grants calendar and funding pipeline, ensuring deadlines, reporting requirements, renewal opportunities, assigned owners, and follow-up actions are accurately tracked

Coordinate grant and proposal workflows across the full grant lifecycle, including opportunity review, submission, compliance monitoring, reporting, stewardship, and renewal

Write, edit, and project-manage grant proposals, sponsorship requests, renewal materials, donor communications, funder reports, and other Development-related materials

Track portfolio performance, funding progress, proposal status, reporting deadlines, and revenue risks; prepare timely updates, summaries, and reports

Coordinate with Development team members, grant-writing support, and cross-functional partners to support shared fundraising priorities, deadlines, and funder outcomes

Research and identify prospective funding opportunities aligned with organizational priorities

What This Role Will Focus On

The Development Manager will help keep Development work organized, timely, and moving forward. This includes managing deadlines, maintaining funding pipeline visibility, coordinating information from internal teams, supporting donor and funder communications, improving Development systems, and ensuring grants, reports, renewals, and follow-up items are completed accurately and on time.

This role is both mission-centered and operations-heavy. The right candidate is deeply committed to literacy, education equity, and community impact, and enjoys the systems, tracking, writing, coordination, and follow-through that make fundraising work successful.

Key Qualifications

Required

Experience in nonprofit fundraising, grant writing, development operations, donor relations, project management, or a related field

Experience managing complex projects, workflows, deadlines, or cross-functional processes with strong ownership and follow-through

Experience writing, editing, coordinating, or supporting grants, proposals, reports, sponsorship requests, donor communications, or similar external-facing materials

Experience using CRM systems, donor databases, project trackers, spreadsheets, or similar tools to manage records, deadlines, and activity tracking

Strong written and verbal communication skills

Strong organization, process management, attention to detail, and follow-through skills

Ability to build and maintain professional relationships with donors, funders, partners, clients, volunteers, or other external stakeholders

Commitment to Read Better Be Better's mission, vision, values, and equity-driven culture

Valid Arizona driver's license, or ability to obtain prior to start

Valid IVP fingerprint clearance card, or ability to obtain prior to start, and successful completion of a Department of Child Safety Central Registry check

Preferred

Five or more years of experience in nonprofit development, fundraising, grant writing, or a related field

Experience managing a fundraising, grant, donor, sponsorship, sales, business development, or relationship-management portfolio

Experience using Salesforce

Experience with grant budgets, funder reporting, fundraising metrics, revenue tracking, or impact reporting

Experience in nonprofit, education, youth-serving, or community-based organizations

Work Environment & Schedule

Full-time position

In-person at Read Better Be Better's Phoenix office

Some work may take place at external events or community locations

Occasional evening or weekend work may be required for fundraising activities, events, deadlines, or organizational priorities

Benefits

Work-from-Home Fridays

Generous Paid-Time Off and Paid Holidays

Health, Dental, and Vision insurance with HSA plans available

Short-Term Disability, Accident Plan and Life Insurance

Professional Development

Casual Dress Code at the office

Sabbatical Benefit Policy

See the Full-Time Employee Benefits One-Page Summary

Apply Now

Apply online at:

https://readbetterbebetter.applicantpro.com/pages/JobOpportunities/

Application Process and Timeline

Applications will be reviewed on a rolling basis. Selected candidates will be invited to participate in a phone interview. Candidates moving forward may be asked to share existing work samples relevant to the role, such as grant proposals, funder reports, donor communications, project plans, trackers, workflow documents, campaign materials, or similar work products. Finalists will participate in an in-person interview at the Read Better Be Better office.

Please have an updated resume ready to upload. If you need assistance with the application, contact us at jobs@readbetterbebetter.org.

Be Excellent Be Kind

Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions of the job.Contact jobs@readbetterbebetter.org

Read Better Be Better is an Equal Opportunity Employer. We do not discriminate on the basis of race, religion, color, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, age, non-disqualifying physical or mental disability, national origin, veteran status or any other basis covered by appropriate law. All employment is decided on the basis of qualifications, merit, and business need. See the RBBB Equity, Diversity & Inclusion Statement on the website.