Senior Director of Development

October 2026 | Manhattanville, NY
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About Columbia Global

Columbia Global advances Columbia University’s global engagement by connecting faculty, students, and partners across regions to address complex global challenges through research, education, dialogue, and action. Established as an integrated University-wide platform in 2022, Columbia Global brings together academic leadership, a global network of Centers across multiple regions at varying stages of operational development and strategic evolution, and impact-oriented initiatives including Columbia World Projects and affiliated academic platforms.

As Columbia Global continues to define and strengthen its long-term institutional and global impact, the organization is in a period of active evolution and strategic transformation. Columbia Global is deepening and strategically leveraging its global footprint, strengthening partnerships across the University, clarifying its long-term value to the institution, and advancing a sustainable and diversified revenue model across a complex and dynamic global platform. The Senior Director of Development will play a pivotal role in shaping and driving Columbia Global’s philanthropic vision during this consequential stage of organizational development. This is a rare opportunity to help build and institutionalize a development infrastructure that supports Columbia’s worldwide impact, engages a global community of supporters, and advances globally oriented research, social impact initiatives, faculty scholarship, and student experiential learning and academic engagement abroad.

For more information, please visit global.columbia.edu.

About The Position

The Senior Director of Development reports to the Executive Vice President of Columbia Global. The role receives operational guidance and accountability from the Chief Operating Officer and works in close coordination with the Vice President for University Development and Alumni Relations to ensure alignment with University-wide philanthropic priorities. In this capacity, the Senior Director leads the design and execution of a five-year sustainability and revenue diversification strategy across the portfolio. This reporting structure reflects the institution-wide importance of the role and positions the Senior Director to engage closely with senior University leadership, faculty, donors, and external partners in advancing Columbia Global’s philanthropic priorities and institutional visibility.

The role is responsible for expanding, diversifying, and stewarding philanthropic and partnership funding from individuals, foundations, corporations, bilateral and multilateral donors, and government sources, in close collaboration with University Advancement and Sponsored Projects offices. In the first 18–24 months, the role will prioritize building a coherent organization-wide development strategy, strengthening pipeline discipline and institutional alignment, defining measurable performance benchmarks and funding priorities, and advancing a focused set of high-impact funding opportunities.

Working in partnership with senior leadership, program teams, faculty, and central University offices, the Senior Director of Development drives funding across Columbia Global’s full portfolio, ensuring alignment between revenue generation, strategic priorities, and institutional commitments. This includes support for globally oriented research, faculty scholarship, student experiential learning and academic programs, social impact initiatives, and the Global Centers network. The role provides organization-level oversight across the entire funding lifecycle, from opportunity development and donor engagement through award management and stewardship, ensuring coherence, rigor, and long-term sustainability across Columbia Global’s global platform.

Central to this role is the ability to translate Columbia Global’s academic and scholarly work into compelling philanthropic cases. The Senior Director will work closely with faculty, researchers, and student program leads to surface the intellectual depth and human impact of Columbia Global’s initiatives, engaging donors and partners who share a commitment to scholarship, global learning, and evidence-based social change.

The Senior Director will join Columbia Global during a significant moment for both the organization and the University. Columbia University will welcome a new President in July 2026, ushering in a new era of institutional leadership and strategic direction. This transition presents an important opportunity for the Senior Director to help shape and advance Columbia Global’s evolving role within the University’s global engagement agenda and to help articulate that vision to donors, partners, and external stakeholders worldwide.

Key Responsibilities

Strategic Leadership and Execution (30%)

• Lead the design and implementation of a five year revenue generation, sustainability, and diversification strategy across all Columbia Global entities and geographies, while actively contributing to its execution during a period of organizational evolution, institutional transformation, and operational complexity.
• Translate the five-year sustainability strategy into prioritized pipelines, target funding mixes, measurable performance benchmarks, and clear annual revenue goals aligned with organizational capacity and strategic priorities.
• Serve as a hands on strategic partner to Columbia Global senior leadership, translating institutional priorities into actionable funding strategies, proposals, and donor and government engagement plans.
• Establish organization wide goals, standards, and expectations for revenue generation and stewardship in collaboration with program, finance, communications, and leadership teams, as well as central partners such as the Office of Alumni Development (OAD) and Sponsored Projects Administration (SPA).
• Help define and operationalize frameworks for measuring fundraising performance, organizational sustainability, and long-term philanthropic growth across a complex and evolving global platform.

Revenue Generation and Direct Engagement (30%)

• Personally drive a selective portfolio of high-priority, complex, or cross-cutting fundraising and partnership efforts, including donor cultivation, solicitation, proposal development, and institutional engagement, with a particular focus on opportunities spanning multiple initiatives, regions, or institutional priorities.
• Lead the development of fundable concepts and proposals in collaboration with Columbia Global directors, faculty, program, monitoring, evaluation and learning (MEL), and finance teams.
• Support senior leadership and Columbia Global staff in donor, foundation, corporation, and government engagements through strategy development, briefing preparation, and active participation.
• Assess and strategically sequence fundraising opportunities across global markets at varying stages of development, operational readiness, and philanthropic maturity.

Sponsored Funding (15%)

• Identify and pursue government, bilateral, multilateral, and institutional funding opportunities, working closely with Columbia Global teams and SPA to advance competitive proposals.
• Help establish clear standards, workflows, and expectations for sponsored funding development and management across Columbia Global’s global platform.
• Navigate complex geopolitical, regulatory, and institutional environments related to global academic partnerships, donor engagement, and cross-border funding activity.

Team Leadership and Capacity Building (10%)

• Manage a small, high performing development team—currently one staff member—while laying the groundwork for future growth, including at least one planned additional role.
• Mentor and support Columbia Global team members through coaching, shared execution, and clear performance expectations.
• Build development capacity across Columbia Global by strengthening fundraising literacy, planning, and execution among staff in leadership, programs, communications, and operations.

Cross Functional and Matrix Leadership (10%)

• Lead through influence across Columbia Global’s ten global markets, aligning distributed teams around shared revenue goals, standards, and practices.
• Support change management as Columbia Global continues to professionalize and align development practices across a distributed and evolving global platform.
• Reinforce consistent approaches to goal setting, portfolio management, stewardship, and accountability across the organization.
• Partner closely with finance, monitoring and evaluation, and communications teams to ensure funding strategies are credible, compelling, and measurable.

Stewardship, Accountability, and Institutional Alignment (5%)

Ensure high standards of donor stewardship, institutional accountability, compliance, and alignment with University policies and long-term strategic priorities across all fundraising and partnership activities.

Minimum Qualifications

Master’s Degree. Minimum ten years of progressive experience in revenue generation, fundraising, or resource development in a relevant field.

Preferred Qualifications

• Demonstrated experience securing funding from diverse sources, including individuals, foundations, corporations, and government or multilateral donors, with hands-on involvement in proposal development and donor engagement.
• Experience developing and executing revenue or fundraising strategies in complex, decentralized, or global organizations.
• Proven ability to operate effectively in matrixed environments, establishing goals, standards, and accountability across distributed teams without direct supervisory authority.
• Experience navigating politically sensitive, regulatory, or geopolitically complex environments related to international partnerships, donor engagement, or academic collaboration.
• Background in academic, higher-education, or research-intensive institutional settings, including experience working with faculty and institutionally driven funding models.
• Success leading in small-team or build-phase environments, balancing strategic leadership with hands-on implementation.
• Demonstrated ability to apply innovative, creative, and nontraditional approaches to problem solving, including developing and advancing unconventional or disruptive funding, partnership, or operating models to address complex institutional and resource constraints.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills, with the ability to translate complex academic or programmatic work into compelling funding narratives.
• Strong organizational and analytical skills, with the ability to manage multiple priorities across geographies and funding streams.
• Working knowledge of sponsored funding pathways and coordination with central research or sponsored projects offices.
• Experience leading or contributing to multi-year sustainability and revenue-diversification strategies within a complex institutional or global context.
• Demonstrated success securing large and complex awards, including six- and seven-figure gifts, grants, contracts, or government funding.
• Experience building, scaling, or professionalizing a development or resource-mobilization function, including hiring, mentoring, and establishing systems, processes, and standards.
• Experience engaging boards or advisory bodies, including preparing senior-level materials, supporting strategic discussions, and leveraging board or advisory engagement to advance fundraising, partnerships, or institutional priorities.
• Deep familiarity with fundraising, compliance, stewardship, and ethical development practices in higher-education or research-intensive institutions.
• Experience operating across multiple international regions or markets beyond a single geographic context.

Compensation

The salary for this position is $180,000–$220,000 per year, commensurate with experience.

Columbia University is committed to the hiring of qualified local residents.

**This position requires 15-25% travel domestically and internationally.**