Membership Director

Job Description

ABOUT THE ROLE

SID-Washington is seeking a self-starting, motivated professional to serve as full-time director to execute the strategic direction for the organization’s growth within the membership area, specifically membership recruitment, retention, and relationships. This includes strategizing, planning, and managing activities and services that provide value to members and promote membership growth. This position is responsible for strengthening individual and institutional membership, to meet targets as laid out in the annual budget and strategic plan.

S/he will work closely with the President to plan for and carry out activities that increase SID-Washington’s visibility and its ability to effectively and sustainably carry out its mission. S/he will work as part of a team of professionals, who serve SID-Washington’s membership through exclusive benefits and programming. S/he will also work closely with members of the Board of Directors who serve on the Membership Committee. S/he will be joining a tight-knit team, and will therefore be offered increasing autonomy and responsibility, as well as management experience.

JOB RESPONSIBILITIES

Responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

Membership Recruitment and Retention

• Lead development of new member and alliance strategies.
• Develop and coordinate an annual retention strategy.
• Manage overall recruitment and retention strategy to meet annual goals and targets, as defined by the new three-year, organization-wide strategic plan.
• Work with Board-level Membership Committee to determine long-term strategies.
• Identify, conduct outreach, and recruit new member prospects.
• Oversee onboarding of new members.
• Steward relationships with current members in partnership with the President.
• Direct the organization’s annual membership renewal process.
• Develop a membership growth and retention plan, in conjunction with Board-level committee and senior management.

Membership Programming

• Plan and manage membership events in coordination with other staff, including special events, midsize events, and workshops.
• Track member and non-member event attendance, updating strategy to increase prospect conversion and member engagement rates.

Management

• Share management responsibilities of Membership and Operations Manager.
• Work closely to lead staff in all membership efforts.

POSITION QUALIFICATIONS

• Bachelor’s degree required, preference in international relations, hospitality management, marketing, communications, or similar
• Strong customer service, fundraising, and relationship-building orientation
• Excellent writing, editing, and verbal communication skills
• Excellent interpersonal and organizational skills
• Ability to create and manage budgets
• Ability to solve problems creatively, undertake detail-oriented work, and work well as a member of a team
• Ability to handle multiple tasks and deadlines with limited supervision in a fast-paced environment and remain calm under pressure
• At least five years working in fundraising, sales, or corporate sponsorships, preferably with two in a management position
• Experience writing partnership and similar proposals (i.e. joint-event proposals)
• Strong network within international development community a plus

COMPENSATION AND BENEFITS

• Salary dependent on experience
• 100% employer-paid health premiums: medical, dental and life insurance
• Employer-sponsored 401k program, including company match percentage
• Flexible vacation policy, including all federal holidays
• Option to work from home up to one day per week, upon successful six-month review
• Access to building gym

About the Organization

SID-Washington is the largest and most active chapter of the Society for International Development (SID), an international network founded in 1957 to serve as a global forum dedicated to sustainable economic, social and political development. With institutional and individual members from all sectors, we are uniquely positioned to inform and promote more inclusive and sustainable international development.

As a membership-driven knowledge organization for the global development community, our mission is to bring diverse constituencies together to debate critical ideas, innovations, policies and practices, advancing equitable development. We pursue this through regional and thematic workgroups, monthly chapter events, and special programs. We also hold large annual events, including an annual conference that attracts 800-900 people each year for keynote discussions, plenary sessions, breakout panels and an exhibit hall; a career fair for entry-level and mid-level professionals; and an annual dinner typically attended by 600-700 international development professionals to honor someone who has contributed in extraordinary ways to our field.

We have approximately 150 institutional members that span all sectors, including NGOs, the private sector, bilateral and multilateral institutions, consulting firms, embassies, and universities. We also have 500-600 individual members. Our expansive membership contributes to the dynamic exchange of ideas and information that lies at the heart of SID-Washington.