Associate Director, Leadership Strategy Engagement

Company: International Rescue Committee
Location: New York City
Posted on: April 1, 2026

Job Description:

The International Rescue Committee (IRC) responds to the world's worst humanitarian crises, helping to restore health, safety, education, economic wellbeing, and power to people devastated by conflict and disaster. Founded in 1933 at the call of Albert Einstein, the IRC is one of the world's largest international humanitarian non-governmental organizations (INGO), at work in more than 40 countries and 29 U.S. cities helping people to survive, reclaim control of their future and strengthen their communities. A force for humanity, IRC employees deliver lasting impact by restoring safety, dignity and hope to millions. If you're a solutions-driven, passionate change-maker, come join us in positively impacting the lives of millions of people world-wide for a better future. Background: The External Relations (ER) department is comprised of three main but complementary functional areas: Private fundraising, Communications, and Advocacy. The main objective of the department is to enable this organization of more than 15,000 staff to have the resources needed to continue serving 18 million people worldwide in places affected by war and disaster. Job Overview The Associate Director of Leadership Strategy Engagement (LSE) serves as the primary facilitator for senior leadership engagement with key donors at International Rescue Committee. Acting as an internal “air traffic controller” and critical fundraising resource, the Associate Director will work in close partnership with the President’s Office, Leadership Board, Vice President of Philanthropy, Senior Director of Private Fundraising Campaign, Senior Directors of Private Fundraising, and Principal and Major Gift Officers. The role is designed to support a well-orchestrated experience for the organization’s most significant donors by aligning executive leadership engagement, frontline fundraising activity, and stewardship execution. The Associate Director will facilitate coordination, sequencing and accountability across teams to ensure donor relationships are advanced thoughtfully and efficiently according to strategies set by relationship managers. The Associate Director will play a critical part in enabling leadership engagement, strengthening systems and processes, and ensuring high priority donors experience a coherent and high-quality arc of engagement across geographies, portfolios, and fundraising teams. Major Responsibilities: High-priority Donor Portfolio Facilitation Maintain coordination of all activity and progress toward fundraising strategy for donors engaging with executive leadership. Partner with the VP of Philanthropy, Senior Director of Private Fundraising Campaign, High Value Fundraising Leadership, and frontline fundraisers to advance donor strategies in alignment with organizational priorities and guidelines. Coordinate with High Value Fundraising Leadership, Prospect Research, and Donor Engagement to ensure top donor giving data, reporting, and stewardship are consistently tracked and managed at a global level. Meet regularly with high value fundraisers to review relevant donor strategies, ensure accuracy of tracking, and strengthen giving processes and documentation. Promote consistency, transparency, and shared standards for high-level engagement across regional and international teams. Identify emerging opportunities, risks, and coordination needs among high priority donors Provide regular portfolio and pipeline updates to executive leadership, campaign leadership, and philanthropy leadership. Executive Leadership Engagement Collaborate with High Value Leaders and fundraising partners to coordinate executive leader engagement in high priority donor strategies. Consolidate and help prioritize requests for executive involvement in donor meetings, events, and stewardship activities. Co-lead internal planning meetings with fundraisers and executive leadership in support of donor strategy. Proactively leverage executive leadership travel and program visits for donor engagement opportunities, Partner with fundraisers and High Value Leaders to shape and deliver briefing materials, talking points, post-engagement follow-up plans, and additional requested resourcing for executive leaders. Donor Experience & Stewardship Alignment Help define expectations and engagement approaches for high priority donors in partnership with High Value fundraisers and Stewardship staff. Partner with Stewardship and High Value Fundraising to translate agreed-upon donor experiences into timely and effective execution. Regularly monitor high priority donor stewardship activities and opportunities to ensure consistent engagement for executive leadership. Job Requirements: 6-8 years of experience in fundraising, advancement strategy, or executive coordination. Previous frontline fundraising experience a plus. Previous experience working with executive leadership strongly desired. Previous experience working for large, complex organizations strongly desired. Proven ability to manage sensitive donor information with discretion and diplomacy. Strong organizational, communication, and strategic planning skills. Experience with CRM systems and data-driven portfolio management (Salesforce experience a plus). Collaborative, proactive, and highly detail-oriented. Passion for the IRC’s mission and dedication to supporting its long-term goals. Working Environment : This role requires working remotely part-time (i.e., telecommuting). Applicants must have a home or alternate workspace they can effectively complete their work from during regularly scheduled hours. Compensation: ( Pay Range: $120,000 - $130,000 ) Posted pay ranges apply to US-based candidates. Ranges are based on various factors including the labor market, job type, internal equity, and budget. Exact offers are calibrated by work location, individual candidate experience and skills relative to the defined job requirements. PROFESSIONAL STANDARDS All International Rescue Committee workers must adhere to the core values and principles outlined in IRC Way - Standards for Professional Conduct . Our Standards are Integrity, Service, Equality and Accountability. In accordance with these values, the IRC operates and enforces policies on Safeguarding , Conflicts of Interest, Fiscal Integrity, and Reporting Wrongdoing and Protection from Retaliation. IRC is committed to take all necessary preventive measures and create an environment where people feel safe, and to take all necessary actions and corrective measures when harm occurs. IRC builds teams of professionals who promote critical reflection, power sharing, debate, and objectivity to deliver the best possible services to our clients. Cookies: https://careers.rescue.org/us/en/cookiesettings Compensation: Posted pay ranges apply to US-based candidates. Ranges are based on various factors including the labor market, job type, internal equity, and budget. Exact offers are calibrated by work location, individual candidate experience and skills relative to the defined job requirements. US Benefits: We offer a comprehensive and highly competitive set of benefits. In the US, these include: 10 sick days, 10 US holidays, 20-25 paid time off days depending on role and tenure, medical insurance starting at $163 per month, dental starting at $6.50 per month, and vision starting at $5 per month, FSA for healthcare and commuter costs, a 403b retirement savings plans with immediately vested matching, disability & life insurance, and an Employee Assistance Program which is available to our staff and their families to support counseling and care in times of crisis and mental health struggles. Equal Opportunity Employer: IRC is an Equal Opportunity Employer. IRC considers all applicants on the basis of merit without regard to race, sex, color, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, age, marital status, veteran status, disability or any other characteristic protected by applicable law. li-1

Keywords: International Rescue Committee, Westport , Associate Director, Leadership Strategy Engagement, PR / Public Relations , New York City, Connecticut