Senior Director of Advancement

Are you a mission-driven leader with a strategic mindset and a talent for building high-performing teams? Do you want to help shape the future of liberty in Michigan and beyond? The Mackinac Center for Public Policy, a premier free-market think tank, is seeking a Senior Director of Advancement to lead with vision, elevate our team, and strengthen the Center’s long-term impact. This key leadership role blends strategic oversight with relationship-driven fundraising, focusing on team development, organizational growth, and advancing a culture of principled engagement with top supporters, foundations, and partners.

Key Responsibilities

Lead and mentor a growing, high-performing advancement team.
Develop and execute fundraising strategies that deepen donor engagement and drive revenue growth.
Collaborate with senior leadership to align advancement with the Center’s strategic goals.
Develop and manage relationships with key supporters and foundations, including developing ideas and proposals.
Translate complex policy work into compelling, mission-driven messaging.
Guide external communications to strengthen relationships with major supporters and philanthropic foundations.
Promote a data-informed culture of learning, evaluation, and continuous improvement.
Represent the Center at key donor meetings, events, and conferences.

What We’re Looking For

A collaborative, principled leader with a track record of team-building and organizational leadership.
Strong strategic thinking and communication skills.
Experience in philanthropy, nonprofit management, or public policy preferred.
Experience in fundraising, ideally with proven success securing five- and six-figure gifts from individuals and/or foundations.
Well-connected within the liberty movement, with strong relationships across think tanks, foundations, and policy leaders.
Comfortable working with senior stakeholders across departments.
A deep commitment to free markets, individual liberty, and limited government.

Why Join Us?

Competitive compensation and benefits.
High-impact, mission-driven work with measurable outcomes.
The opportunity to work alongside some of the nation’s most respected leaders in policy and communications.

The Mackinac Center is a nonpartisan research and educational institute dedicated to improving the quality of life of all Michigan residents by promoting sound solutions to state and local policy questions. We advance liberty and opportunity for all people by developing free-market policies, challenging government overreach and influencing public opinion so that it encourages policymakers to act in the broad public interest rather than narrow private or government interests. The Mackinac Center is a nonprofit organization with 45 full-time employees, a 50-member Board of Scholars and an annual operating budget of $11 million.

This full-time position will report to the Vice President for Advancement. In-office work at our Midland, Michigan, location is preferred, but a hybrid schedule would be considered for the right candidate. The Mackinac Center offers competitive salary and benefits including but not limited to health, dental, life, disability insurance and 30 days paid time off, in addition to nine paid holidays per year.

Application Process

To apply, please send a cover letter describing your interest in the position and in the mission of the Mackinac Center, resume, three professional references[*] and salary history to:

Elizabeth Posthumus
Director of Donor Communications
Email: careers@mackinac.org
Fax: (989) 631-0964

While we thank all applicants for their interest in this position, we are only able to contact those whom we are considering for an interview. No telephone calls, please.

[*] References will not be contacted without prior permission from the candidate.