Description

Chief Development Officer | Human Rights Watch
This position is preferably based in HRW's New York office, with other HRW offices a possibility, and requires a flexible schedule to accommodate colleagues across multiple time zones. The role involves both domestic and international travel, approximately 25–40% of the time.

Organization Overview
Human Rights Watch (HRW) defends the rights of people worldwide by scrupulously investigating abuses, exposing the facts, and pressuring those with power to respect rights and secure justice. It is an independent, international organization that plays a key role in a vibrant global movement to uphold human dignity and advance the cause of human rights for all. Its work is guided by international human rights and humanitarian law. Ending abuse and bringing perpetrators to justice is rarely instantaneous. Some victories are decisive, while others are smaller steps on a much longer path to change, whether that impact is immediate or incremental. With decades of sustained engagement on human rights issues, HRW draws on deep expertise to confront injustice and tackle deep-rooted challenges.

Human Rights Watch investigates and reports on abuses happening in all corners of the world. The roughly 500 people of 70-plus nationalities are country experts, lawyers, journalists and others who work to protect the most at risk, from vulnerable minorities and civilians in wartime, to refugees and children in need. They direct their advocacy towards governments, armed groups and businesses, pushing them to change or enforce their laws, policies and practices. To ensure independence, HRW refuses government funding and carefully reviews all donations to ensure that they are consistent with its policies, mission and values. HRW partners with organizations large and small across the globe to protect embattled activists and to help hold abusers to account and bring justice to victims.

Over nearly 50 years of existence, HRW helped build the global architecture we rely on to hold states and other actors to account for their actions. HRW helped establish the International Criminal Court (ICC) in 2002, which has opened investigations into serious crimes on every continent in the world. HRW helped rally the world around landmark treaties to ban landmines and cluster munitions, affirming the idea that there are some weapons so cruel that they are incompatible with our humanity. And HRW’s tenacity over decades contributed to landmark convictions against some of the most notorious war criminals, realizing justice for victims and survivors who had little other recourse.

Today, the challenges that the human rights movement faces globally are acute. While HRW’s work has always been critical, it is now also urgent. The organization’s continued success will require bold, ambitious, and visionary senior leadership that harnesses the full breadth of the organization’s talent and drives a global movement toward transformative progress. Under Philippe Bolopion, the recently appointed Executive Director, HRW will benefit from leadership focused on championing the power and relevance of human rights in everyday life – not just as legal protections, but as shared values that connect us all.

Role Summary & Context for Recruitment
The Chief Development Officer (CDO) will bring fresh vision and strategic leadership to build on and boldly advance the organization's fundraising, marketing, and donor and community engagement efforts, deepening impact and expanding reach at a pivotal moment for HRW. This is a critical position for the organization and an exciting opportunity to shape and accelerate the fundraising strategy and roadmap for HRW's future, developing and implementing ambitious fundraising, outreach, and constituency building strategies. The CDO must be committed to HRW's mission to take on human rights abuses around the world, communicate passionately about its work, and inspire its staff, volunteer teams, and donors.

The CDO will report directly to Executive Director Philippe Bolopion and will serve on HRW's Executive Committee, the organization’s senior leadership team. The CDO will lead a high-performing Development & Outreach Team of approximately 110 staff members, spanning leadership and principal giving, donor committees and council fundraising, Board of Directors engagement, foundation giving, marketing, planned giving, and fundraising systems and data analysis.

Candidate Profile
The Chief Development Officer will be a collaborative, innovative, and visionary leader with exceptional people, communications, and management skills and the passion and capacity to lead a sophisticated global fundraising operation. They will bring high intellectual and emotional intelligence, sharp cultural awareness, and the ability to communicate and influence effectively across a complex, highly distributed organization. The ideal candidate will understand the nuances of fundraising across multiple geographies and cultures, inspire and motivate experienced teams, and embody a deep commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion. They will be passionate about HRW's mission and able to articulate a compelling vision that engages staff, volunteers, advocates, and donors, and catalyzes giving.

The successful candidate will bring at least 12 to 15 years of fundraising experience, with at least five (5) years of experience in a senior role such as chief development officer, deputy chief development officer, or equivalent.

Required Qualifications

• A deep commitment to HRW's mission of defending the rights of people worldwide, and the ability to communicate about its work with passion and conviction.
• Proven experience leading and motivating fundraising teams in a complex, global organization, setting ambitious objectives, managing performance, and driving results.
• Expertise across major gift fundraising, marketing, capital campaigns, and planned giving, with a keen awareness of evolving trends and best practices.
• A strong track record of cultivating and closing transformational gifts from major donors, including foundations.
• The ability to master, represent, and compellingly communicate the organization's mission and programs to diverse audiences.
• A global perspective on philanthropy and the cultural competency to work effectively with staff, donors, and board and committee members across geographies.
• An ability to foster an inclusive team culture characterized by creativity, collegiality, mutual respect, and professional growth.
• Outstanding oral and written communications skills in English; proficiency in additional languages is a plus.
• A data-driven approach to developing, implementing, and measuring fundraising strategies, with a demonstrated ability to drive transformational growth.
• Superior analytical, strategic planning, and problem-solving skills.

Equal Opportunity Employer
Human Rights Watch is strong because it is diverse. It actively seeks a diverse and global applicant pool and encourages candidates of all backgrounds to apply. Human Rights Watch does not discriminate on the basis of disability, age, gender identity and expression, national origin, race and ethnicity, religious beliefs, sexual orientation, or criminal record. It welcomes all kinds of diversity. Its employees include people who are parents and non-parents, the self-taught and university educated, and from a wide span of socio-economic backgrounds and perspectives on the world. Human Rights Watch is an equal opportunity employer.

Download the full position description via the following link:
https://www.dsgco.com/search/23365-hrw

Human Rights Watch has retained the DSG Fundraising & Advancement Practice of DSG | Global to assist in this confidential search process. Inquiries, nominations, and applications (current resumes and cover letters) may be submitted via the following link or directed to the leader of the search team:

https://talent-profile.dsgco.com/search/v2/23365

Gerard F. Cattie, Jr.
Global Managing Partner and Practice Founder, DSG Fundraising & Advancement
gerard.cattie@dsgco.com | 212.542.2587