Director​/Manager of Foundation Relations

Director/Manager of Foundation Relations

Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory is seeking a Director or Manager, Foundation Relations for Berkeley Lab Foundation. The Berkeley Lab Foundation supports research programs, centers, and facilities at Berkeley Lab that are aligned with the Department of Energy’s (DOE) basic science and applied energy missions. This support can increase the real-world impact of research at Berkeley Lab by translating fundamental research to issues related to energy use.

Now in its 11th year, the Foundation has an efficient and effective staff and organizational structure, as well as an engaged and hands‑on Board, and Berkeley Lab has been attracting high‑end philanthropic support across a wide array of donor interests (historically up to $10 million annually).

In this role, you will partner with Laboratory leaders, world‑class scientists, and University of California (UC) colleagues to connect visionary research with the funders who can bring it to life — identifying, cultivating, and soliciting foundations, corporate philanthropy programs, and other institutional partners. Working closely with the Chief Development Officer, you'll apply proven fundraising strategies to grow a robust foundation and institutional giving donor pipeline.

This position is open to candidates at either the Manager or Director level, depending on experience. As part of a small, dynamic Foundation team, you'll wear many hats — conducting prospect research, crafting compelling proposals, shaping fundable cases for support, and nurturing donor relationships from first contact through stewardship. You'll work at the intersection of philanthropy and cutting‑edge science, navigating a complex technical environment while ensuring full alignment with DOE and UC contractual and regulatory guidelines.

If you're energized by hands‑on work, love building relationships, and want your efforts to directly advance scientific discovery, this is the opportunity for you.

At Berkeley Lab, our collective purpose is to serve humankind through science. A Federally Funded Research and Development Center (FFRDC), Berkeley Lab is a DOE Office of Science national laboratory managed by the University of California. Founded in 1931 on the belief that the biggest problems are best addressed by teams, Berkeley Lab and its scientists have been recognized with 17 Nobel Prizes to date.

We conduct groundbreaking research focused on discovery science and solutions for abundant and reliable energy supplies, performed by teams whose expertise spans materials, chemistry, physics, biology, earth and environmental science, mathematics, and computing. Our five world‑class scientific user facilities are used annually by more than 16,000 researchers from around the world.

Berkeley Lab has a dynamic workforce of 4,000 employees and an annual operating budget of approximately $1.36 billion. About 95% of the Laboratory’s funding comes from federal and state taxpayers, and we are committed to caring for the people, research, and resources that make our mission possible, a responsibility we call stewardship.

• Partner with the Chief Development Officer, Lab leadership, and Principal Investigators to translate cutting‑edge research priorities into compelling, fundable cases for support tailored to foundation and institutional audiences.
• Connect scientists and program leads across the Lab to surface collaborative, cross‑disciplinary funding opportunities that resonate with institutional funders.
• Draft and manage proposals, letters of inquiry, and stewardship reports that keep funders engaged and informed.
• Partner with the Lab's contracts, financial, and operations teams to ensure funds are accepted and managed appropriately.
• Contribute to the Berkeley Lab Foundation's strategy for growing its foundation and institutional giving pipeline.
• Help grow a robust pipeline of foundations, corporate giving programs, and institutional funders aligned with Berkeley Lab's research mission.
• Research and help design targeted engagement strategies aimed at securing grants from the low six figures up to $1 million and beyond.
• Manage a personal…