Donor Relations Manager

Civil Beat is seeking a Donor Relations Manager to help the philanthropy team convert news readers to financial supporters. This position reports to the Director of Philanthropy and plays an essential role in communicating the value of Civil Beat to current and prospective donors.

The ideal candidate is a detail-oriented, relationship-driven fundraiser who combines strong customer service with sharp technical skills to support sustainable revenue growth year over year.

Expectations

• Provide exceptional customer service to Civil Beat donors and readers, including troubleshooting, donation processing and acknowledgement as well as general inquiries via office phone and email.
• Establish strong relationships and a memorable first impression of Civil Beat with readers and donors to increase their level of engagement both online and in person.
• Craft donor-centered messaging, including but not limited to email appeals for individual support, talking points and call-to-action prompts, ensuring consistency across communications.
• Assist with developing innovative approaches to donor recruitment and retention, while maintaining regular ongoing tasks such as renewal outreach and payment failure reminders.
• Support the execution of three annual digital fundraising campaigns per year.
• Assist with maintaining a donor database, including gift entry, reporting and data cleanup.
• Provide assistance with other administrative, community engagement and fundraising needs.

Qualifications

• 2-5 years experience in fundraising operations.
• Background in donor-centered communications, fundraising strategy, and some technical knowledge of digital marketing practices and techniques.
• Eagerness to blend traditional fundraising practices with digital techniques.
• Proven track record of achieving revenue goals.
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills.
• Solid relationship-building skills, able to communicate effectively on multiple plaforms with external constituents and staff.
• Experience with fundraising database systems. Knowledge of Salesforce NPSP a plus.
• Exceptional attention to detail.
• Understanding of news media and nonprofit organizations preferred.
• Comfortable working in a fast-paced office environment.
• Ability to work nights and weekends, 2-3 times per month.

We are willing to consider great candidates who may not have every skill on our checklist.

Location

Our newsroom is located in Hawaiʻi on the island of Oʻahu.

Salary

The final salary offer for this position will depend on experience and qualifications. The anticipated range for this role is between $60,000 – $70,000.

How To Apply

Send your cover letter and resume to apply@civilbeat.org by June 1, 2026. We will review submissions on a rolling basis and accept new applicants until the position is filled.

Newsletter Manager

Civil Beat is seeking a Newsletter Manager to deepen our connection with communities as we expand our journalism across Hawaiʻi’s neighbor islands.

This growth position reports to the Director of Audience and will play an essential role in creating editorial products that serve community needs by providing high-quality information to readers who have long been underserved by local newsrooms.

The Newsletter Manager will develop an audience strategy for existing and new email newsletters and related audience services designed specifically for our growing audiences on Maui, Hawaiʻi island and Kauaʻi, plus the larger Hawaiʻi and Native Hawaiian diaspora.

The ideal candidate is a conversational writer with a creative spark. They are equal parts strategist and community builder who understands how local, accessible journalism can build trust and long-term audience loyalty.

Expectations

• Work with the Director of Audience to manage newsletters, including crafting story summaries and working with local reporters to create engaging copy that resonates with local readers.
• Manage newsletter production workflows, editorial calendars and launch plans.
• Create marketing campaigns across web, social and Civil Beat’s various in-person/virtual events.
• Develop community partnerships to attract and retain engaged newsletter readers.
• Oversee the technical aspects of email newsletters, including optimizing drip campaigns, conditional messaging and list segmentation.
• Optimize newsletters through consistent testing, analysis and audience feedback.
• Lead experimentation around segmentation, personalization and messaging.
• Monitor subscriber growth, open rates, click-through rates, retention and conversion behavior.

Qualifications

• 2-4 years of experience in audience development, product management and/or newsletter writing.
• Clean news writing and self-editing skills.
• Available to consistently work a late-morning to mid-evening schedule to accommodate newsroom deadlines.
• Able to produce content in Mailchimp or other email publishing systems.
• Familiar with a news content management system.
• Experience working in a fast-paced, deadline-driven environment and juggling multiple tasks.
• Solid understanding of local news media and nonprofit journalism.
• Knowledge of Hawaiʻi communities, especially neighbor island audiences.
• Experience working in Hawaiʻi, or have a connection to the state.

We are willing to consider great candidates who may not have every skill on our checklist.

Location

Our newsroom is located in Hawaiʻi on the island of Oʻahu, but we will consider candidates living on the neighbor islands.

Salary

The final salary offer for this position will depend on experience and qualifications. The anticipated salary range for this role is between $65,000 – $75,000.

How To Apply

Send your cover letter and resume to apply@civilbeat.org by June 1, 2026. We will review submissions on a rolling basis and accept new applicants until the position is filled.