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VP of Advancement (Philanthropy & Fundraising)
About Growcer
Growcer builds the infrastructure for food sovereignty. We're the world leader in modular container farms, with over 900 projects worldwide. We give Indigenous nations, schools, hospitals, food banks and community organizations across North America the farms, training and support to grow fresh food locally, 365 days a year, in places where fresh produce is expensive, scarce, or trucked in from thousands of kilometres away.
The need in Canada is real. Nearly 10 million people, including 2.4 million children, live in food-insecure households (Statistics Canada, 2025), and rates are far higher in northern and remote Indigenous communities.
Every farm changes what a community can count on: fresh food year-round, local jobs and skills, and food grown on the community's own terms. Our partners don't stop at one harvest. They run their farms for years, supply their schools, food banks and families, and train the next generation of growers.
Donations go straight to that impact. A gift through our community foundation partners puts a farm on the ground in a community that's ready to grow but can't fund it alone, turning philanthropy into permanent local food infrastructure rather than a one-time meal.
Today, farms across the Growcer network grow 10 million servings of fresh food every month. In 2026, Growcer received a Governor General's Innovation Award, for advancing food sovereignty and climate resilience through modular farming.
Growcer is entering its next phase of growth and scaling across North America. Effective Growcer employees are tenacious, enjoy a fast-paced environment, and are comfortable working on big-picture challenges with lots of autonomy.
If you want your work to be visible, your impact to be direct, and your mission to be one you'd be proud to explain at a dinner party, you'll feel right at home.
Why This Role Exists
Our clients are First Nations, schools, food banks, hospitals, and nonprofits. They're ready to grow food for their communities, but most can't fund a farm on their own. Today they rely mainly on public grant programs, which are slow, competitive, and can change overnight.
Securing capital is the biggest barrier between a community that's ready and impact on the ground. Our clients need a partner who can help them close that gap. Starting with a pilot alongside RBC, we've shown that philanthropic capital can do exactly that, funding infrastructure directly in the communities that need them.
This role makes that support reliable and scalable, so every client in our network has a real path to funding their project.
Gifts raised through this program fund farm projects for our client communities through donor-advised funds established with our community foundation partners.
About the Role
VP of Advancement is a senior leadership position responsible for building and running Growcer 's national philanthropy and fundraising program from the ground up. You'll do two things at once: personally cultivate and close major gifts with donors and foundations capable of funding a project outright, and lead a growing network of province-based fundraising counsel.
You're the connective tissue between the capital being raised and the communities in Growcer 's client network waiting to build. You'll be trusted to take on a campaign in the range of $15M and run it end to end. We're looking for someone who can take an idea and run with it, learning quickly on the way.
This role reports to Growcer 's CEO. Expect regular travel to donor meetings and partner communities across the provinces you're building out.
This role is probably not for you if you're looking to steward an established donor base with a mature development shop behind you. It's a build.
Key Responsibilities
Build and scale Growcer 's national philanthropy program, taking the regional fundraising-counsel model piloted in Ontario and expanding it into other states and provinces.
Personally cultivate, solicit, and steward major-gift relationships with individual donors, family foundations, and corporate giving programs capable of six- and seven-figure gifts Design and run capital campaign strategy at scale Sharpen and localize the case for support for each province and donor audience Collaborate with the sales team to match funded projects to Growcer 's client network
Own the client intake process for philanthropically funded projects (including any future application-based fund), and the collateral that supports it: donor decks, impact measurement, and client stories
Build the reporting and forecasting systems needed to track pipeline and campaign performance across every active region
Represent Growcer publicly as its senior advancement voice with donors, foundations, and philanthropic advisors
Work closely with Growcer 's leadership team to keep fundraising targets aligned with delivery capacity on the ground
As the program grows, hire, train, and mentor additional development staff
Required Skills & Competencies
Comfortable building something from an early concept: testing an approach, changing it based on evidence, and making the case for a new direction when the data says so A bias toward action over process; moves fast, tests in the field rather than over-designing on paper, and doesn't wait for heavy infrastructure before getting started Fluency with the mechanics of major-gift fundraising: gift range charts, weighted pipelines, solicitation calendars, donor stewardship A strong closer and relationship-builder, equally comfortable in a boardroom, a donor's living room, or a First Nations community hall Comfortable operating with a lot of autonomy in a fast-growing, entrepreneurial organization, without an established playbook to follow An active network across Canadian philanthropy (families, foundations, corporate giving), and the instinct to build one where it doesn't exist yet Genuine interest in food security, Indigenous partnership, and community development Willingness to travel regularly across Canada
Experience & Qualifications
As an executive director or head of development, you grew a previous organization's annual funding capacity from $1M to $10M+
A track record of personally closing gifts at the six- or seven-figure level
Comfort overseeing contractors, consultants, or a distributed team toward shared targets
Experience leading or structuring a capital campaign of $10M or more is an asset
CFRE designation is an asset but not required
How to Apply
Application deadline: This posting will remain open on a rolling basis until the position is filled.
Equal Employment Opportunity
Growcer is an equal opportunity employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, or any other status protected by applicable law. Growcer will provide reasonable accommodations to qualified individuals with disabilities throughout the recruitment and employment process