Philanthropic Advisor, Leadership Gifts

Overview

Reporting to the Executive Vice President of Development, Morgan Herman, the PA will be integral to the growth of the fundraising program and the Development team. The PA will carry a leadership gifts portfolio (donors currently contributing $1,000-$10,000 and prospects who may give at this level). This includes the identification, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship of donors with a focus on those who show considerable promise for rising to higher giving capacity over time and may occasionally include meeting with donors in-person.

The PA will also manage engagement for a leadership gifts program more broadly. Partnering closely with colleagues within the Development team and across the organization and managing a part-time donor relations professional in their leadership giving activities, the PA will make full use of their knowledge and insight to implement a comprehensive leadership giving program. The PA will be expected to implement the strategic elements of the program and examine how to leverage existing and devise new cultivation and stewardship activities that help the organization deepen current and develop new relationships that generate even greater resources for Alzheimer’s disease research. They will ensure comprehensive engagement of leadership donors across the Development team by utilizing donors lists and reporting tools, and develop trusted relationships internally with colleagues.

A high degree of self-direction and initiative is required to be successful in this front-facing position that will build and steward relationships with donors and prospects. The role includes moving existing prospects along the pipeline toward solicitation, surfacing new prospects, reporting, and strategically carrying out the leadership gifts program.

Ideally, the successful candidate is a natural relationship builder with five+ years of development experience who takes a solutions-focused approach to their work. They will embody what it means to be donor-centric, motivated by the desire to help people create meaningful impact through philanthropy; a natural leader with the presence, interpersonal skills, and energy to build relationships at all levels in service to Cure Alzheimer’s Fund; and demonstrate attention to detail, diplomacy, and creativity. The PA will be a true team player who has collaborative instincts, an inclination to integrate efforts, and the tolerance for ambiguity in a fast-paced research environment. They will have the ability to become a trusted source of information about Alzheimer’s disease research. The PA is expected to exhibit strong professional judgment and to exemplify the mission, core values and vision of Cure Alzheimer’s Fund.

 

RESPONSIBILITIES
FUNDRAISING
• Serve as the primary resource and resident expert for all aspects of Leadership Giving.
• Build and manage a personal portfolio of approximately 200-300 Leadership Gift donors, moving from qualification through gift closure, with the objective of both growing the Leadership Gift segment, and providing a pipeline to Major Gifts and Trustee candidates.
• Utilize face-to-face, Zoom and phone, personalized emails, and mail correspondence.
• Collaborate with, and support, frontline colleagues who manage relationships with Leadership Gift donors.
• Harness technologies to maximize donor and prospect outreach.
• Utilize data management system (Raiser’s Edge) to log activity, create call reports, and maintain coding and data integrity of Leadership Gift donors and prospects.
• Meet and exceed established metrics and benchmarks.
• Stay informed about developments in Alzheimer’s research broadly, and specifically about projects funded by Cure Alzheimer’s Fund.

 

PROGRAM STRATEGY & MANAGEMENT
• In collaboration with the Executive Vice President, work with Prospect Research and Development Operations to analyze the existing Leadership Gift segment.
• Create and implement strategies for renewal, increased giving, stewardship, and acquisition based on donor segmentation and new donor engagement activities.
• Conceptualize, design, and test personalized Leadership Gift strategies, including initiatives that enhance cultivation of Leadership Gift donors, with particular emphasis on inspiring increased gifts from existing donors.
• Analyze the effectiveness of various fundraising methods and messages and update samples quarterly. Ensure all outreach is relevant, timely, well-written, and professionally executed.
• Utilize data-driven insights and metrics to evaluate the success of the leadership giving program, identify areas for improvement, and make informed decisions to optimize performance and increase donor participation; drive short- and long-term strategic planning for the program.
• Demonstrate a proactive mindset by continuously researching and staying informed about trends, best practices, and emerging opportunities in the leadership annual giving field, applying this knowledge to enhance the program’s effectiveness.

 

QUALIFICATIONS
• Five+ years of experience in fundraising (reunion, family, annual, leadership, major giving) with a track record of solicitation. Backgrounds in related programmatic areas such as donor engagement or advancement marketing will also be considered.
• A comfort with making cold outreach, particularly phone calls, to donors for stewardship, cultivation, and solicitation of Leadership Gifts.
• An eagerness to be engaged in extensive discovery and qualification conversations with a mindset that there are no dead ends, only other roads to pursue.
• Ability to inspire, generate excitement, shared purpose, and action; superior interpersonal and communication skills (both written and verbal), while also being an active listener.
• A self-starter who ensures all details are cared for and brings a natural storytelling ability when making the case for support.
• Strategic, hardworking, and able to work with a high degree of flexibility in an entrepreneurial, fast paced, goal-oriented environment.
• Interest in understanding of the principles and practices of philanthropy, particularly in the nonprofit sector and grantmaking foundations.
• Interest in Alzheimer’s research, and ability to convey information about highly complex and technical subjects in a straightforward and understandable manner.
• Integrity, creativity, energy, and positivity; a sense of humor and a collegial, team-centered approach that contributes to the overall Development department.
• Knowledge of Microsoft Office Suite, including Mail Merge, and the ability to perform complex data analysis using Excel, including graphs and charts.
• Ability to travel as needed, including occasional overnight trips (5%-10% expected travel).
• Bachelor’s degree or relevant work experience is required.