Director of Annual Giving

If you are a current University employee, please use the internal career site to apply for this position.

Job Description

This posting is for a full-time, 12-month, exempt position. The Director of Annual Giving (the Director) is to secure current use unrestricted support for the University from alumni, parents and other friends.  A secondary responsibility is to identify and qualify constituents who have the financial capacity to become leadership level donors and recommend them for management by the staff in Leadership Giving. 

The Director is responsible for conceptualizing and implementing all facets of the Annual Giving program.  This includes annual goal setting, fund raising strategy, monthly performance monitoring and reporting, volunteer and staff management, and goal achievement in raising undesignated and designated current use gifts.

Essential Functions

1. The Director will develop an annual work plan prior at the start of each fiscal year that will include bottom line fund raising goals for the annual giving program by functional area, a plan for volunteer engagement within the leadership giving levels, goals for the number of days of personal and staff travel visiting leadership gift prospects, goals for the number of face-to-face solicitation visits, and receptions and events to cultivate and steward annual giving donors.
2. The Director will visit alumni, parents and friends of the University to solicit leadership level annual gifts. The Director will travel locally and regionally on average 3 to 5 days a month visiting and soliciting leadership level annual gift prospects and complete on average 6 to 7 solicitation visits a month.
3. The Director will manage and leverage the brand identities for unrestricted giving, specifically the Findlay Fund, Findlay Fund Scholarships, and the Findlay Parents Fund.
4. The Director will restructure and enhance the University’s leadership giving society (yet to be named) to encourage alumni, parents and friends to make annual leadership gifts at increasing levels, as defined here:

• Chairman’s Circle—recognizing gifts of $100,000 or more in a fiscal year.

• Trustee Council—recognizing gifts of $25,000-$99,999 in a fiscal year.

• President’s Leadership Circle—recognizing gifts of $10,000-$24,999 in a fiscal year.

• Dean’s Council—recognizing gifts of $5,000-$9,999 in a fiscal year.

• Scholars Circle—recognizing gifts of $2,500-$4,999 in a fiscal year.

• President’s Council—recognizing gifts of $1,000-$2,499 in a fiscal year.    

5. The Director will be responsible for developing strategies to increase the number of donors at the leadership annual giving levels, as well as upgrading existing donors to the next level.  These strategies should include, but are not limited to:

• the identification, recruitment, training and management of a select group of volunteers (alumni & parents) to conduct peer-to-peer solicitations;

• assist in the planning and execution of leadership level donor events and activities that strategically advance the goals of the leadership annual giving society;

• and the strategic use of University Administrators in the solicitation process (particularly the President, Vice President for University Advancement, Associate Vice President for Development and College Deans).

6. The Director will work with the Donor Relations and Stewardship Manager to launch a new donor loyalty giving society (yet to be named) to strengthen the recognition of alumni, parents and friends who are consistent annual donors to the University.  
7. The Director will be responsible for developing strategies to increase the number of donors to the loyalty giving society, as well as moving existing society donors to the next level of support.  These strategies should include, but are not limited to:

• the implementation of direct mail, Phonathon and e-mail/mobile/online channels to reach and acquire gifts from a large number of alumni, parents and friends;

• the strategic use of social media and other technology to invite younger donors to make a gift;

• and collaboration with colleagues from the Center for Alumni, Parents and Friends in event planning and outreach.    

8. The Director will work with the Assistant Director of Annual Giving to launch a comprehensive alumni class reunion giving program.  The Director will guide the development of special solicitation initiatives to elicit the greatest possible gift during reunion years – particular focus will be given to alumni celebrating their 25th, 40th and 50th Class Reunions. The Director will promote a strong collaborative effort between staff in Annual Giving and staff in the Center for Alumni, Parents & Friends as well as with staff in Leadership Gifts.
9. The Director will be responsible for working with staff in University Marketing, as well as outside vendors to ensure the creation of compelling, innovative solicitation methods utilizing direct marketing, direct mail, social media, telemarketing, and on-line giving techniques.
10. The Director will serve as a member of the Senior Leadership Team within the division of university advancement and contribute to the policy and direction setting process for the division.
11. The Director will be a sophisticated user of donor database systems with the ability to draw donor segments and evaluate segment performance to guide investment and solicitation strategy. The Director will have a thorough understanding of marketing analytics and the ability to use prior gift and predictive modeling data to guide the development of future donor segments and the creation of efficient and profitable solicitation strategies.
12. The Director will actively engage in the qualification and rating of new donor prospects during their prospect visits and make recommendations of prospects who should be managed at the Leadership Gift Level ($25,000 or higher).
13. The Director will work cooperatively with University colleagues across campus as well as community volunteer groups (i.e. Curtain Raisers and the University Colleagues Advisory Board) to enhance our outreach to and solicitation of University friends for designated current use support of the Mazza Museum, Performing Arts, Oiler Athletic Fund and the Concert & Lecture Series.
14. The Director will develop a strategy for the 100% Oilers Campaign, engaging and soliciting a broad base of support from University’s faculty and staff and retirees. 
15. The Director will work with the Donor Relations and Stewardship Manager to develop special stewardship initiatives that include tailored donor recognition letters, participation in the development of the Annual Report of Gifts, and donor recognition events.
16. The Director will exercise oversight of the Annual Giving budget to ensure that available resources are employed to areas that produce the greatest fundraising return.  He/she will also monitor the budget as needed to ensure a balanced budget for the fiscal year.   
17. The Director will insure the completion of monthly activity reports and enter details of their prospect visits into the division database system following each trip. All travel reimbursement paper work and requests will be submitted for approval within 30 days of travel.
18. Perform all other duties deemed necessary for this position. 

Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

Competencies

1. Collaboration Skills.
2. Persuasive Presentation Skills.
3. Communication Proficiency.
4. Discretion.
5. Ethical Conduct.
6. Flexibility.
7. Organizational Skills.
8. Performance Management.
9. Personal Effectiveness/Credibility.
10. Technical Capacity.

Supervisory Responsibility

The Director of Annual Giving will directly supervise the Senior Associate Director of Annual Giving, the Assistant Director of Annual Giving and a part time administrative assistant.  Indirectly, the Director of Annual giving will supervise a dedicated team of student employees.  

Work Environment

This job operates in a professional office environment. This role routinely uses standard office equipment such as computers, phones, photocopiers, filing cabinets and fax machines. 

Physical Demands

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform While performing the duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to talk or hear. 

The employee frequently is required to stand; walk; use hands to finger, handle or feel; and reach with hands and arms as part of the essential functions of this job. 

Travel

Some nights and weekends may be required.  Candidates must possess a valid driver’s license, and safe driving record.

Required Education and Experience

1. Bachelor’s degree.
2. Three years of professional experience is required.  
3. Must be a strategic thinker, gifted leader and a bold visionary who flourishes in a fast paced and ever changing environment. 
4. Must be able to utilize strong analytical skills to evaluate the performance of a multi-faceted annual giving program, and confidently deploy limited resources in a manner that produces the greatest financial benefit to the University.
5. Must be accustomed to managing multiple projects at once and understand how to lead, engage and motivate team members responsible for their respective parts of each project. 

Preferred Education and Experience

None required for this position.

For optimal consideration of your applicant file, faculty applications must include a cover letter; current Resume or Curriculum Vitae; a statement of teaching philosophy; and the contact information for three professional references with your application. Staff applications must include a current Resume or Curriculum Vitae and cover letter with your application.

The University of Findlay is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Educator and Employer. It is the university's policy to prohibit discrimination and provide equal opportunity to all employees and applicants for employment, without regard to their race, sex (including gender identity/expression), color, religion, ancestry, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, military or sexual orientation.