Director, Leadership Giving

📋 Description

• Manage a portfolio of mid-level donors and prospects independently, employing structured moves management to enhance relationships and increase donations over time.

• Create and implement tailored cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship strategies, including annual plans with measurable benchmarks.

• Conduct assessments to evaluate donor capacity, affinity, and readiness for increased investment.

• Achieve or surpass targets for donor outreach, revenue generation, and pipeline development.

• Facilitate virtual and in-person meetings with donors and prospects to foster relationships and present significant giving opportunities.

• Articulate organizational priorities and funding opportunities in a compelling, donor-focused manner.

• Compose personalized and semi-personalized communications for donors, including emails, proposals, and stewardship updates.

• Act as the primary relationship manager for donors within the Compassion Collective, representing the program during donor interactions and engagement opportunities.

• Collaborate closely with donor experience and direct response teams, who design and implement programmatic communications and engagement strategies.

• Provide frontline insights regarding donor sentiment, engagement trends, and opportunities to enhance the mid-level donor experience.

• Ensure consistent messaging and positioning of the Compassion Collective in all donor-facing interactions.

• Identify and actively cultivate donors with the potential and willingness to contribute at higher levels, regardless of their current giving status.

• Develop and execute strategic plans to upgrade donors into major gift portfolios.

• Coordinate thoughtful and timely transitions to major gift officers to maintain continuity in relationship management.

• Keep accurate and timely records of donor interactions, strategies, and follow-up actions within the CRM.

• Monitor progress towards revenue goals, engagement metrics, and upgrade results.

• Work collaboratively across philanthropy, donor experience, and digital marketing teams to ensure a seamless donor journey.

• Contribute to broader fundraising efforts, including appeals, donor engagement strategies, and cross-functional initiatives.

• Adhere to all organizational policies and procedures and perform other tasks as assigned.

⛳️ Requirements

• A Bachelor's degree and a minimum of 5 years of experience in fundraising, volunteer management, recruitment, or sales.

• Proven success in managing a donor portfolio and securing gifts in the range of $1,000–$10,000+.

• Strong understanding of donor lifecycle strategies, including qualification, cultivation, solicitation, stewardship, and upgrading.

• Demonstrated ability to assess donor capacity and affinity, translating insights into strategic actions.

• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills, with experience in creating donor-facing materials.

• Capacity to balance personalized engagement with efficient portfolio management practices.

• Strong organizational skills and attention to detail, with the ability to manage multiple priorities effectively.

• Proficiency in utilizing CRM systems and digital tools to support donor engagement and tracking.

• Willingness to travel occasionally and work some evenings and weekends as required.

• A commitment to the mission and values of Mercy For Animals.

🏝️ Benefits

• No- or low-cost health, vision, and dental insurance.

• Generous paid time off and sick leave.

• 401(k) retirement plan, with a dollar-for-dollar employer match of up to 3.5% of your annual earnings.