Development Coordinator

Job Description

The Development Coordinator, Principal and Major Gifts (PMG) works in partnership with and provides administrative support to two Principal Major Gift fundraisers who are charged with raising funds and planning and executing prospect strategy, cultivation, stewardship, and solicitation for Harvard Kennedy School (HKS).

Working independently and as part of a team in a dynamic, fast-paced environment, the Development Coordinator is responsible for day‑to‑day administrative support such as updating prospect activity and tracking progress, calendaring, making travel arrangements, drafting and proofreading prospect briefings and materials, report generation, database maintenance, and assisting with projects related to assigned HKS research centers and regional‑based fundraising portfolios.

The Development Coordinator may also coordinate selected department‑wide resources, workflows and strategies, in addition to providing customer service to Alumni Relations and Resource Development staff members, the HKS Dean’s Office, HKS faculty, staff, and research centers, donors, and alumni.

• Provides general office support including but not limited to responding to phone and email inquiries, maintaining calendars, filing, and managing updates in the development database.
• Pulling, reviewing with fundraiser, and updating fundraiser’s detailed prospect list (marked with stage codes, quarter of solicitation, proposal designation, ask amounts, next steps) and their monthly activity reports showing progress to fundraiser’s conversion, visit and solicitation targets, weekly.
• Calendaring for donor and faculty meetings.
• Coordinates travel arrangements including international travel for supervisors and others as required; drafts accurate itineraries.
• Updating weekly next steps on prospects in each fundraiser’s portfolio.
• Taking information from each donor visit, drafting contract reports (required for getting credit for a visit) and entering into database.
• Creating shell briefings for HKS leadership and faculty visits with that fundraiser’s prospects.
• Creating and revising curated prospects lists with staging and next steps for fundraisers work with Centers and on Dean’s priorities.
• Liaising within ARRD and across the School with non‑frontline teams on donor‑related items, such as issues related to stewardship and event prep.
• Prepping materials for fundraiser’s standing meetings with Centers.
• Provides first‑look research and vetting for new prospects to determine whether they have capacity and are philanthropic.
• Researches prospects and program information; performs routine data pulls, reporting and data analysis as needed using Advance, Qlik View, MS Word, and/or Excel.
• As a member of the Alumni Relations and Development Office team, takes on critical project work as needed. This may include working on fundraising project planning efforts, staffing development committee meetings or events, and drafting reports and presentations.
• The above covers the most significant responsibilities of this position. It does not, however, exclude other duties including coverage for the PMG group as needed, the inclusion of which would be in conformity with the level of the position.

Primary work takes place in an office environment. Some tasks may require being on campus or in other off‑site locations for a period of time. Sitting or standing for periods of time. Some repetitive motion.

• 2 or more years of administrative and customer service support experience.
• Prior experience with complex calendar, expense, and travel itinerary management.
• A complete application must include a cover letter.

• Excellent organizational skills required. Detail oriented, efficient, and capable of managing assignments from multiple sources at once while meeting project deadlines.
• Strong knowledge of MS Office and ability to learn new software quickly.
• Exceptional written and verbal communication skills.
• Demonstrated ability to manage highly confidential information.
• Must be highly organized, collaborative, focused, adaptable, reliable, self‑motivated, and able…