Program Coordinator, Prospect Research and Management

Job Information

Job

Location:

Evanston, Illinois

Alumni Relations & Development

EXS/5 – Target hiring range: $51,350-$53,000 per year (salary based on education, experience, knowledge, skills and abilities, as well as internal equity and alignment with market data)

The Prospect Research and Management (PRM) team works with frontline fundraisers to build Northwestern University's pool of potential donors. The Program Coordinator plays a central operational and analytical role within the PRM team. This position supports research, reporting, data quality management, budget coordination, and vendor relationships, while also serving as a key liaison to teams across Alumni Relations and Development (ARD).

The role combines structured project management, analytical thinking, and collaborative communication to strengthen prospect development efforts across the organization.

Ideal candidates need not have direct experience in this field. Rather, we are looking for candidates who are energized by working with large amounts of data and translating it into actionable insight, are excited by the idea of exposure to a varied array of assignments, and are enthusiastic about acquiring a skill set that will contribute to their professional growth within the organization.

The PRM team values curiosity, thoughtful questions, and collaborative problem-solving. A proactive ability to identify business needs and propose solutions to them will set a candidate up for success. We prioritize accuracy and learning over speed when navigating new systems or unfamiliar tasks.

Please note:

This role is eligible for a hybrid work arrangement, up to two days remote and three onsite.

Project Management and Administration

• Manage day-to-day operations of the PRM team
• Coordinate and support team-wide data analysis and quality initiatives
• Build and maintain reports that fill business gaps, increase efficiency, and simplify the collection of data for staff across ARD
• Manage PRM's data quality management process, correcting data errors and/or delegating clean up assignments to other PRM staff or fundraising teams, as appropriate
• Prepare and maintain team budget
• Act as liaison with third-party vendors and manage PRM's suite of subscription resources
• Negotiate and renew contracts, pay invoices, and prepare department expense reports
• Assist other members of the PRM as needed
• Act as point of contact for IT to ensure technology systems are properly installed and maintained

Communication and Outreach

• Serve as point of contact between PRM and other ARD teams in scheduling meetings, managing calendars, organizing portfolio reviews, and other communication needs
• Manage PRM's new employee onboarding process, tracking new hires, scheduling onboardings, and training both internal and external staff on PRM policies and business practices
• Oversee compilation of team communications, digest emails, reports, and other resources intended for the ARD community
• Maintain PRM team's presence on internal communication channels, such as the department Knowledge Share (intranet)
• Develop working knowledge of research and prospect management policies and contribute to ARD staff's understanding of those policies
• Negotiate project deliverables firmly and respectfully, ensuring requestor satisfaction while maintaining realistic expectations and appropriate expenditure of resources

Prospect Research and Management

• Conduct prospect research by gathering, analyzing, and synthesizing financial, biographical, philanthropic, and relational information-using tools such as wealth screenings, research databases, data-mining platforms, news and financial feeds, and relationship-mapping resources-to assess capacity, affinity, engagement potential, compliance, and reputational risk
• Produce clear, accurate research deliverables - including profiles, capacity estimates, and analytical summaries - to support prospect identification, qualification, and strategic fundraising decisions
• Contribute to discussions on refinement of prospect management policies, business processes, and overall approaches to prospect development at ARD
• Collaborate…