Director of Development, West Region

Director of Development – West Region

The National WWII Museum is currently seeking a Director of Development for the West Region. The Director of Development for the West Region reports to the Vice President of Institutional Advancement and is responsible for securing financial resources to support the Museum’s campaign priorities in the areas of Education and Programs;
Collections, Exhibits, and Campus; and Endowment and Planned Giving. The Director will build relationships with individual, corporate, and foundation donors and prospects in the West Region. The West Region is defined as California, Oregon, Washington, and Arizona.

The Museum’s fundraising program is national in scope, and Development Directors are assigned to regional responsibilities. The Director will join a major‑gift‑focused development team that includes Directors of Development for the following regions:
East/Mid Atlantic, South/Central, and Louisiana/Texas, as well as a Director of Planned Giving and a Director of Corporate and Foundations. In addition to reporting directly to the Vice President of Institutional Advancement, Directors of Development also report secondarily to the Assistant Vice President of Institutional Advancement, who oversees prospect and pipeline management.

• Identify, cultivate, and solicit leadership and major‑gift prospects; recommend and implement strategies for cultivation, solicitation, stewardship, and engagement for prospects; work with executive and Museum leadership and board members as appropriate; and meet with prospects both in person and virtually, with regular travel throughout the assigned region.
• Contribute to the development of capital, programmatic, and endowment fundraising strategies to increase giving, with an emphasis on expanding the individual major‑gift effort.
• Manage a portfolio of approximately 150 prospects through all fundraising cycles – identification, qualification, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship – meeting monthly agreed‑upon donor contact and proposal submission goals, tracking activity and contact, and maintaining updates in the Museum’s CRM, Raiser’s Edge.
• Develop and implement solicitation plans for each prospect; craft compelling, donor‑centric proposals to support them.
• Coordinate stewardship and acknowledgment activities, ensuring regular, systematic contact with prospects across all communication channels.
• Assist Museum administrators in identifying institutional funding needs and staying up to date on institutional priorities, programs, personnel, and events.
• Serve as the principal liaison to major gift prospects for the Museum, developing and maintaining a collaborative work environment with Museum departments to ensure a seamless donor journey and engagement.
• Ability to plan and schedule your travel when visiting major‑gift prospects in your region.

• Bachelor’s degree required;
  Master’s degree and CFRE certification are a plus.
• 5+ years of direct fundraising experience – with a clear understanding of annual, major, capital, and deferred gifts – and a demonstrable track record of securing six‑ and seven‑figure gifts.
• Experience in higher education, healthcare, or large arts/cultural organizations; demonstrable interest in lifelong learning.
• Mastery of the skills, principles, practices, and techniques associated with implementing and successfully executing major‑gift work on a national scale.
• Highly developed interpersonal, written, and verbal communication skills.
• Working knowledge of Blackbaud Raiser’s Edge.
• Proactive strategic thinker with strong organizational skills and the ability to work both independently and as a team member.
• Flexible, adaptable, and proactive team player, comfortable with ambiguity and able to navigate sophisticated donor relationships.
• Ability to manage work responsibilities while building donor relationships that require regular travel, evening and weekend meetings, and time commitments.

This position can be based in New Orleans or on the West Coast. If West Coast‑based, the position requires regional travel and quarterly travel to New Orleans. If New Orleans‑based, travel…