Associate Director, Major Gifts

Job

Location:

San Francisco, California

Department: Alumni Relations & Development

Salary/Grade: EXS/10

Target hiring range for this position will be between $100,000 - $120,000 per year or per hour. Offered salary will be determined by the applicant's education, experience, knowledge, skills and abilities, as well as internal equity and alignment with market data

This position reports to the Executive Director of the West Coast Regional Office and is based in the San Francisco office. The Associate Director of Major Gifts will be responsible for identifying, cultivating, and soliciting major gift support from a prospect pool of alumni, friends, and family members in the Bay Area. This frontline fundraiser will develop and manage a fluid portfolio of prospects through qualification visits, cultivation efforts and customized solicitations that align with prospect interests and financial capacity.

This position collaborates with colleagues across Alumni Relations and Development and the greater University, including deans, faculty, program directors, and other University volunteers to plan and execute compelling prospect meetings and solicitations of donors.

This role includes structured professional development through Plus Delta's Discipline of Frontline Fundraising program, providing high-quality training to strengthen fundamental skills in donor cultivation, solicitation, portfolio management, and strategic relationship building. Additional ARD resources further connect Northwestern policies and processes with the best practices introduced in Plus Delta's curriculum.

Please note:

This position is in San Francisco and is hybrid. Our office operates in a hybrid model and offers the option of working three days in the office and two days remote. There will be occasional work outside of standard business hours for donor engagement events.

For full consideration, please submit a cover letter and resume.

• Gathers data, assesses leads, and develops strategies designed to realize the current and lifetime giving potential of individual prospects.
• Maintains consistent and appropriate contact.
• Facilitates or makes direct solicitations.
• Closes major gifts ($100K) for the University through qualification and cultivation.
• Ensures effective stewardship.

• Involves moderate- to-high-level collaboration with both internal department partners and moderate level of collaboration with broader University partners to identify & integrate resources to accomplish strategic goals & objectives.

• Develops, plans, and implements strategies and approaches to identify, personally solicit, and steadily close major gifts of six-figures or more.
• Collaborates with West Coast Major Gift and Donor Engagement teams and other areas of alumni relations and development, including Schools & Programs and Planned Gifts, to coordinate donor strategies.
• Builds a portfolio through discovery and qualification with a target of 40 prospects at a time. Manages portfolio by strategically moving them through the major gift pipeline.
• Secures visits with prospects and effectively articulates University fundraising priorities to gauge donor interest and capacity.
• Collects and synthesizes information from a wide array of sources to prepare compelling donor proposals that strategically align with donor interests and their full philanthropic capacity.
• Oversees and completes associated stewardship activities, maintains up-to-date best practices, and evaluates closed projects.
• Gathers, records, and retrieves information about prospects and donors utilizing University's donor and alumni database, internet, meetings with development staff, faculty, etc.
• Prepares contact reports on meetings and interactions with alumni.

• Interact with volunteers on the West Coast; attend meetings and utilize volunteer help as needed.

• Supports strategy for regional donor engagement events.
• Staff alumni and donor engagement events to advance prospect pool and giving.

• Proactive, productive team contributor with a positive attitude and commitment to an inclusive workplace. Offers recommendations to enhance innovation, objectives, and goals.
• Demonstrated ability to follow through and take responsibility for outcomes.
• Driven by challenging individual and team fundraising goals.
• Requires travel throughout the New York tri-state region and periodic travel to the Evanston campus.

Performs other duties as…