Development Officer

Start Date: January

**Position Summary**

The Development Officer is responsible for achieving major gift fundraising and planned giving program objectives. The Development Officer Officer identifies and cultivates relationships with prospective major donors and planned giving donors. This involves prospect research and executing effective solicitation strategies as well as stewarding and cultivating donors throughout the major giving process. The Development Officer maintain a donor portfolio with an emphasis on gifts of $5,000 or greater.

Report to: Chief Executive Officer

**Key Responsibilities**:

- **Major Gifts**_
- Responsible for the solicitation of donations of $5,000 and higher from individuals and organizations.
- Develop and execute strategies to identify, research, cultivate and solicit prospects for major and planned gifts in collaboration and cooperation with the Chief Executive Officer.
- Maintain fast-paced schedule of face-to-face visits to steward current donors and to engage new major donor prospects.
- Conduct major gift prospect identification through wealth screening scores, member analytics, self-selection, and community research.
- Write individualized cultivation, solicitation and stewardship letters, proposals and reports.
- Manage relationships with prospective donors and will be expected to identify, qualify, cultivate, solicit and steward these donors.
- Plan and execute a series of donor and prospect-focused events and donor recognition events.
- Track all donor interactions in the donor database software.
- Complete timely and appropriate gift acknowledgement and donor recognition using the donor recognition policy.
- Participate in all aspects of the gift cycle:

- Initiate contacts with potential prospects
- Develop appropriate cultivation strategies for them
- Move potential donors in an appropriate and timely fashion toward solicitation
- Make solicitations when appropriate
- Maintain stewardship contacts with donors; adhere to the highest ethical standards; demonstrate empathetic disposition, and perseverance; reflect optimistic and positive attitude, and convey sensitivity to needs of the donors
- **Planned Giving**_
- Cultivate relationships with lawyers, accountants, financial planners and other estate planning professionals regarding gift opportunities for donors.
- Help expand and manage the estate planning program.
- Identify, research, contact, cultivate, solicit and steward current and prospective planned giving donors to increase individual planned gifts as well as growing the overall donor base and prospect pool.
- Work closely with donors and their professional advisors to structure planned gifts appropriately.
- **Stewardship**_
- Develop programs and standardized practices to steward donors in order to retain their support, upgrade their giving or uncover gift intentions/abilities.
- Ensure that each donor is stewarded as per the aspects of the Donor Matrix.
- Liaise with Operations department to ensure effective and efficient processes to generate receipts and letters on a timely basis
- Liaise with marketing department to uncover donor and patient testimonials. Develop a system to generate, vet, store, track and manage patient testimonials
- Build internal staff engagement with the presentation of the grateful patient recognition.
- Provide donor stewardship content as required for the Foundation newsletter
- **Other Duties**_
- Maintain donor confidentiality and protect Foundation operations by keeping information confidential
- Maintain skill/knowledge by attending educational sessions and keeping informed of Foundation policies and procedures
- Be an ambassador for the Foundation

**Qualifications**
- 5 years of successful fundraising and direct-solicitation experience
- Track record of personally closing five
- and six -figure gifts preferred
- Familiarity of moves management system
- Familiarity with Planned Giving techniques preferred
- Superior interpersonal, verbal and written communication skills
- Excellent time management and communication skills
- Ability to understand the needs and interests of major gift donors in order to develop relationships between them and the Foundation
- Ability to read, review, monitor and track financial reports
- Successful experience in developing cultivation and solicitation strategies
- MS Office proficiency
- Efficient and attentive to detail and accuracy, sound judgment and problem solving skills
- A valid Driver’s license and access to a vehicle

**Key Competencies**
- **Communication Skills**: Write clearly and effectively in a variety of tones. Gauge levels of familiarity and formality in different situations and adjust accordingly. Exemplary listening skills are necessary.
- **Discretion**: Act discreetly in order to protect the privacy of our donors.
- **Tech savviness**: Systematically track donor pipeline and all communication in the software.
- **Emotional intelligence**:React quickly and think on