Development Assistant

**Department**: Advancement Services
Position covered by the Collective Agreement with USW Local 4120

Temporary full-time from 11/17/2024 to 01/23/2026
Temporary Absence of the Regular Incumbent

**General Purpose**

The department of Alumni Affairs and Development (AA&D) advances the mission of the University of Guelph by raising private support and building relationships with a broad range of stakeholders ranging from alumni and friends to corporations and foundations. As a member of the AA&D team, the Development Assistant epitomizes the department’s shared values of respect, empowerment, integrity, appreciation, and forward focus.

**Duties and Responsibilities**

The Development Assistant (DA) works to support and coordinate the major giving fundraising activities and plans of Senior Development Managers (SDMs), Development Managers and Alumni Advancement Managers. The DA is an important contributor to university-wide prospect management. The incumbent contributes significantly to discussions of prospect strategy and is responsible for prospect management administration for 400 to 600 prospects, including tasks such as management of prospect clearance timelines, updates to the alumni database, preparation and manipulations of prospect lists, and the preparation and distribution of reports outlining the status of activity on prospects. The DA is expected to work closely with staff in Advancement Research to familiarize themselves with prospects for discussion and is responsible for coordinating general correspondence with prospects.

The DA creates and maintains tools to contribute to and help assess the productivity of the development function, as well as the performance of individual development managers. These tools include personalized tracking for the SDMs and major gift database data from which fundraising reports are produced. The DA is an integral contributor to the arrangement of all prospect calls, including primary responsibility for preparation in advance of the call, and assigned follow-up. The calls are key fundraising meetings designed to cultivate individuals and ultimately seek resources to support the University. The incumbent’s success in this role directly affects the overall success of the fundraising program.

Using the extensive knowledge of prospects and donors, the DA is required to customize and produce appropriate acknowledgement materials and provide support to various donor acknowledgement activities including acknowledgement letters, donor recognition events, donor reports, and internal reporting mechanisms intended to ensure that the University of Guelph acknowledges and informs its donors.

The DA is a team member of Advancement which is responsible for both the Alumni Advancement and Annual Fund, and Development functions of Alumni Affairs & Development. As such, the incumbent may be asked to perform other duties on an as needed basis such as editing and proofing documents and department or university-wide event support.

**Requirements**:

- Two (2) year post secondary in communications, public relations, business fundraising or related field
- One (1) year of related experience, preferably in a senior administrative support level in a fundraising, or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
- Self-motivated with a proven ability to work independently
- Ability to assess priorities in a demanding work environment with tight timelines and multiple origins for work assignments
- Ability to multi-task
- Excellent organizational skills and attention to detail
- Highly effective written and oral communication skills
- Superior interpersonal and client service skills
- Ability to exercise good judgement, tact and diplomacy
- Competencies in the area of problem solving and decision making

Employee Type: Cover
Position Number: 10394047
Classification: USW, Local 4120 Salary: Band 4
USW Local 4120 Wage GridPosting Date: 11/04/2024
Closing Date: 11/11/2024