Website Northern Kentucky University
The Senior Director of Development reports to the Assistant Vice President of Development and will serve as a major gift fundraising leader for Northern Kentucky University’s priorities, colleges, and programs, with the goal of increasing gifts of $25K and above. The Senior Director will serve as the primary development liaison to one or more units of the university, and help to develop and execute strategic plans for the major gifts program, positioning the university and its units to achieve significant growth over the next 3-5 years in preparation for the next comprehensive campaign. Key elements of these plans will address pipeline development, portfolio optimization, and alignment with university and college priorities. Additionally, the Senior Director will manage one or more gift officers as assigned, adding leadership bench strength to ensure talent retention, achievement of annual metric goals, and adequate professional skill development.
The Senior Director will collaborate with key partners across University Advancement including Economic Engagement, Alumni Engagement and Annual Giving, Marketing and Communications, Advancement Operations, and Special Events to identify potential prospects, leverage university events to engage prospects and steward donors, utilize university systems to record prospect and donor interactions, track proposals, and maintain prospect and donor contact information, and analyze major gift program progress and performance. The Senior Director will work with Deans, faculty, and other senior academic and administrative leaders across the University to facilitate their appropriate participation in the development process as needed to cultivate, solicit, and close gifts.
The Senior Director will personally build and manage a portfolio of 60-75 major gift prospects to generate a minimum of $1.5M in annual philanthropic revenue and serve as a development leader within the Division to assist the AVP with the strategic direction and growth of the program through participation in special projects, as assigned.
A bachelor’s degree plus 7-10 years of progressive responsibility in fundraising or business development or a master’s degree plus at least 5 years of closely related experience, is required, as is at least 2 years of management experience and a proven track record of closing gifts or contracts of $25K or more. Previous experience working with the corporate community and experience with gift planning concepts is preferred.
The successful candidate for this role will be intellectually curious, possess a positive growth mindset and a keen understanding of and passion for the value of higher education, and be able to translate the priorities of faculty and academic leadership into a compelling philanthropic vision. The successful candidate must also be able to balance leadership of self within both the college unit and the broader organization against expectations as an individual fundraising contributor.
- Internal motivation and drive
- Demonstrated excellence in written and verbal communication
- Capacity to manage and prioritize multiple projects
- Interpersonal, cultural, and emotional intelligence
- Integrity and accountability to others
- Learning agility
- Strategic decision-making and judgment
- Conflict and change management
- Persistence and patience
The Senior Director will benefit from the partnership of a seasoned Assistant Vice President of Development and Vice President of Advancement, passionate and dedicated volunteer leadership, and a significant base of alumni and prospects with as yet untapped capacity. In addition, the Senior Director will benefit from a collaborative and collegial culture within the Advancement Division.
To apply for this job please visit jobs.nku.edu.