Director, Principal Gifts Research

Position Title:

Director, Principal Gifts Research

Position Type:

Regular

Hiring Range:

$115,200 - $129,600 per year; Compensation will be based on education, experience, skills relevant to the role, and internal equity.

Pay Frequency:

Annual

OVERVIEW

University Relations builds Santa Clara University’s excellence and character by strengthening relations with alumni, parents, and friends of the University, raising public awareness, and increasing private philanthropy. The Development Division has been recognized with the CASE Educational Fundraising Award, an honor given each year to superior fundraising programs at educational institutions across the country.

A.    POSITION PURPOSE

The Principal Gifts team (PG) supports transformative fundraising gifts, each in excess of $2,000,000 at Santa Clara University by providing customized information and analyses that contribute to building and maintaining donor relationships and strengthening connections to the University. The PG team works collaboratively with each other, including the development officers, prospect management and analytics, and other teams in university relations and offices across campus, to ensure the university meets its fundraising goals.

Reporting to the Senior Associate Vice President for Principal Gifts and Development (AVP), the Director, Principal Gifts Research is responsible for assessing wealth, giving capacity and propensity of prospective donors to meet the campus fundraising goals and objectives. The Director, Principal Gifts Research works in close partnership with the principal gift team to oversee principal gift prospect identification, prospect research, portfolio development, and critical accounting interactions with PG donor’s wealth advisors. This role produces and manages quarterly and annual donor reports for donors to scholarships, professorships, capital, academic priorities and programmatic areas. The Director, Principal Gifts Research analyzes large and complex data and monitors news alerts, employment changes, stock sales, IPO offerings, and public records for PG prospects while supporting the strategic and tactical planning and operation effectiveness of the unit’s and overall university’s fundraising.

This position allows for a flexible work schedule: hybrid - working from both the office and home.

B.    ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES 

• Independently lead large and complex projects that have multiple tasks and competing deadlines.

• Advise the Sr. AVP on developing and implementing PG guidelines and procedures, priority setting, and new initiatives.

• Design and implement comprehensive data-mining and proactive prospect identification projects for fundraising initiatives.

• Initiate and lead projects to make PG’s work more efficient and effective to improve service to academic units and University Relations.

• Proactively identify and research successful and generous prospective donors whose philanthropic interests match the University’s priorities and initiatives.

• Research, analyze, and maintain information on prospective donor’s backgrounds, interests, and philanthropic propensity using a variety of electronic databases, public records, publications, and on-line services.

• Oversee regular portfolio reviews with the Principal Gifts team, to advise prospect strategy, track pipeline development, and optimize portfolios.

• Analyzes and identifies trends and develops actionable recommendations for Principal Gift officers and University Relations leadership.

• The Director, Principal Gifts Research will have liaison relationships on behalf of the PG team with various departments within University Relations and across campus, including Dean’s Offices, faculty members, Registrar’s Office and Admissions.

• Interpret and analyze biographical and financial information on individuals and where appropriate, corporations and foundations, based on fundraising strategies and objectives.

• Respond promptly to all research inquiries which may include financial assets, potential for philanthropic support, business and professional affiliations, areas of interest and other university affiliations.

• Support and promote the PG program, including conducting prospect strategy meetings, prepare routine reports of prospect information, and advising fundraisers other development staff on prospect management guidelines and procedures.

• Assist Sr. AVP in mentoring and training PG team members.

• Coordinate proactive use of the CLARA (CRM) database to support moves management, including assignments, moves tracking, proposal tracking,