ABOUT US

The Western Advancement division plays a leading role in strengthening awareness of and support for the University’s mission and goals by leading alumni relations and fundraising efforts across campus and beyond. All departments within the Division build enduring alumni and public trust through understanding and support for Western University in a coordinated campus-wide effort that results in the engagement and funding needed to make an impact. There are 3 departments within the Division – Departments of Development, Alumni Relations and Advancement Operations.

QUALIFICATIONS

Education:

• Undergraduate Degree in Business Administration, Communications, Marketing, Public Relations or related discipline

Experience:

• 5 years demonstrated experience leading a team towards revenue targets
• Experience in an Annual Giving fundraising role, with a strong working knowledge of leadership giving, including experience with donor contact and personal solicitation
• Demonstrated record of program development, implementation and evaluation
• Experience with the development of marketing materials, including direct mail, digital and telephone scripts
• Experience fundraising in a University or other complex non-profit environment preferred

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities:

• In-depth knowledge of fundraising principles and techniques
• Ability to effectively lead a fundraising or revenue-generating campaign and achieve targets
• Outstanding prospect management skills, including identifying, evaluating, cultivating, stewarding and directing personal solicitation of annual gifts
• Openness to recognize when change is necessary, and to develop, implement and lead effective change management strategies
• Ability to effectively lead a fundraising or revenue-generating campaign and achieve targets
• Ability to collaborate across internal and external boundaries to meet common objectives, improve outcomes and support work beyond one’s own unit
• Oral and written communication skills with an emphasis on proposal development and delivering presentations
• Ability to draw on diversity of skills, backgrounds and knowledge of people to achieve more effective results
• Ability to make decisions and recommendations that are clearly linked to the organization’s strategy and goals
• A desire to grow and advance skills, which is demonstrated by attending conferences, workshops and other professional developmental opportunities to enhance performance
• Ambitious with the ability to identify opportunities, develop action plans and set challenging goals in order to achieve desired outcomes
• Ability to remain highly motivated, resilient, innovative, and collaborative when faced with challenges
• Ability to work within a flexible schedule to accommodate the University’s events and activities
• Influential interpersonal skills that build positive and strong relationships at all levels of the organization
• Leadership skills with the ability to inspire employees and develop a shared vision to lead a team to excellence
• Advanced computer skills in Microsoft Office Suite

Reporting to the Executive Director (Annual, Leadership & Legacy Giving), the Director, Leadership Giving is responsible for the strategic planning, implementation, evaluation and management of leadership giving activities at Western University with a goal in excess of $5M. As part of an overall development process, which matches the University’s academic objectives and financial needs with the highest philanthropic aspirations of donors, the goal of leadership giving is to identify and engage alumni and donors who have the capacity to give $10,000-$49,999 to Western on an annual basis. The Director will focus on increasing the number of donors giving at the leadership level, as well as maximizing overall revenue generation by the centrally based team. In addition, the Director will increase the engagement of this donor community, leading to a pipeline of prospects at the major giving level and beyond.
This highly collaborative role will build effective partnerships with fundraising colleagues in the faculties and divisions to ensure alignment of decentralized activities with best practices and centrally established processes. The leadership giving portfolio has strong growth potential, and the role will be charged with reviewing, enhancing and expanding the reach of the team.