This position is approved to work in the following locations: DC, Florida, Georgia, Maine, New Hampshire, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, or South Carolina.  

Salary Range: $116,000 - $150,000 annually (Note - At TWS, we utilize geographic location as part of our compensation consideration, therefore the estimated starting salary for this position is dependent on the location, as well as the qualifications and experience of the selected candidate.)

Please submit your resume and cover letter by the application closing date on September 10, 2023.

General Description

The Senior Officer, Leadership Giving and Impact, is responsible for managing relationships and securing support from a portfolio of leadership gift donors and prospects (capable of giving $100,000 over three years) throughout the Northeast and Southeast to support the mission of The Wilderness Society (TWS), The Wilderness Society Action Fund (TWSAF), and the TWSAF Political Action Committee (PAC). Portfolio size is between 90-125 and is comprised of active donors, board members and prospects. The Senior Officer will play a critical role in TWS’ comprehensive campaign by maintaining strong relationships with a sophisticated existing donor base, as well as identifying, qualifying and growing the pipeline of major gift donors.

The Senior Officer will work closely with the Senior Director, the leadership giving team, mid-level giving manager and other fundraising colleagues throughout the department, program staff and volunteers to secure support for TWS’ campaign priorities as they align with donor interest.

This position plays an important role in supporting an inclusive organizational culture that is grounded in trust and accountability to shared goals and outcomes. TWS has made diversity, equity, and inclusion strategic priorities for the organization and the Senior Officer will integrate these priorities throughout our major gift work. Additionally, the Giving & Impact Team has created an Equity Commitment to guide our work and across our team, we aspire to be campaign oriented, nimble, collaborative, innovative, transparent, and supportive of staff – our greatest asset.

Essential Duties & Responsibilities

• Identifies, qualifies, cultivates, solicits and stewards a portfolio of 90-125 leadership donors and prospects. Develops written strategies and maintains these donor plans in our database of record (ROI).
• Participates fully in comprehensive campaign initiatives, including qualifying suspects identified by TWS’ wealth screening and by working closely with volunteer leaders.
• Conducts 10-12 personal visits (in person or virtual) with prospects and donors per month, and initiates at least 30 solicitations per year.
• Raises a minimum of $3,000,000-$5,000,000 per year. Creates personalized giving opportunities that can include blended gifts and giving across the family of TWS entities, including the TWS Action Fund and Political Action Committee.
• Develops annual revenue projections based on donor portfolio, working with the Senior Director, Giving and Impact and Operations and Outreach colleagues.
• With Sr. Research Analyst and Sr. Manger for mid-level donors, gathers data, assesses prospects, and develops strategies designed to realize the current and life-time giving potential of individual prospects.
• In collaboration with the Sr. Events Manager, manages two regional events annually. Leverages volunteer opportunities and special events as individual cultivation and engagement tools.
• Performs integral role with program colleagues by facilitating Leadership Gift activities of the Conservation program staff in the Northeast and Southeast.
• Participates as the Giving and Impact representative on one of our cross-functional landscape or result teams. As a team member, the Giving and Impact representative drives fundraising strategy for the landscape or result, and plays a coordinating role, working with relationship managers for donors/funders across channels.
• Performs other duties as required or assigned.

QUALIFICATIONS

Experience, Competencies, and Education

• 10+ years’ professional fundraising experience required.
• Development office, major gifts and/or planned giving experience required. Proven ability to engage and develop support from high net worth philanthropists.
• Exceptional interpersonal skills. Demonstrated ability to use problem solving skills for resolving donor questions and issues. Demonstrated businesslike manner and ability to function efficiently in a busy work environment.
• Exceptional writing and editing skills. Ability to understand, interpret, and synthesize complex programmatic information.
• Demonstrated ability to establish schedules, set priorities, and meet deadlines. Must be able to balance and complete multiple projects and daily responsibilities.
• Must be able to communicate with key program and executive staff, and possess the capability of motivating volunteers, professional staff, and donors. Possesses a “generalist” toolkit and approach; comfortable understanding and synthesizing complex information across TWS’s and TWSAF’s program work.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite.
• Track record working successfully in teams representing a rich mix of talent, backgrounds, and perspectives—across race and gender.
• Willingness and ability to travel 25% time routinely, some months more, to successfully manage portfolio that is distributed across the Northeast and Southeast and attend occasional team or department meetings.

Desired Characteristics

• Keen interest and/or experience in bringing an equity lens to leadership gift fundraising, including increasing the racial diversity of TWS’s donor base.
• Continuously uses feedback and embodies a growth mindset to improve work product and personal development. Confident in giving and receiving feedback to other team members.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS

The physical demands described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job.   Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

While performing the duties of this job, the employee is occasionally required to stand; walk; sit; use hands to finger, handle, or feel objects; reach with hands and arms; climb stairs; balance; stoop, kneel, crouch or crawl; talk or hear.  The employee must occasionally lift and/or move up to 30 pounds.  Specific vision abilities required by the job include close vision.

WORK ENVIRONMENT

Work environment characteristics described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job.  Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the essential functions.

While performing the duties of this job, the employee may be exposed to adverse weather conditions.  The noise level in the work environment is usually moderate.

This job description is intended to convey information essential to understanding the scope of this position and it is not intended to be an exhaustive list of experience, skills, efforts, duties, responsibilities or working conditions associated with the position.