Associate Vice President for Major Gifts

Associate Vice President for Major Gifts

The University of Pennsylvania, the largest private employer in Philadelphia, is a world-renowned leader in education, research, and innovation. This historic, Ivy League school consistently ranks among the top 10 universities in the annual U.S. News & World Report survey. Penn has 12 highly-regarded schools that provide opportunities for undergraduate, graduate and continuing education, all influenced by Penn’s distinctive interdisciplinary approach to scholarship and learning. As an employer Penn has been ranked nationally on many occasions with the most recent award from Forbes who named Penn one of America’s Best Large Employers in 2023.

Penn offers a unique working environment within the city of Philadelphia. The University is situated on a beautiful urban campus, with easy access to a range of educational, cultural, and recreational activities. With its historical significance and landmarks, lively cultural offerings, and wide variety of atmospheres, Philadelphia is the perfect place to call home for work and play.

The University offers a competitive benefits package that includes excellent healthcare and tuition benefits for employees and their families, generous retirement benefits, a wide variety of professional development opportunities, supportive work and family benefits, a wealth of health and wellness programs and resources, and much more.

Posted Job Title Associate Vice President for Major Gifts

Job Profile Title Associate Vice President, Development, Fundraising

Job Description Summary The Associate Vice President for Major Gifts (AVP) is a senior leadership position within University Strategic Philanthropy & Partnerships (USPP), responsible for building a sustainable and growth-oriented pipeline of major gifts in support of University priorities. The AVP oversees the Office of Major Gifts, including its on-campus team and regional office in New York City, and provides leadership, mentorship, and strategic direction to the team. The AVP will strategically and opportunistically guide and expand a team responsible for cultivating donors and soliciting gifts in support of priorities at all schools, centers, and units across the University, employing a donor-centric approach and proactively fundraising for the University's greatest priorities.

The AVP will develop and set the direction for the team, establishing a strong culture of collaboration, collegiality, and creative vision, with a goal of increasing the pipeline of major-gift donors and gifts to the University. The AVP will mobilize the team, direct strategic data analysis of the program, and position the office for increased and diverse prospect engagement and substantial fundraising growth well into the future, in close alignment with Penn's broader philanthropic priorities and campaign planning.

Reporting to the Chief Philanthropy Officer, overseeing University Strategic Philanthropy & Partnerships (USPP), the AVP must be a strategic and visionary leader, able to translate University needs into exciting giving opportunities and to build lasting partnerships across DAR and with school and center leadership.

This individual must have the ability to authentically inspire and motivate a multi-tiered team, building enthusiasm and a sense of pride in the collective accomplishments of Development and Alumni Relations (DAR). The AVP must have substantial experience managing multiple major gift officers and senior fundraising leaders and understand the importance of data to inform fundraising decisions and program evolution. The AVP must communicate exceptionally well, cultivating relationships and trusted partnerships with colleagues across Penn, from fellow DAR colleagues to the most senior University leaders.

Job Description

Job Responsibilities

• Lead and direct a high-functioning major gifts team to achieve optimum results by:
• Communicating financial and key performance indicators and results to staff members
• Establishing priorities and goals for all staff
• Managing staffing needs and identifying areas for organizational development, updates, or changes
• Guiding the talent identification and professional development needs, processes, and outcomes within the entire unit, in line with the University's diversity and inclusion priorities
• Setting clear performance expectations and holding staff accountable for outcomes through frequent feedback and coaching
• Ensuring open communication among team members, engaging in team-building efforts, and holding regular staff meetings that embrace and support the group's diversity
• Inspiring and motivating staff to achieve optimum results
• Develop and implement a strategic plan to strengthen engagement of major-gift-capable prospects across the country, with particular focus on traditionally under-engaged areas, with a goal of increasing the pipeline of major-gift-capable donors; realign and/or increase staffing of the team to maximize productivity.
• Manage a portfolio of 20-30 prospects with the ability to make high seven-figure gifts to Penn. Personally identify, cultivate, solicit, and steward a select portfolio of prospects, engaging them across all schools and centers at Penn.
• Establish oneself as a university leader in major gifts, developing a cohort of major gift officers who can learn from one another, engage and support each other, and serve as a resource for fundraising colleagues across schools and centers.
• Conceptualize and host periodic gatherings of the group, as well as colleagues across campus, to share best practices and discuss relevant and timely topics, encouraging active participation. Maintain a clear understanding of the landscape and both historical and current trends that could impact major gift fundraising and communicate these to all major gift colleagues and teams across campus.
• Implement and support ongoing training of all major gifts staff to ensure they are always knowledgeable about the University and have the language they need to enthusiastically engage prospects and convert them to donors.
• In collaboration with the team, devise a multi-year strategic plan to guide the team's efforts. Be aspirational in creating vision and goals and thoughtfully guide the team through implementation.
• Develop key performance indicators and consistently utilize data to analyze team performance and program growth, employing forecasting to anticipate how the program will continue to grow. Make and encourage data-driven decision-making across the team.
• Work closely with the Office of Advancement Prospect Analytics (APA) to create reporting that will track progress to goal, performance metrics, growth trajectory, and other metrics needed to assess the health of the program.
• Create a plan for volunteer involvement at the major gifts level. Understand what peer institutions are doing and bolster a volunteer plan that will continue to best serve the needs of Penn and the donor.
• Oversee a dual-ask approach for major gifts to Penn, with a focus on soliciting prospects for The Penn Fund and incorporating this ask into gift agreements, driving growth of both scholarship and unrestricted, current-use dollars for The Penn Fund.
• Cultivate strong relationships with all school and center directors of development, engaging in strategic dialogue around their priorities and communicating such information back to the team.
• Build a strong relationship with the Reunion Giving team to leverage as an opportunity to engage less-engaged alumni, as well as to maximize major gift giving from these constituencies.
• Serve as a core member of USPP's senior leadership team, representing the major gifts program in broader DAR strategic planning, budgeting, and cross-divisional initiatives.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's Degree and over 10 years of years of progressively responsible development and leadership experience, including successful engagement and gift closure with major gift donors, or equivalent combination of education and experience. Advanced degree