Annual Giving Officer, COLSA

University of New Hampshire

3d•$54,990 - $98,150•Hybrid

About The Position

The Annual Giving Officer (AGO) for the College of Life Sciences and Agriculture (COLSA) is responsible for leading all annual giving initiatives for the college, its departments, and programs. This role reports to the Director of Annual Giving and collaborates with the central Annual Giving team. The AGO will contribute to COLSA’s annual giving strategy and implement a comprehensive program targeting all constituents (alumni, students, faculty, staff, families, and friends) through various channels including phone, email, mail, social media, and other digital methods. The position involves working closely with COLSA’s Dean, faculty, staff, and students to integrate annual giving practices, identify funding priorities, support fundraising efforts, and leverage community connections to enhance the annual giving program. A key responsibility is managing a portfolio of donors and prospects, directly engaging individuals to secure financial contributions that support the college and university’s mission and strategic plans. This includes identifying, cultivating, soliciting, and stewarding prospects, with the goal of increasing philanthropic revenue and fostering relationships with all constituencies. The AGO is expected to be an entrepreneurial, strategic, and creative thinker with a proven track record in fundraising or a related field, possessing strong interpersonal skills, project management abilities, and a highly motivated, organized, and detail-oriented approach.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree.
Minimum of 2-3 years of fundraising experience or equivalent (sales, business development, account/relationship management, marketing and/or public relations).
Experience with Annual Giving strategies and donor qualification, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship strategies (or demonstrated equivalent sales/marketing experience).
Understanding of the relevance of philanthropy.
Successful experience working in a metrics-driven environment.
Ability to communicate effectively, both verbally and in writing, about fundraising support; requires the ability to build rapport in an open, friendly, and accepting way, listen attentively and change the thinking of, or gain acceptance of, others in sensitive situations.
Strong interpersonal skills including negotiation and communication; able to reach across a wide variety of audiences.
Sensitivity and experience interacting with internal and external constituents who are diverse in characteristics such as age, education level, race, gender identity and expression, ability, and socioeconomic backgrounds in a culturally competent and supportive manner.
Demonstrated understanding of the responsibility to maintain sensitive information and appreciation of ethics and compliance.
Sound judgment and ability to work well as part of a team, including collaboration with diverse university units and others.
Ability to provide effective project management.
Ability to travel on behalf of the university including local, regional, and domestic trips.
Commitment to the values of diversity, equity, inclusion, and advancement.

Nice To Haves

Knowledge of the fundraising profession, theories, and standards.
Knowledge of philanthropy policies, practices, and systems.
Familiarity with a university setting and fundraising campaigns.
Proficiency in database technologies and Microsoft Office.
Experience with portfolio and volunteer engagement.

Responsibilities

Partner with the Director of Annual Giving to develop an Annual Giving strategy for COLSA that aligns with the Dean’s vision and priorities and with the overall Annual Giving strategy for the university that aims to significantly increase revenue and constituent participation in the current campaign.
Oversee the effective implementation of these strategies across COLSA, partnering with Annual Giving colleagues, COLSA Development colleagues and leadership.
Partner with the central Annual Giving team members on all direct marketing efforts and communications they are executing on behalf of COLSA (mail, phone, email, social media, etc.) to provide COLSA specific messaging, content, and strategies.
Serve as the COLSA representative for The (603) Challenge by securing underwriter funds, coordinating multi-channel outreach, driving goals and strategies, recruiting volunteers, and motivating faculty and staff to participate.
Assist in the determination of metrics and goals for COLSA’s Annual Giving program; regularly monitor progress via reports to ensure these goals are achieved.
Participate in events, programs, meetings, and initiatives that support UNH and COLSA’s Annual Giving program as directed by academic and Advancement leadership.
Consult with faculty and staff from the various departments and programs to provide guidance on any Annual Giving efforts they may be conducting to ensure they have a coordinated strategy and follow policies and procedures.
Engage, educate, and train key volunteers on Annual Giving and recruit new volunteers.
Work collaboratively across the entire Development and Advancement teams to support UNH’s overall Annual Giving and other fundraising and engagement goals and strategic plans.
Manage and actively expand a portfolio consisting of alumni, faculty, staff, friends, corporations and other constituents as appropriate capable of making annual gifts up to $25,000 and maintain frequent contact with these prospects to build relationships and increase philanthropic support.
Conduct 100-125 visits each fiscal year via video conference, phone, and/or in-person; meeting this activity goal will require travel across the state, region, and, on occasion, the U.S.
Solicit annual gifts for COLSA and UNH toward achieving personal and unit-wide annual revenue and donor participation goals.
Partner with colleagues across Development/Advancement to plan effective engagement, solicitation, and stewardship strategies that will move prospects forward.
Qualify prospects for potential leadership, major and planned giving capacity and interest and provide background to appropriate colleagues to effectively move them through the pipeline.