Assistant Director, Advancement Operations

University of Chicago•Chicago, IL

1d•$60,000 - $70,000•Hybrid

About The Position

The Assistant Director, Advancement Operations supports the Advancement team at the Harris School of Public Policy across project management, data management, communications, and event operations. The role supports the team’s work building lifelong relationships with alumni, parents, and friends to advance the school’s strategic objectives and encourage engagement and contributions of time, talent, and resources. The Assistant Director manages projects and Advancement events; maintains constituent and prospect data in the Phoenix CRM; prepares reports and analysis; and coordinates digital communications, fundraising materials, and gift acknowledgments. The role also collaborates on volunteer and annual giving programs, identifies project or event budget and staffing needs, and supports business activities during staff vacancies, special projects, or as otherwise needed. The position reports to both the Senior Director of Alumni Relations and the Director of Development. It is a hybrid role with three in-person days each week.

Requirements

College or university degree in a related field.
Two to five years of work experience in a related job discipline.
Strong verbal and writing skills and high attention to detail.
Flexibility and adaptability in a quickly changing environment.
Emotional intelligence and ability to work collaboratively in a team setting.
Ability to foster partnerships across teams.
Ability to learn quickly or demonstrate knowledge of the University’s internal workings and relevant technology tools.
Demonstrated personal initiative and excellent organizational skills.
Ability to prioritize multiple projects and independently follow through with detail.
Self-motivation and ability to take initiative.
Willingness and ability to travel to campus and/or non-campus locations for University business.
Willingness and ability to work evenings and weekends as needed.

Nice To Haves

Experience in nonprofit management, development, alumni relations, marketing, or a similar discipline.
Experience with fundraising, database management, or contact management.
Experience working with volunteers.
Experience with event logistics management.
Knowledge of or ability to learn Phoenix, HubSpot, Cvent, Microsoft Windows, Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Adobe products including design software, and project management software.

Responsibilities

Manage projects across Advancement programs, including event technology initiatives and projects that improve management operations.
Serve as the in-house Phoenix power user by extracting and analyzing data and maintaining constituent records; create and implement an annual data management calendar to keep alumni and donor records current.
Maintain accurate records of communications-related activity in the CRM, including entering contact reports, prospect strategies, and proposals on behalf of the Dean and Harris leadership.
Manage the full event cycle for Advancement events, including Cvent registration forms and websites, RSVP reporting, registration changes, attendee tracking, event materials, and onsite registration and operations.
Design, write, and deploy email communications in HubSpot, including invitations, newsletters, stewardship materials, and solicitations; develop Advancement website content and manage graduate student assistants who maintain website data.
Coordinate fundraising-related written materials, including donor correspondence, acknowledgments, prospect strategy briefings, event remarks, talking points, and gift proposals.
Manage gift acknowledgments for alumni, parents, and friends, including personalized thank-you messages on behalf of the Dean and Advancement leadership; oversee weekly deployment and use technology to improve timeliness and efficiency.
Collaborate with colleagues to execute volunteer programs, including Inspire, and annual giving programs, including giving day.
Prepare custom and ad hoc reports to support planning and operational decisions across events, volunteer programs, annual giving, and donor and prospect management.
Synthesize data on fundraising progress, pipeline, and prospect pool, and organize materials related to fundraising and campaign operations.
Pursue professional development, including building networks within the University and with colleagues at peer institutions.
Support business activities during staff vacancies, ad hoc projects, or as otherwise assigned.
Identify budget requirements and staffing needs on a project or event basis; plan volunteer and support group activities, recruit members, and support leadership activities.
Perform other related work as needed.