Associate Director, Donor Experience

University of Arkansas System•Little Rock, AR

18h•Onsite

About The Position

The Associate Director of Donor Experience is a frontline member of the UAMS Donor Experience Office (DXO), reporting directly to the Senior Director of Donor Experience. This position is responsible for engaging, cultivating, and stewarding donors giving $1,000–$4,999 annually, serving as the entry point into the DXO pipeline and a critical bridge between Annual Giving and mid-level philanthropic engagement. The DXO functions as the connective tissue across Annual Giving, Major Giving, and Donor Relations at UAMS. The Associate Director operates at the base of this pipeline — receiving referrals from the Annual Giving team, qualifying new prospects for DXO engagement, identifying upgrade potential, and building the foundational donor relationships that feed the broader mid-level and major gift pipeline. This role is equally outward-facing and infrastructure-oriented: managing an active donor portfolio while also supporting the Story Bank, prospect identification, and content-driven stewardship that power the DXO operating model. The ideal candidate is energized by discovery — finding the right story for the right donor, identifying a prospect’s philanthropic potential, and building relationships from the ground up. They are organized, curious, collaborative, and comfortable operating in a fast-moving, entrepreneurial team environment.

Requirements

Bachelor’s Degree
3 years of experience in fundraising, donor relations, annual giving, or a related field, preferably in a healthcare, education, or nonprofit setting.
Demonstrated ability to manage a donor portfolio with discipline and consistency
Strong written and verbal communication skills
Proficiency in CRM systems (Affinaquest or equivalent)
Must have a valid Driver’s License
Proof of legal authority to work in the United States on the first day of employment.

Nice To Haves

Bachelor's or master’s Degree in communications, public relations, public works, business, philanthropy, or marketing.
CFRE (Certified Fund-Raising Executive) or active pursuit of certification.
Experience in annual giving, pipeline development, or donor qualification
Familiarity with mid-level giving programs, grateful patient fundraising, or affinity-based engagement strategies
Demonstrated ability to source and communicate donor impact stories.

Responsibilities

Manage and actively cultivate a defined portfolio of mid-level donors giving $1,000 - $4,999 annually, with a primary focus on retention, upgrade, and multi-year commitment strategies.
Execute a structured, affinity-based outreach cadence using personalized email, phone, handwritten correspondence, and in-person visits to maintain meaningful touchpoints throughout the donor’s philanthropic journey.
Identify donor interests, motivations, and giving capacity to inform renewal conversations and flag qualified prospects for MGO warm handoff in coordination with the Senior Director.
Utilize the IA tools to match donor interests with relevant UAMS impact stories, funding priorities, and college-level content, ensuring communications feel personal and mission-connected.
Partner with Annual Giving to provide timely, personalized follow-up to donors and prospects receiving annual giving appeals, supporting upgrade pathways from into the mid-level portfolio.
Collaborate with MGOs through the biweekly DXO-MGO sync to support pipeline alignment, warm handoffs, and coordinated solicitation strategy for donors approaching major gift capacity.
Maintain accurate activity reports in Affinaquest for all donor contacts, including event interactions, thank-you correspondence, and phone outreach, following established DXO protocols.
Track and report key performance metrics including gift count, donor retention, upgrade outcomes, qualification movement, and touchpoint volume to inform strategy and measure progress.
Support the identification and qualification of new DXO prospects from lapsed donor pools, grateful patient referrals, college-level events, and other pipeline sources in coordination with the Senior Director and MGOs.
Develop and execute individualized stewardship plans for assigned mid-level donors, including timely acknowledgment, impact reporting, and engagement sequences aligned with donor interests and UAMS funding priorities.
Utilize the DXO Story Bank to match donor interests with relevant UAMS stories, college-level content, and giving society information, ensuring all communications feel personal and mission-connected.
Support giving society engagement for donors who give at $1,000 - $4,999 levels eligible for DXO-affiliated societies, coordinating with the Senior Director and Donor Relations on recognition touchpoints and event invitations.
Assist with DXO cultivation and stewardship events, including society socials, site visits, and college-level engagement opportunities; execute post-event follow-up outreach for assigned portfolio donors.
Support grateful patient outreach initiatives by serving as the first point of contact for clinician-referred prospects at the $1,000–$4,999 level; conduct initial outreach, assess philanthropic interest, and route qualified patients to the appropriate DXO portfolio manager or MGO based on giving capacity and affinity signals.
Serve as the primary sourcing engine for the DXO Story Bank — identifying, organizing, and tagging donor-ready stories by funding area, college affinity, giving society relevance, and suggested use — ensuring the bank remains current, searchable, and actionable for use across the DXO team and MGO pipeline.
Assist in drafting donor-facing content including impact updates, personalized stewardship letters, event follow-up correspondence, and engagement communications for use across the DXO team.
Collaborate with Annual Giving, MarCom, and college-level liaisons on content and messaging that demonstrates donor impact and supports pipeline-wide engagement goals.
Follow established procedures for maintaining donor records in Affinaquest, including timely input of contact reports, referral intake logs, activity notes, and qualification status updates to ensure data integrity across the team.
Learn and adhere to HIPAA, FERPA, and the Donor Bill of Rights throughout employment, ensuring all donor interactions and records are handled with appropriate confidentiality and professionalism.
Provide exceptional customer service to internal and external stakeholders; demonstrate effective communication, confidentiality, and positive cross-departmental working relationships.
Other duties as assigned.