Associate VP, High Impact Philanthropy

Mercy Corps•San Francisco, CA

About The Position

Now, and for the future. The Associate VP of HIP is a key leader within Mercy Corps, charged with leading and managing a high growth potential team and scaling private sector revenue. The Associate VP will partner with the Chief Development Officer to diversify Mercy Corps’ revenue base by increasing private giving from major and principal individual donors in the US and in the UK. The portfolio spans Principal Gifts ($250k+), Major Gifts ($10k+), Leadership Giving (high potential $5k+), and Planned Giving.

Requirements

At least a Bachelor's degree.
Extensive leadership experience (10+ years) in development and fundraising, with a proven track record in shaping private sector strategy, driving board engagement, and securing principal gifts at the highest levels.
Proven ability to partner effectively with CEOs, C-Suite executives, and board leadership to design, execute, and sustain high-impact philanthropic initiatives.
Executive management expertise with the ability to inspire, lead, and hold senior team members accountable for ambitious goals in a collaborative and motivating manner.
Strong strategic and operational capability, with a track record of setting and achieving both short-term milestones and long-term transformational objectives.
Demonstrated success in architecting and leading philanthropy strategies for top organizational leadership , adapting approaches dynamically in response to performance metrics and evolving priorities.
Proven record of cultivating and closing major philanthropic commitments, including new business development with corporate and individual partners.
Significant experience in budget leadership —developing, managing, and optimizing multi-million-dollar budgets to maximize return on philanthropic investment.
Exceptional executive communication skills—able to influence, inspire, and engage diverse high-level stakeholders through compelling written, visual, and verbal communication.
Demonstrated capacity to work seamlessly as part of a senior leadership team while operating with a high degree of autonomy and decision-making authority.
Exemplary organizational discipline, with the ability to oversee complex, multi-workstream initiatives to successful completion.
Proficiency with Microsoft Office Suite and advanced donor database management systems (Raiser’s Edge strongly preferred).
Must be willing to drive; valid driver's license required.

Nice To Haves

Leadership of large-scale capital or multi-year comprehensive campaigns, including designing giving pyramids, forecasting revenue, and overseeing campaign infrastructure.

Responsibilities

Sets high level strategy to position Mercy Corps for significant revenue growth from private individual philanthropy.
Develop and oversee the execution of a planned giving growth strategy and integration across all donor life cycles.
Lead the development and implementation of Mercy Corps’ HIP strategy, focusing on growing the individual giving portfolio in the US and Europe to increase unrestricted revenue year-over-year.
Responsible for advising on revenue goals, bi-annual revenue forecasting, and establishing Key Performance Indicators to guide the team in meeting its revenue growth targets.
Establish annual goals, performance indicators, and revenue forecasts in coordination with Development Operations; prepare and manage the HIP operating budget, recommending resource allocations for future growth.
As a team leader within the Development department, articulate the needs and opportunities within the portfolio and contribute to the development of cross-team strategies and plans.
Inspire and coach a team of frontline fundraisers to meet and exceed revenue goals
Supervise, coach, and evaluate a team of direct and indirect reports.
Set up accountability and performance management systems to ensure that all team members are meeting goals and contributing to the overall strategy and revenue targets.
Supervise, hire and orient additional new team members as necessary.
Create a sustainable work environment of mutual respect that attracts motivated, skilled and effective team members and enables them individually and collectively to strive to achieve excellence.
Partner with the Director of Donor Communications and Engagement to ensure that donor communication and engagement supports team objectives.
Ensure strong collaboration with teams across the Development and MarComms Department.
Engage with Executive Leadership Team and Board members to cultivate and steward donors; serve as an internal expert on individual giving trends.
In addition, the Associate VP will manage a small portfolio of principal level Board Members, donors, and prospects.
Oversee moves-management systems, portfolio composition, and prospect research to provide best-in-class service for Mercy Corps’ supporters.
Maintain a personal portfolio of board members, principal donors and prospects, crafting individualized cultivation, solicitation and stewardship plans.
Set a standard for best-in-class relationship management and stewardship for the entire HIP team.
Build working relationships with program staff in order to identify restricted funding opportunities and also to gain access to programmatic information that can be used to steward donors.
Lead periodic overseas trips for key major donors, prospects and board members as part of a well thought out and planned cultivation – solicitation strategy.
Direct the Leadership and Major Gift qualification and donor pipeline process, including establishing criteria for joining and leaving various pools.
Work closely with the Senior Director of Development Operations to identify and monitor key metrics for fundraising performance and revenue forecasting.
Support the design and verification of reporting tools.
Stay abreast of key issues and trends in the international aid and development community, and communicate these to donors and prospects.
In partnership with the Senior Director of Development Operations, manage HIP revenue and expense forecasting.