Director Principal Gifts, Northeast

Blood Cancer United•Albany, NY

About The Position

The Director Principal Gifts, Northeast is a senior frontline fundraiser who builds and manages long-term relationships with individuals, family foundations, and family offices capable of making transformational gifts. The Director develops personalized engagement strategies, connects donor interests with high-impact organizational priorities, and secures seven- and eight-figure commitments that advance Blood Cancer United’s mission. In partnership with Executive Leadership, Board members, mission leaders, and regional colleagues, the Director brings the organization’s most significant opportunities to donors across the Northeast.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree.
Seven to ten or more years of progressive experience in major or principal gift fundraising.
Demonstrated success securing complex, high-value gifts.
Ability to build trusted relationships with high-net-worth individuals, family foundations, family offices, senior volunteers, and organizational leaders.
Experience developing donor-centered strategies and aligning philanthropic interests with institutional priorities.
Strong executive presence, judgment, communication, and collaboration skills.
Ability to manage multiple sophisticated relationships and opportunities with focus, discretion, and accountability.
Regular travel throughout the Northeast and to organization-wide meetings and events, approximately 40%–50% of the time.
Periodic evening and weekend work is required.

Nice To Haves

Proficiency with Salesforce or a comparable constituent relationship management system.

Responsibilities

Meet or exceed annual fundraising goals by identifying, cultivating, soliciting, and stewarding principal gift prospects and donors.
Manage an active portfolio of approximately 30–50 prospects and donors with giving capacity of $1 million or more, primarily across the Northeast.
Develop donor-centered opportunities for outright, blended, multi-year, and other complex philanthropic commitments.
Maintain consistent high-value donor activity, including personal outreach, meetings, proposals, and solicitations.
Collaborate with Donor Engagement to develop and execute personalized stewardship plans.
Create and execute customized engagement plans reflecting donors’ interests, motivations, readiness, and relationship with the organization.
Work with Executive Leadership on donor strategy, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship opportunities.
Engage Board members, mission experts, regional leaders, and internal partners to deepen relationships and advance opportunities.
Translate organizational priorities and research into compelling investment opportunities as a mission ambassador.
Partner with the Transformational Philanthropy prospect researcher and regional and enterprise colleagues to identify, research, and qualify principal gift prospects.
Coordinate donor strategies across teams to support clear ownership, thoughtful engagement, and a seamless donor experience.
Document strategic cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship plans in Salesforce and other organizational tools.
Monitor portfolio health, activity, next steps, and revenue projections, adjusting strategies as relationships and opportunities evolve.
Contribute to a collaborative, ambitious, and donor-centered Philanthropy team culture.