Executive Director of Engagement Strategy and Systems

University of Pennsylvania

3d • $122,100 - $160,000 • Onsite

About The Position

The Executive Director of Engagement Strategy and Systems serves as Development and Alumni Relations (DAR) senior leader responsible for the digital engagement strategy, drawing on constituent research, behavioral insights, and collaboration across advancement functions to create coordinated experiences that deepen alumni relationships and donor participation. As the senior functional and strategic owner of Penn’s engagement technology ecosystem, this role serves as the critical bridge connecting DAR’s communications and engagement strategy to the technical expertise required to manage the systems involved in digital engagement. The position entails specialized understanding and skills in effective constituent engagement supported by strategic data and technology decisions. This role’s success depends on knowing how platforms should be used to advance alumni and donor relationships, supporting users and adoption, evaluating effectiveness, and continuously improving the constituent experience. In doing so, the role ensures that DAR’s engagement work, including the systems that support these, are well governed, and strategically applied to achieve communications, engagement, and fundraising goals.

The Executive Director leads digital transformation and innovation across DAR’s engagement systems and serves as a strategic liaison to University technology partners. Under the guidance of the Senior Executive Director of Marketing and Communications, , the role provides leadership across governance, operating standards, data stewardship, architecture, integrations, and vendor strategy, while establishing department-wide frameworks that support secure, scalable, and user-centered experiences across schools and centers. The position exercises significant influence over decisions that advance engagement outcomes, donor pipeline development, and the Penn alumni experience worldwide.

Embedded within DAR Communications and Marketing, the Executive Director serves as a strategic advisor to University and DAR leadership, partnering closely with colleagues across central DAR and the schools and centers to advance institutional engagement priorities. The position leads a specialized team responsible for improving communications and marketing strategy through platform administration, optimization, training, adoption, and continuous improvement.

Requirements

• Bachelor of Science and 5 to 7 years of experience or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Minimum of 7–10 years of progressively responsible experience in advancement communications, digital engagement strategy, constituent experience, and marketing technology deployment preferred.
• Experience working in higher education, nonprofit advancement, alumni relations, fundraising, or mission-driven organizations strongly preferred.
• Experience using Salesforce technologies for constituent engagement, including Experience Cloud, Marketing Cloud, Nonprofit Success Pack (NPSP), and related engagement or CRM platforms.
• Understanding of platform governance, cybersecurity best practices, identity and access management, audit processes, and institutional risk mitigation.
• Knowledge of data privacy regulations and digital compliance standards, including GDPR, CAN-SPAM, CCPA, accessibility standards, and emerging digital governance requirements involved in marketing and constituent engagement.
• Experience working with technology vendors, contract negotiations, procurement processes, and strategic technology partnerships.
• Proven leadership and staff management experience, including the ability to mentor teams, manage performance, and foster collaboration and innovation.
• Strong analytical, organizational, and problem-solving skills with the ability to balance strategic planning and operational execution.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to present technical concepts and strategic recommendations to executive leadership and non-technical audiences.

Nice To Haves

• Familiarity with emerging technologies related to AI-enabled engagement, automation, analytics, and digital constituent experience strategies preferred.

Responsibilities

• Lead the development of an enterprise digital engagement strategy that aligns communications, alumni relations, annual giving, events, volunteer engagement, and development priorities across DAR.
• Partner with DAR Marketing and Communications, Alumni Relations, Annual Giving, development teams, analytics, and schools and centers to identify constituent needs, establish shared engagement priorities, and translate those priorities into coordinated digital experiences.
• Determine alumni engagement strategies and provide strategic counsel to DAR senior leadership and ISC and lead efforts on resource prioritization, operational sustainability, and the responsible adoption of emerging technologies—including AI and automation—to strengthen constituent engagement and organizational effectiveness.
• Develop and execute a multi-year digital engagement systems roadmap that supports DAR’s priorities and advances Penn’s mission.
• Use audience research and engagement data to identify unmet needs, participation barriers, communication preferences, and opportunities to strengthen alumni relationships and giving.
• Lead strategies for audience segmentation, personalization, communication preferences, and coordinated multichannel engagement across email, web, events, communities, mentoring, volunteer programs, and fundraising outreach.
• Lead governance committees responsible for establishing and enforcing standards, ensuring execution of communications and engagement tactics are compliant and effective.
• Support systems users by establishing standards and best practices for each tool to increase engagement; reviewing data analytics of engagement performance and fundraising outcomes; offering training and ongoing support, and continuous audit of systems use for measurable engagement outcomes.
• Provide strategic and operational oversight for the selection, implementation, integration, and lifecycle management of communications and engagement platforms to support DAR’s engagement goals, including: Constituent engagement through marketing automation and CRM systems (including Salesforce Marketing Cloud), Event registration and program management, Mentoring and volunteer management, Alumni communities and websites (MyPenn, Club/SIG Communities).
• Ensure systems are user-friendly, scalable, accessible, and continuously optimized.
• Serve as the primary liaison to ISC Security and Compliance teams to ensure all engagement systems and practices align with University policies, privacy standards, and current cybersecurity requirements.
• Ensure institutional compliance with global and federal data privacy regulations—including GDPR, CAN-SPAM, CCPA, and other emerging standards—through oversight of consent management, data protection practices, email compliance, and privacy-related workflows.
• Oversee implementation and administration of engagement platforms, guiding system architecture, data integrations, accessibility, and continuous improvement.
• Stay current on trends in strategic communications, digital engagement for alumni relations and fundraising, engagement technologies, user experience, and data governance.
• Identify opportunities for automation, AI-driven engagement, enhanced analytics, and improved alumni and donor experience.
• Recommend and implement innovative tools that strengthen alumni and donor engagement and staff effectiveness.
• Lead and develop a team to drive strategic digital engagement, support related platform governance and administration; user training, support, and compliance; and engagement data analytics.
• Foster a culture of innovation, collaboration, and continuous improvement.
• Develop and maintain strong cross-functional relationships across DAR to drive consistent alumni and donor engagement strategies.
• Lead strategic planning and stewardship of engagement technology investments in service to DAR’s engagement and fundraising goals.
• Partner closely with ISC and teams across DAR to develop system strategy and ensure alignment, compliance, and interoperability.
• Lead vendor relationships, contract negotiations, RFP processes, and service-level monitoring of DAR’s engagement tools.

Benefits

• excellent healthcare and tuition benefits for employees and their families
• generous retirement benefits
• a wide variety of professional development opportunities
• supportive work and family benefits
• a wealth of health and wellness programs and resources
• Health, Life, and Flexible Spending Accounts
• Tuition assistance for employee, spouse, and dependent children
• generous retirement plans
• substantial amount of time away from work
• Long-Term Care Insurance
• Wellness and Work-life Resources
• Professional and Personal Development
• access to a wide range of University resources as well as cultural and recreational activities
• Discounts and Special Services
• Flexible Work Hours
• Penn Home Ownership Services
• Adoption Assistance

What This Job Offers

• Job Type: Full-time
• Career Level: Executive