Leadership and Campaign Giving Officer WPA

Washington Performing Arts Society•Washington, DC

13d•Hybrid

About The Position

Washington Performing Arts is seeking a driven, relationship-first fundraiser to serve as its Leadership and Campaign Giving Officer— a newly created role built for someone who thrives out in the field, making connections, building donor relationships and closing gifts, and who also knows that great fundraising is backed by great preparation. This is a frontline fundraising position at the heart of transformative fundraising efforts, including an endowment campaign for one of the nation's leading performing arts organizations. Reporting to the Director of Advancement, the Officer will own the full gift cycle — identifying, cultivating, soliciting, closing, and stewarding gifts of $15,000 and above across annual fund, endowment campaign, and planned giving (Annual Fund 50%, Endowment Campaign 30%, Legacy Society 20%). The right candidate is energized by donor visits, comfortable making the ask, and motivated by hitting and exceeding ambitious fundraising targets. The Officer will manage a dynamic portfolio of high-capacity donors and prospects, working closely with the President & CEO, President Emeritus, Director of Advancement, Board of Directors, Governance Committee, Legacy Society Steering Committee, staff, and volunteer leaders to expand WPA's donor base and deepen philanthropic investment in its mission. This role is ideal for an entrepreneurial fundraiser who builds authentic relationships, designs meaningful donor experiences, and connects donors' passions to Washington Performing Arts’s work — including world-class classical, jazz, dance, and culturally specific performances, gospel music programs, and arts education and programs that engage our wide community. The successful candidate moves fluidly between the field and the desk: as comfortable driving a solicitation strategy as they are digging into donor research and keeping records accurate, so that every conversation is informed, every ask is well-timed, and every commitment is tracked and honored.

Requirements

6+ years of fundraising experience, preferably in major gifts/endowment/capital campaign within the performing arts
Some college coursework in a related field, or an equivalent combination of education and experience
Proven success in securing individual and corporate gifts at $15,000+ level
Knowledge of the performing arts, ideally one or more of the key artistic or programmatic areas (classical music, gospel music, arts education)
Experience managing and partnering with Board members, high-level volunteers, and executive staff
Proven Ability to: engage and inspire donors through compelling storytelling and relationship-building; set goals and manage donor strategies; interact and influence philanthropic leaders work effectively and cross-functionally with internal and external constituents
Creative and strategic thinking skills
Experience in proposal writing, event strategy, and donor stewardship
Excellent written and verbal communication skills
Good judgment, tact, and patience
Collaborative, proactive, and mission-driven with high integrity and accountability
High level of discretion and ethical approach to fundraising
Genuine interest in a wide range of people and a diverse array of programmatic content, preferably in the arts world.
CRM experience (ideally, Tessitura or Raiser’s Edge)
Affinity for the performing arts and commitment to values of diversity, equity, inclusion, accessibility, and belonging
Completion of a satisfactory criminal background check prior to start of employment

Responsibilities

Build and drive your own pipeline to meet or exceed annual fundraising goals
Secure leadership, campaign, and planned gifts through direct cultivation and solicitation
Complete approximately 100 donor visits annually
Grow donor retention and secure gift upgrades year over year
Advance campaign milestones and organizational fundraising priorities
Conduct prospect research to identify and qualify new leadership-level donors
Maintain timely, accurate donor documentation in Tessitura to support strategic follow-up
Build strong, collaborative relationships across departments to align fundraising strategy with organizational priorities
Partner with organization leadership (Staff and Board) to advance your work
Build, manage, and grow a dynamic portfolio of leadership, campaign, and planned giving prospects capable of making gifts of $15,000 and above.
Develop authentic relationships that deepen donor engagement and inspire transformational philanthropy.
Identify, research, qualify, cultivate, solicit, close, and steward leadership, campaign, and planned gifts beginning at $15,000 and extending to six- and seven-figure investments.
Build and manage a portfolio of active and prospective individual donors across annual fund, endowment campaign, and planned giving.
Conduct approximately 100 donor visits annually.
In partnership with Director of Advancement, develop individualized cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship strategies for assigned prospects.
Build meaningful, long-term relationships that deepen donor engagement and inspire increased philanthropic investment.
Achieve annual fundraising, donor retention, and donor upgrade goals.
Represent Washington Performing Arts at performances, donor events, community functions, and cultivation activities.
Serve as a key member of the Advancement team responsible for advancing Washington Performing Arts' s overall fundraising and endowment campaign goals by expanding the leadership giving pipeline through strategic prospect development and campaign management.
Partner with the Director of Advancement, President & CEO, Major Gifts Officer, and Manager of Annual Giving to identify, develop, and manage prospect pipelines
In partnership with Director of Advancement, develop fundraising strategies, annual work plans, benchmarks, and performance metrics.
Coordinate fundraising and campaign strategies with leadership, the management team, board members, volunteer leaders, and campaign committees.
Prepare fundraising and campaign proposals, presentations, reports, gift opportunities, and donor recognition plans.
Monitor fundraising and campaign progress and achieve key campaign milestones.
Collaborate on fundraising and campaign communications, donor events, marketing materials, and public recognition opportunities.
Partner with the Director of Advancement, President & CEO, and President Emeritus to support the continued growth of the Legacy Society through thoughtful cultivation, strategic solicitation, and stewardship.
Cultivate relationships with Legacy Society members, financial advisors, estate attorneys, and professional advisors.
Encourage philanthropic investment through estate planning, charitable trusts, beneficiary designations, and other planned giving vehicles.
Coordinate Legacy Society recognition and stewardship activities.
Utilize online databases, screening services, and internal/external data resources—including complex data sourcing in Tessitura—to identify, evaluate, and qualify leadership giving prospects.
Implement industry best practices in prospect research to proactively expand the leadership and campaign pipelines.
Develop compelling case-making proposals and meaningful stewardship experiences that demonstrate impact, strengthen long-term relationships, and inspire continued philanthropic investment.
Develop personalized stewardship plans for leadership, campaign, board, and Legacy Society donors.
Design and create meaningful donor engagement opportunities through intimate gatherings, performances, artist events, backstage experiences, and special programs.
Coordinate strategic follow-up and conversion of event-driven prospects, including the Annual Gala & Auction and other special events.
Prepare gift proposals, stewardship reports, impact communications, and donor correspondence.
Ensure timely fulfillment of gift benefits and donor recognition.
Collaborate with Marketing and Programming to create compelling donor communications and recognition opportunities.
Partner with organizational leadership and volunteer leaders to strengthen board engagement, governance initiatives, and fundraising effectiveness while cultivating a culture of philanthropy.
Serve as staff liaison to the Governance, Board Engagement & Equity Committee, supporting board pipeline development and board recruitment strategies.
Conduct research on individuals, foundations, corporations, and community leaders to identify prospective board members.
Prepare board prospect profiles and governance briefing materials.
Partner with the Board of Directors, campaign leadership, Governance Committee, and Legacy Society Steering Committee on fundraising initiatives.
Prepare board members and volunteer leaders for donor cultivation and solicitation activities.
In partnership with Director of Advancement, support committee meetings, campaign initiatives, and volunteer engagement.
Maintain accurate fundraising records and performance metrics that support strategic decision-making, donor engagement, campaign management, and organizational accountability.
Maintain timely, accurate donor records and move management in Tessitura.
Partner with the Manager of Individual Giving and Major Gifts Officer to maintain accurate donor ratings, contact reports, profiles, photographs, and prospect records.
Research, compile, and maintain donor biographies for the Gala and other Advancement events, or supervise interns performing these responsibilities.
Monitor fundraising Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), conversion rates, donor retention, portfolio activity, and revenue generation.
In partnership with Director of Advancement, prepare fundraising reports, revenue forecasts, campaign analyses, and dashboard metrics.
Coordinate gift processing and ensure compliance with organizational policies and procedures.
Maintain campaign and donor documentation to support strategic decision-making and timely follow-up.