Major Gift Officer

The Trustees of Reservations•Boston, MA

11h•$96,250 - $143,500•Hybrid

About The Position

The Trustees is in a transformational chapter through For Everyone, Forever, our bold strategic plan to save, steward, and share Massachusetts’ special places for generations to come. As a Major Gift Officer, you will be on the front lines of building the donor relationships that make this vision — and our historic $325M+ comprehensive campaign — possible. You will connect individuals and families to the places, programs, and mission they care about most while helping them see how their philanthropy can create broader impact across Massachusetts. Your work will support campaign priorities, grow the major gift pipeline, increase flexible and impact-centered support, and help build a stronger culture of philanthropy rooted in storytelling, stewardship, and long-term donor engagement. As a Major Gift Officer, you will manage a personal portfolio of approximately 150 donors and prospects, with a focus on gifts of $25,000 and above. You will identify, qualify, cultivate, solicit, and steward individual donors with creativity, preparation, and care, developing tailored strategies for each relationship and working toward a goal of securing more than $1M in gifts annually. This role requires strong relationship management, disciplined portfolio movement, and the ability to connect donor interests to organizational and campaign priorities. Many Trustees donors have deep personal connections to specific properties, programs, regions, or communities. You will honor those connections while helping donors understand the broader impact of their giving and the opportunity to support The Trustees’ statewide mission through campaign, unrestricted, legacy, and other flexible philanthropic commitments. Working closely with the Senior Director of Philanthropy and colleagues across Development, you will help create a donor experience that is thoughtful, coordinated, mission-centered, and grounded in the tangible impact of The Trustees’ work.

Requirements

8-10+ years of fundraising experience with demonstrated success in major gifts, annual fund, and/or planned giving solicitations
Proven front-line fundraiser with experience building and managing a donor portfolio and a track record of securing five- and six-figure gifts
Articulate, strategic, solution-oriented and entrepreneurial with a strong ability to listen, write, and speak effectively
Highly motivated self-starter who thrives in a fast-paced environment and takes pride in exceptional preparation for every donor interaction
Strong collaboration skills with the ability to work seamlessly across teams and communicate effectively at multiple levels of an organization
Excellent strategic thinking and analytical skills
Proficiency with Salesforce or a comparable CRM system
Bachelor's degree or equivalent experience
Current authorization to work in the United States – a candidate must have such authorization by his or her first day of employment.
A satisfactory criminal background (CORI) check.

Nice To Haves

Experience in conservation, land stewardship, environmental, or cultural preservation organizations
Familiarity with planned giving and legacy gift solicitation
An understanding of philanthropic communities in specific regions of Massachusetts
Strong creative event planning skills and experience building host committees or donor engagement programming

Responsibilities

Manage a regionally-based portfolio of approximately 150 major gift donors and prospects, emphasizing gifts of $25,000 or greater and building toward $1M in philanthropic commitments per year.
Advance The Trustees’ $325M+ comprehensive campaign by identifying, cultivating, soliciting, and stewarding donors whose interests align with campaign priorities, strategic initiatives, and long-term organizational needs.
Develop individualized donor strategies that actively move prospects through the campaign pipeline, including qualification, cultivation, solicitation, proposal development, gift closure, and stewardship.
Prepare donors for campaign solicitations by connecting their interests in specific properties, programs, communities, or regions to broader Trustees priorities and statewide impact.
Identify new opportunities and aim to secure campaign commitments, unrestricted support, legacy gifts, and other flexible philanthropic investments that advance For Everyone, Forever.
Partner with the Senior Director of Philanthropy to set campaign-related portfolio priorities, review solicitation timing, assess donor readiness, and ensure consistent progress toward campaign and annual fundraising goals.
Prepare compelling campaign proposals, donor briefings, stewardship updates, and impact narratives in partnership with Development colleagues, Marketing and Communications, and program/property staff.
Participate actively in campaign pipeline review, portfolio review, and moves management conversations, bringing forward donor insights, strategy questions, next-step recommendations, and solicitation opportunities.
Use Salesforce actively and consistently to track donor activity, next steps, proposals, campaign opportunities, gift conversations, solicitation timelines, and pipeline progress.
Maintain and deepen relationships with existing donors through personalized outreach, including meetings, property visits, project updates, campaign briefings, event invitations, written communications, and stewardship touchpoints.
Conduct prospect research and collaborate with Development Operations and research colleagues, when available, to identify new campaign prospects and prepare for donor meetings.
Serve as a Development partner to regional property committees and volunteer groups, identifying campaign prospects and deepening donor engagement through meaningful involvement.
Partner with Events, Membership, Annual Giving, Planned Giving, and Development Operations to ensure a coordinated and donor-centered experience that supports both campaign and annual fundraising goals.
Support fundraising galas, campaign events, property gatherings, and donor engagement opportunities by helping identify prospects, build and steward host committees, and conduct timely follow-up.
Work collaboratively across the Development team and the broader organization to advance campaign priorities and fundraising goals with creativity, preparation, and a strong commitment to The Trustees’ mission.
Travel to donor meetings, property events, campaign events, and cultivation opportunities across the Commonwealth; some evening and weekend availability required.

Benefits

Sick time: 120 hours per year
Vacation time: 20 days per year (prorated)
Holiday time: 12 set holidays, 3 floating
Health insurance: You are eligible to participate in the Trustees health insurance benefit via Blue Cross Blue Shield (BCBS). BCBS also offers additional benefits, such as fitness reimbursement and rewards for healthy habits.
Short-Term and Long-Term Disability Insurance
Massachusetts Paid Family Medical Leave
Life Insurance
401k with 5% match after 1 year of employment
Employee Assistance Program: Free access to a confidential service that helps employees and their communities with personal and work-related issues, such as mental health support, counseling, and financial advice.
Reciprocity: Employees have access to free and discounted admission and membership to more than 50 nearby museums and cultural institutions.
Discounts: Enjoy free entry to all Trustees properties, discount event tickets, and discounted merchandise at our stores and on stays at our inns.
Day of Wonder: Spend one workday per year to exploring a Trustees property
Day of Service: Spend one workday per year to helping with a project at a Trustees property