Major Gifts Officer

United Way of Greater Los Angeles•Los Angeles, CA

1d•$80,000 - $95,000•Hybrid

About The Position

United Way of Greater Los Angeles (UWGLA) is seeking a Major Gifts Officer to join their Development department. This role focuses on building relationships with major and mid-level donors to increase individual giving revenue. The Major Gifts Officer will be responsible for cultivating relationships, guiding donors towards giving society membership, and reactivating lapsed supporters. The work directly contributes to students completing programs, families gaining financial stability, and neighbors recovering from crisis.

Requirements

High school diploma or GED required.
Minimum 5 years of progressively responsible experience in fundraising required.
Must have experience cultivating, soliciting, and stewarding individual donors, including securing major gifts and growing donor portfolios.
Must have experience securing gifts of $10,000 or greater from individual donors.
Enjoy a hybrid environment that includes both in-person and remote work styles and are able to work from our DTLA office on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and additional days as needed.
Understand the value of racial equity as an organizational operating principle and are committed to continued learning on issues related to race, equity, diversity, and inclusion.
Curious about emerging technology and artificial intelligence and always looking for practical ways to apply new tools to work smarter and drive greater impact.
Willing to flex your schedule occasionally for early-morning, evening, or weekend donor and partner events.
Comfortable making the ask and confidently leading donor cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship conversations.
Strategic relationship builder who can engage and influence stakeholders ranging from first-time donors to high-net-worth philanthropists and community leaders.
Accountable for results and have a track record of setting ambitious goals, developing strategies to achieve them, and consistently delivering outcomes.

Nice To Haves

Talent for understanding what motivates people to give and can connect their philanthropic interests to opportunities that create lasting impact.
Skilled at inspiring generosity and can confidently guide conversations that lead to transformational philanthropic investments.
Naturally curious about people and enjoy building authentic, long-term relationships rooted in trust, shared values, and meaningful connection.
Comfortable engaging high-net-worth individuals, community leaders, and influential stakeholders with confidence, credibility, and professionalism.
Donor-centered mindset and enjoy helping individuals achieve their philanthropic goals while advancing the organization's mission.
Patient, persistent, and understand that meaningful donor relationships often require thoughtful cultivation over time.
Can see both the big picture and the next step, translating ambitious goals into clear strategies, priorities, and measurable outcomes.
Effective communicator who can tailor your message to diverse audiences and inspire action.
Use sound judgment, strong problem-solving skills, and data-informed decision making to drive results.
Familiar with Los Angeles' philanthropic, nonprofit, or civic landscape.
Know your way around the Microsoft Windows operating systems and all its essential programs including Outlook, Word, PowerPoint, and Teams.

Responsibilities

Personally initiate and cultivate one-to-one relationships with assigned major donors and prospects to deepen their connection and long-term loyalty to UWGLA.
Secure new and increased gifts from portfolio donors for the annual campaign and longer-term Impact Plan initiatives.
Design customized engagement plans for assigned donors and high-capacity prospects in collaboration with the Development team.
Represent UWGLA to external contacts with high giving capacity, initiating dialogue on philanthropic values and priorities where appropriate.
Identify donors within your portfolio who show $10,000+ capacity and add them to the Tocqueville prospecting list.
Draft and deliver personalized upgrade proposals and Impact Plan briefings for donors approaching the Tocqueville threshold.
Coordinate donor invitations and follow-up for Tocqueville roundtables, cultivation events, and graduation/awards ceremonies, integrating planned giving and Legacy Society options into cultivation conversations where appropriate.
Manage a portfolio of Leadership-level donors, tracking capacity, giving history, and moves-management stage for each.
Execute the upgrade ask cadence for Leadership donors, moving them incrementally toward Tocqueville-level giving.
Source new Leadership-level prospects from board referrals, workplace campaigns, WalkUnitedLA participants, and event attendee lists.
Draft personalized thank-you letters, impact updates, and stewardship reports for assigned donors, using approved templates as a base.
Implement a personalized recognition plan for each assigned donor, drawing on the Leadership and Tocqueville stewardship calendars.
Coordinate with other Development sectors and Marketing & Communications to ensure a consistent, well-represented donor experience.
Reactivate lapsed Leadership-level donors through segmented, Impact Plan-driven outreach.
Track reactivation outcomes and portfolio performance, providing statistical summaries and market segment analysis as requested.
Flag donors ready for major gift ($100,000+) qualification, and log research, contact reports, and CRM data across all portfolio tiers.
Other responsibilities as assigned.