Managing Director, Gift Planning (Legacy Giving)

Breast Cancer Research Foundation • New York City, NY

3d • Onsite

About The Position

The Breast Cancer Research Foundation (BCRF) seeks a strategic, entrepreneurial, and experienced Managing Director, Gift Planning (Legacy Giving) to lead and grow the Foundation's legacy giving program. This role is responsible for developing and executing a comprehensive planned giving strategy that inspires transformational philanthropy through bequests, beneficiary designations, blended gifts, and other charitable planning vehicles. The Managing Director will help donors align their philanthropic goals with BCRF's mission while growing a robust pipeline of future support. This position will manage a portfolio of donors and prospects, oversee marketing and stewardship initiatives, partner closely with colleagues across the Development & Events team, and help shape the long-term vision and infrastructure for a growing program. This is an exciting opportunity for an experienced planned giving professional who enjoys both frontline fundraising and program building. The successful candidate will bring deep expertise in charitable gift planning, strong relationship-building skills, and a demonstrated ability to create systems and strategies that support long-term growth. As the program grows, this role will play an important part in shaping its future structure and staffing. The Managing Director will oversee significant vendor partnerships, including FreeWill and Stelter, manage the program’s marketing budget, and lead a team of two full-time employees. The program also benefits from the partnership of experienced pro bono legal counsel, who advise on complex and/or significant gift intentions and realized bequests. This position is based in New York City and currently requires staff to work onsite a minimum of three days per week.

Requirements

• Bachelor's degree required.
• 10+ years of progressively responsible experience in planned giving and/or charitable gift planning.
• Demonstrated success securing planned gifts and building a pipeline of documented future commitments.
• Deep knowledge of charitable gift planning techniques, estate planning concepts, wealth transfer strategies, and tax implications of charitable giving.
• Demonstrated ability to partner effectively with attorneys, financial advisors, accountants, trustees, and executors in developing and closing charitable gifts.
• Experience building, scaling, or revitalizing a planned giving program required.
• Strong understanding of estate administration and gift acceptance practices.
• Exceptional relationship-building, communication, and presentation skills.
• Demonstrated strategic thinking combined with strong execution and project management skills.
• Familiarity with fundraising databases; Raiser's Edge NXT experience preferred.

Nice To Haves

• Experience working within a large, multi-year fundraising campaign a plus.
• Experience supervising staff and building high-performing teams preferred.

Responsibilities

• Develop and implement a multi-year strategic plan to grow BCRF's planned giving program with a focus on increasing legacy commitments and stewardship of existing donors.
• Manage and achieve annual goals and performance metrics, regularly evaluating program effectiveness and identifying opportunities for growth.
• Identify opportunities to integrate planned giving across the donor lifecycle, including Annual Giving, Major Gifts, Principal Gifts, and Events.
• Partner with Major Gifts colleagues to incorporate gift planning strategies into donor conversations and fundraising plans.
• Maintain expertise in planned giving trends, charitable tax law developments, and best practices in philanthropy and estate planning.
• Serve as BCRF's internal subject matter expert on charitable gift planning and wealth transfer philanthropy.
• Represent BCRF externally with donors, advisors, professional organizations, and industry partners.
• Manage a portfolio of planned giving donors and prospects and develop individualized cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship strategies.
• Develop and implement gift planning strategies tailored to donors' philanthropic, financial, and estate planning objectives.
• Personally identify, qualify, cultivate, solicit, and secure planned gifts.
• Build trusted relationships with donors, family members, attorneys, financial advisors, trustees, executors, and other professional advisors.
• Collaborate with Major Gifts colleagues to identify and pursue blended gift opportunities that maximize donor impact.
• Prepare proposals, stewardship reports, and other donor-facing materials.
• Develop strategies to increase legacy society membership and deepen engagement among existing members of the Evelyn H. Lauder Legacy Society.
• Lead the strategic direction of BCRF's planned giving marketing program across print, digital, direct response, and donor engagement channels.
• Oversee relationships with planned giving vendors, consultants, and external partners.
• Partner with Marketing & Communications to maintain compelling and technically accurate planned giving content and educational materials.
• Monitor campaign performance and use data to refine donor acquisition, retention, and conversion strategies.
• Provide strategic oversight of bequest administration in partnership with external legal counsel.
• Ensure timely and accurate management of planned gift records, estate documentation, donor agreements, and reporting.
• Partner closely with the Database & Donor Services team to maintain data integrity and reporting accuracy.
• Develop systems, workflows, and policies that support operational excellence and scalability.
• Monitor and analyze program performance, pipeline development, and realized revenue to identify opportunities for growth.
• Recruit, supervise, mentor, and develop planned giving staff as the program grows.
• Foster a collaborative and donor-centered culture that emphasizes accountability, professionalism, and excellence.
• Provide planned giving expertise and training to colleagues across the Development & Events team.

Benefits

• Medical, dental and vision coverage from the first day of employment
• BCRF helps significantly defray the cost of out-of-pocket expenses with contributions to a health reimbursement account or heath savings account (with election of certain medical plans)
• Pre-tax Commuter Transit, Flexible Spending Account or Health Savings Account and Dependent Care Account enrollment from the first day of employment
• 401K, with up to a 5% match each pay period; employee contributions and any match are immediately fully vested
• Paid parental leave offering 18 weeks 100% paid leave for a birthing parent and 12 weeks 100% paid leave for non-birthing parent
• 15 days of annual vacation time in first year of employment, increasing with length of service
• 7 days of annual paid sick time
• Paid holidays along with BCRF wide half days and summer Fridays

What This Job Offers

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