Regional Director of Development, Major Gifts, Faculty of Arts and Sciences

Harvard University • Cambridge, MA

8d • Hybrid

About The Position

The Regional Director of Development is a full-time, exempt member of the Faculty of Arts and Sciences (FAS) Major Gifts team and reports to the Deputy Director of Development, FAS Major Gifts. The role develops and executes sophisticated cultivation and solicitation strategies to secure six- and seven-figure major gifts from an assigned portfolio of approximately 100 or more alumni and parent prospect households on the West Coast. The position partners with Principal Gifts, Major Gifts, Gift Planning, and Harvard College Fund colleagues, volunteers, and others across Alumni Affairs and Development to encourage major-gift support for FAS. Major-gift support begins at $25,000 annually or in the form of $250,000 or more in multi-year pledges. At maturity, the role is expected to generate more than $5 million per year.

The position requires occasional travel with senior academic and administrative leaders and responsibility for arranging visits and preparing meeting strategies and briefings. The role is based in a hybrid work format, with required onsite work in the Cambridge, Massachusetts office on assigned days; remote status is an option for candidates based in California. The schedule is 40 hours per week, and the role includes participation in certain campus events, including spring reunions, and department retreats in Cambridge.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree.
• At least 7 years of experience in university fundraising or relevant transferable experience.
• Ability to travel approximately 35% of working days.
• Ability to work onsite in the Cambridge, Massachusetts office on assigned days each week and attend additional meetings onsite when requested; candidates based in California may have remote status.
• Ability to work certain events and campus activities, including spring reunions, and participate in department retreats on campus in Cambridge.
• Computer literacy, including experience with Windows-based PCs and prospect management databases such as Advance or other relational CRM databases.

Nice To Haves

• Successful fundraising track record or transferable experience, with a preference for five or more years of direct solicitation, sales, or relationship management experience.
• Knowledge of complex academic institutions and experience staffing academic leaders in development work.
• Sophisticated and comprehensive understanding of fundraising best practices.
• Track record of significant gift closures or relevant transferable experience, and comfort making solicitations.
• Strong active listening skills, tact in asking sensitive questions, and ability to uncover prospective donors’ or clients’ interests, motivations, and objections.
• Pleasant persistence and sound judgment.
• Willingness to learn, embrace new ideas, and remain flexible and open to change.
• Professionalism, confidentiality, honesty, trustworthiness, an even disposition, and ability to deal effectively and politely with people from varied backgrounds and in challenging situations.
• Ability to evaluate problems accurately and exercise sound judgment, including in handling confidential information.
• Collaboration skills, ability to lead through influence, emotional intelligence, patience in advancing solutions in a complex organization, commitment to excellence, and willingness to admit mistakes and forgive others’ faults.
• Self-motivation, organization, attention to detail, prioritization, ability to balance multiple tasks in a fast-paced environment, and strategic and conceptual thinking.
• Excellent communication skills, including persuasive writing and ability to develop strong relationships with internal and external constituencies.

Responsibilities

• Manage a targeted portfolio of 100 or more households in the West Coast region.
• Meet or exceed goals for prospect visits, solicitations, successful gift closures, and dollars raised; qualify, cultivate, solicit, and steward portfolio prospects.
• Understand assigned prospects’ philanthropic interests, capacity, and inclination through face-to-face and virtual meetings.
• Develop thoughtful prospect strategies and prioritize prospects to meet revenue goals, upgrade donors, and maintain an active regional presence.
• Use knowledge of prospects’ interests to develop and execute robust, multi-step strategies, leveraging academic leadership, faculty, and other Harvard community members to secure six- and seven-figure gifts.
• Follow prospect management processes and policies for contact reports, proposals, stage codes, and related records.
• Partner with Harvard College Fund, Gift Planning, Major Gifts, and Principal Gifts colleagues to identify prospects and volunteers and support unrestricted and flexibly restricted giving to FAS.
• Develop professional skills and knowledge of Harvard through campus relationships, events, activities, and training.
• Travel occasionally with senior academic and administrative leaders; secure visits and construct meetings that use leaders’ time effectively to advance prospect strategies.
• Communicate meeting strategies through written briefings and pre-visit briefings or calls.
• Coordinate strategies with senior fundraising leaders in FAS Development, the University Development Office, and other Harvard Schools for prospects with multi-school affiliations or interests.
• Serve as a leader, resource, and mentor for other fundraisers, and contribute to prospect strategy reviews and trainings.
• Perform other duties consistent with the level of the position.

Benefits

• Generous paid time off, including parental leave.
• Medical, dental, and vision health insurance coverage starting on day one.
• Retirement plans with university contributions.
• Wellbeing and mental health resources.
• Support for families and caregivers.
• Professional development opportunities, including tuition assistance and reimbursement.
• Commuter benefits, discounts, and campus perks.

What This Job Offers

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