Senior Associate Director, Stewardship

Duke Careers • Durham, NC

7d • Hybrid

About The Position

Established in 1930, Duke University School of Medicine is the youngest of the nation's top medical schools. Ranked sixth among medical schools in the nation, the School takes pride in being an inclusive community of outstanding learners, investigators, clinicians, and staff where interdisciplinary collaboration is embraced and great ideas accelerate translation of fundamental scientific discoveries to improve human health locally and around the globe. Composed of more than 2,500 faculty physicians and researchers, more than 1,300 students, and more than 6,000 staff, the Duke University School of Medicine along with the Duke University School of Nursing, Duke University Health System and the Private Diagnostic Clinic (PDC) comprise Duke Health. a world-class academic medical center. The Health System encompasses Duke University Hospital, Duke Regional Hospital, Duke Raleigh Hospital, Duke Primary Care, Duke Home and Hospice, Duke Health and Wellness, and multiple affiliations.
Help shape meaningful donor experiences while collaborating with leaders, faculty, and mission-driven teams at Duke!
Duke Health Development & Alumni Affairs (DHDAA) supports a flexible work environment by offering on-site (in office 5 days a week), hybrid (in office a minimum of 2 days a week or defined by manager), remote (work off-site 5 days a week), and flexible start and end time work arrangements. All team members must reside within a 50-mile radius of our downtown Durham office.
If working a hybrid or remote schedule, individuals must have access to and maintain a secure home office environment with high-speed internet service and work collaboratively with others using a variety of technologies and tools. With approval from their manager, staff members may work a flexible schedule in terms of start/end times, while working within DHDAA’s core work hours between 9:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. (eastern standard). At the discretion of Managers and/or Senior Leadership, staff working a hybrid, remote or flex schedule may be required to be in the office on days and/or times outside of the agreed upon schedule.
This position is full-time located in Durham, NC. This is not a remote position.
The Senior Associate Director of Stewardship reports directly to the Executive Director of Stewardship and Gift Compliance and assists in the planning, development, coordination and execution of stewardship activities for all levels of donors to Duke Health, which includes Duke University School of Medicine, Duke University School of Nursing, Duke University Health System and health research programs in related Centers and Institutes.
These activities focus on donor recognition, gift acknowledgement, comprehensive stewardship plans, stewardship events, stewardship communications, and special projects.
The work regularly involves interaction with donors, high-level Duke Health leadership, faculty, administrators and development staff and has supervisory responsibility for two stewardship coordinator-level positions.
Work Arrangement – Hybrid - This is not a remote position. This position is full-time, located in Durham, NC.

Requirements

• Work requires communications, analytical and organizational skills acquired through completion of a Bachelor's degree program.
• Work requires four years’ experience in alumni affairs, public relations, fund raising, sales and promotions, marketing, student activities or a related field in order to acquire skills necessary to coordinate a system of annual reporting to donors and to participate in special fund-raising activities.

Nice To Haves

• Experience in an academic fundraising environment, with emphasis on donor relations, annual giving, or other applicable areas strongly preferred.
• Proven track record of managing complex projects.
• Proven excellence in written communication.
• Effective organizational skills, attention to detail, and the ability to work independently.
• Comfortable and professional when interacting with high-level university officials and donors.
• Knowledge of fundraising and donor stewardship concepts required.
• Excellent computer skills with thorough knowledge of Microsoft Excel, Word, and PowerPoint.
• Supervisory experience is a plus.
• Email marketing experience in platforms such as Eloqua, Constant Contact, or Mail Chimp a plus.
• Experience drafting and/or reviewing basic gift agreements a plus.

Responsibilities

• Oversee the planning, coordination, and execution of customized stewardship strategies for donors across multiple giving levels.
• Provide leadership and guidance for ongoing stewardship activities within assigned fundraising areas to ensure consistency, quality, and alignment with organizational priorities.
• Support senior stewardship leadership in the implementation of stewardship strategies and donor engagement touchpoints.
• Exercise supervisory responsibility for two stewardship staff and provide functional leadership for the execution of custom stewardship initiatives.
• Collaborate with leadership, development professionals, and cross‑functional partners to ensure stewardship activities are coordinated, strategically aligned, and effectively delivered in support of institutional fundraising and donor engagement objectives.
• Develop and execute stewardship and recognition activities to ensure a consistent and positive donor experience, including but not limited to acknowledgements, giving societies, and stewardship-focused events.
• Oversee the creation and review of customized acknowledgements from Duke Health leadership and provide guidance on unit-level acknowledgement processes to ensure accurate, consistent, timely, and high‑quality donor communications across the organization.
• Establish and maintain efficient processes for managing acknowledgement workflows and provide oversight and quality control for acknowledgements produced by the team.
• Oversee Duke Health annual and lifetime giving societies, including communications and other donor benefits commensurate with the donor’s giving level to appropriately recognize and further engage donors with Duke Health.
• Provide strategic support for unit-level giving societies to ensure donors of certain levels and types of gifts all receive appropriate touch points.
• Maintain accurate giving society data, develop metrics that demonstrate the effectiveness of stewardship activities for giving society members, and collaborate with fundraisers to utilize societies for effective stewardship, cultivation and pipeline development.
• Execute stewardship-focused events in support of the overall DHDAA stewardship strategy.
• Utilize email and video messaging, social media, print, and volunteer engagement as stewardship event tactics and lead staff from across DHDAA to reach shared stewardship event goals.
• Oversee other stewardship staff assigned to assist with event logistics, list management, volunteer training, and recording of donor contacts in DADD.
• Integrate other stewardship communications into the overall stewardship events strategy.
• Provide strategic oversight for donor recognition and stewardship initiatives involving named spaces, donor walls, art installations, and other forms of physical recognition across all facilities and campuses of Duke Health.
• Set direction and standards for recognition practices to ensure alignment with institutional priorities, donor intent, and long‑term relationship management goals.
• Partner with senior leadership, development colleagues, and cross‑functional stakeholders to guide the planning, approval, and execution of naming opportunities and recognition projects, including those associated with new facilities and major initiatives.
• Ensure the integrity, consistency, and sustainability of donor recognition by overseeing governance processes, including the Board of Trustees approval requirements, documentation, and the integrity of the donor recognition inventory, while proactively addressing complex or sensitive recognition issues.
• Create opportunities for fundraisers to use physical recognition as a strategic tool to support donor engagement, stewardship, and fundraising objectives across Duke Health.
• Provide strategic leadership for the development and execution of stewardship communications that support donor engagement and retention goals.
• Lead the planning and delivery of a range of stewardship communications, including donor updates, impact reporting, recognition messaging, and seasonal communications, ensuring consistency with institutional messaging and brand standards.
• Collaborate with communications partners and stewardship colleagues to support content development, design coordination, and distribution across multiple channels.
• Contribute to broader stewardship initiatives, events, and special projects as needed in support of organizational priorities.
• Other duties as assigned.

Benefits

• Duke provides comprehensive and competitive medical and dental care programs, generous retirement benefits, and a wide array of family-friendly and cultural programs to eligible team members.

What This Job Offers

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