The Senior Advancement Director leads fundraising staff in support of philanthropic priorities of the Colleges and Schools of Liberal Arts and Sciences (LAS), which is comprised of the College of Humanities, College of Social and Behavioral Science, College of Science, and School for Cultural and Social Transformation.

Reporting to both the Vice Provost/Senior Dean of LAS and either the Senior Executive Director of Advancement or designee, the Senior Advancement Director is responsible for overseeing the staff, operations, and strategy for fundraising and engagement of LAS. As a leader in the University Advancement division the Director of Development is expected to support and exemplify the division’s Core Values of Collaboration, Belonging, Empowerment, and Integrity.

The Senior Advancement Director will maximize LAS’s philanthropic potential and serve as a player-coach to frontline fundraisers and engagement staff. In this capacity, the Senior Advancement Director will manage a personal portfolio of major and principal gift prospects and employ a rigorous strategic moves management program to ensure that prospects are consistently engaged and moved through the development pipeline. The Senior Advancement Director will work with the Vice Provost/Senior Dean, senior administrators, and department chairs to ensure alignment with strategic priorities and foster a culture of philanthropy.

The Senior Advancement Director will oversee a staff of ten advancement professionals whose roles include major gift fundraising, annual giving, stewardship and donor relations, and advancement services. This role will include building an integrated strategy for this new unit. The Senior Advancement Director will coordinate the colleges’ administrative and operational activities related to fundraising, working to increase private sector contributions through a targeted and integrated approach. 

 

 

• Working with the Prospect Research team identify a personal portfolio of prospects to actively cultivate and solicit.
• Working with the Prospect Management team, manage the pool of prospects and donors.
• Craft compelling proposals, effectively present the organization’s mission and needs to potential donors and strategically solicit significant gifts.
• Develop and maintain strong personal relationships with major donors through regular communication, in-person meetings, and personalized outreach strategies.
• Both in-state and out-of-state travel is an essential part of the role.

• Provide strategic oversight of a variety of staff and functions, including front line fundraising, annual giving, donor relations, and advancement services.
• Manage all HR supervisor functions for the fundraising and engagement staff including Kronos, University of Utah Performance Management system, budget management, etc.
• Provide oversight of LAS fundraising priorities and building the appropriate strategy and tactics for successful fundraising, engagement and stewardship.
• Build a strong relationship with the Vice Provost/Senior Dean, deans, and faculty and staff leaders. Serve as a member of the Leadership Team. Maintain a strong presence within the college. Facilitate the Vice Provost, deans, alumni, administrators, academic leaders, and volunteers participating in fundraising and stewardship activities.
• Collaborate with faculty, other development team members, board members, and program staff to align fundraising strategies with university and unit priorities.
• Work with LAS advancement staff to collaboratively create an annual workplan that includes fundraising and stewardship annual goals in alignment with recommended University Advancement metrics.
• Working with the Prospect Management team, actively manage the college’s portfolio of major gift prospects, tracking progress through the UNITE system, and prioritizing cultivation and solicitation efforts based on donor potential.
• Plan and manage advancement team budget.

• Partner with the University Advancement, legacy giving, corporate and foundation relations, principal gifts, annual giving, donor relations, and prospect management teams to create a robust advancement program.
• Submit regular reports to the Senior Executive Director of Advancement or designee, Vice Provost/Senior Dean, and other institutional leaders as required.
• Seek appropriate training opportunities, including specialized advancement training for major gift work, planned giving techniques, etc.

• Complete other duties assigned by the Senior Executive Director of Advancement or designee, or Vice Provost/Senior Dean.

Minimum Qualifications:

• Belief in the life-changing power of higher education;
• Five years of direct fundraising experience;
• Proven ability to be a self-starter and to work independently & effectively toward goals;
• Demonstrated intellectual and social curiosity while accessing a deep and wide repository of knowledge to inform donor and partner discussions;
• Demonstrated ability to distill information into action plans, with a focus using data and analytics to enhance prospect prioritization;
• Demonstrated behavioral and linguistic flexibility;
• Demonstrated understanding of strategic solicitation, and the donor cycle;
• Demonstrated superior communication skills including verbal and written communication.

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