The Director of Donor Stewardship is responsible for directing all aspects of the stewardship team and its wide-ranging efforts in support of stewarding the organization’s principal gift donors.
The Director of Donor Stewardship will work toward meeting the strategic priorities of the stewardship team by developing and implementing a comprehensive and measurable strategic plan that provides a best-in-class stewardship experience for the Conservancy’s principal gift donors. The director will also collaborate across multiple teams and departments (development, marketing, conservation, finance, legal) to define best stewardship practices (services and systems) and establish benchmarks and measures to track progress and success.
The director will develop an in-depth understanding of the organization’s principal gift and prospective donor pools. They will work closely with principal gift officers, leadership, communications experts and other development staff to design and implement proactive stewardship strategies, administer complex gifts and connect our global donor base with meaningful engagement opportunities. They will strengthen gift acceptance, acknowledgement, gift expenditure and reporting procedures to reduce organizational risk and ensure timely expenditure of and reporting on outcomes related to private grants.
The director will also help create and implement donor recognition strategies and protocols for the Our World global campaign. They will build affinity groups and develop communications strategies leveraging multiple platforms (print and digital) to engage groups of donors with interests in specific Conservancy priorities.
RESPONSIBILITIES AND SCOPE
- Broad management responsibility for two or more professional or administrative staff, including training, professional development, establishing clear directions, setting “stretch” objectives and overseeing the execution of day-to-day work.
- Develop and administer program budget, evaluate results and develop corrective strategies as needed.
- Ensure that programmatic commitments, TNC policies and procedures and financial standards are met and managed for ethical compliance.
- Commit actions and resources in a way that affects public image, and binds the organization financially or legally.
- Implement and direct multiple projects, directing work of staff, setting deadlines and ensuring accountability.
- Lead new programs/initiatives through collaboration with stakeholders to ensure program and organization-wide goals and strategies are achieved.
- Maintain confidentiality of frequently sensitive information.
- Manage strategic initiatives through collaboration with stakeholders in order to enhance performance in accordance with short and long-term objectives.
- Maximum opportunity to act independently, resolve complex issues within program area and act as a resource to others to solve problems.
- May direct or participate in negotiations for complex, high profile or sensitive agreements.
- Minimize legal risk to the Conservancy and ensure legal compliance with applicable state and local regulations.
- Responsibility and accountability for meeting strategic goals and objectives.
- Travel frequently and on short notice, work long hours and weekends.
- Work environment involves only infrequent exposure to disagreeable elements and minor physical exertion and/or strain.
MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS
- 7 years related experience.
- Experience managing and supervising a multidisciplinary team.
- Experience developing, managing and implementing multiple projects and strategic goals.
- Experience working across complex organizations and with cross-functional teams across multiple organizational levels.
- Experience negotiating complex high-profile or sensitive agreements.
- Experience working with contact management databases (e.g., fundraising, customer relationship management or similar software).
- Experience, coursework or other training in fundraising trends, including donor relations and stewardship.
PREFERRED KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS & EXPERIENCE
- Proven ability to work across diverse deliverables that may not always fall under established practices and guidelines.
- Experience leveraging new (e.g., digital, social) and traditional media to steward donors. Multi-lingual skills and multi-cultural or cross-cultural experience are appreciated.
- Experience in planning and delivering budgetary responsibilities.
- Effective training skills.
- Effectively communicates via presentations, conversations and documents.
- Experience managing a geographically dispersed team.
The Nature Conservancy offers competitive compensation, 401k or savings-plan matching for eligible employees, excellent benefits, flexible work policies and a collaborative work environment. We also provide professional development opportunities and promote from within. As a result, you will find a culture that supports and inspires conservation achievement and personal development, both within the workplace and beyond.