Teach For America – New York seeks a Managing Director, Individual Giving (MDIG) to play a key leadership role on our eight-person Development Team working to raise $15M to $18M annually in support of the New York Region’s work towards educational equity and excellence. The MDIG will be responsible for a major gift portfolio, primarily focused on individuals but also including institutional funders. Working closely with the Senior Managing Director, Development Operations and Vice President, Development, the MDIG will be responsible for identifying, cultivating and stewarding a portfolio of donors and prospects. The MDIG will manage the Individual Giving team to support strong fundraising execution of individual giving and major gifts strategy and donor development. The MDIG will report to the Senior Managing Director, Development and work closely with all members of the Development team, playing a key leadership role in the direction of the team’s overall multi-year fundraising strategy.
Donor Stewardship & Cultivation
- Identify, cultivate, and steward a portfolio of prospective and current donors, establishing and maintaining excellent relationships.
- Secure gifts ranging from $5,000 to $100,000, increasing conversion, renewal and upgrade rates.
- Partner with the Executive Director; VP, Development; and SMD, Development Operations to engage with donors effectively and strategically.
- Create compelling fundraising communications about TFA's vision, priorities and goals to deepen supporters’ understanding of and commitment to TFA.
Portfolio Management, Strategy and Planning
- Implement a multi-year strategy to expand donor portfolios and increase donor investment.
- Develop and execute donor-by-donor engagement stewardship plans, built on clear understanding of donor intent, motivations, and barriers.
- Leverage compelling and inspiring fundraising events to steward and connect with new donors.
- Manage the Associate and Manager of Individual Giving to:
- Lead strong operations of annual giving campaigns and major gift programs, including Sponsor A Teacher and alumni giving, and develop additional annual fund opportunities.
- Conduct individual prospect research and execute systems to prioritize the identification and cultivation of prospects.
- Prepare for donor meetings, including developing accurate, concise and thoughtful meeting briefs.
Team and Regional Responsibilities
- Contribute to regional strategic planning, decision-making and team communications as a member of the New York regional leadership team.
- Manage and support the ongoing development of the Associate and Manager of Individual Giving.
- Participate in all-staff (region and organization-wide) activities and events such as selection, confirmation, strategic planning and summits.
- Engage directly with members of the Programs and Alumni & Community Affairs teams to internalize and be able to compellingly communicate regional priorities and impact.
- 7-10 years of work experience, including at least 3 years in external relations, front line fundraising, or business development, with management experience preferred.
- Track record of achieving ambitious goals.
- Exceptional relationship-building skills, and strong belief in customer service approach to donor management.
- Deep commitment to Teach For America’s mission and core values.
- Prior development experience and knowledge of New York City business & philanthropic community highly preferred.
- Agility and endurance to navigate a large, complex national organization and competitive landscape.
- Strong formal and informal communications skills with an ability to convey complex ideas concisely and compellingly to a range of external audiences.
- Excellent organizational skills, detail orientation and demonstrated capacity to manage a high volume of work to achieve ambitious goals in a fast-paced setting.
- Outstanding judgment, discretion, ethical standards and commitment to responsible stewardship.
- Basic knowledge of CRM systems (i.e. Salesforce).
Work Demands
- Ability to work some evenings, weekends, early mornings.
- Willingness and ability to travel on public transportation to in-person meetings.