The Director, Stewardship is responsible for the design, implementation, quality, and results of the national stewardship program for outright giving, including newly launched national giving societies. The Director is the Subject Matter Expert (SME) on stewardship best practices, including segmentation strategies, acknowledgement processes, recognition vehicles, and creative engagement opportunities for top donors. The Director partners closely with members of the Donor Development Strategy & Operations, Major Gifts, and Principal Gifts teams to identify the stewardship needs of ~4,000 major and principal gifts donors and prospects, as well as the 56 LLS Chapters nationwide that work with them. The Director develops and implements the national plan to meet those needs, through a combination of nationally and locally delivered touchpoints.
- Craft the national stewardship plan for major and principal gifts donors and prospects, including access levels, calendar of experiences and touchpoints, and delivery method (national and local)
- Source and create stewardship assets and engagement opportunities through collaboration with business partners across the organization—especially within Donor Development and with Marketing, Communications, and Mission.
- Oversee seamless, consistent, and timeline delivery of national stewardship touchpoints and experiences, developing processes and standard operating procedures that align business partners and drive quality.
- Manage the annual process of progress reporting, ensuring that every lead donor receives detailed reporting and leadership recognition for contributions to the LLS mission.
- Participate in the implementation of the national leadership engagement strategy.
- Oversee leadership acknowledgement process; draft leadership correspondence and ensuring timely acknowledgement of all large incoming gifts.
- Develop and implement Donor Developments national event strategy, ensuring event investments are strategic and leveraged to maximum return for the principal and major gifts program.
- Develop—and source, where available—standards, guidelines, and tools/resources for Chapters to facilitate consistent, quality delivery of locally managed components of the stewardship program.
- Manage giving society membership, in partnership with Analyst, Major Gifts.
- Contribute assets, experiences, and best practices to the development of the planned giving (Legacy Circle) stewardship program.
- Minimum 5-7 years experience in a major gifts fundraising environment.
- Experience in major donor stewardship, cultivation, and recognition; experience personally soliciting and stewarding $10,000+ gifts preferred.
- Experience managing complex projects, involving multiple business partners, to successful completion.
- Experience working in a staff capacity for volunteers and executives.
- Capacity to acquire an understanding of leukemia, lymphoma, non-Hodgkin lymphoma and myeloma, as well as issues of concern to blood cancer patients and their families.
- Experience working in a matrix environment preferred.
Position Requirements:
- In depth understanding of the “donor experience” and role of an organization in enhancing it.
- Creative, motivated self-starter.
- Ability to maximize impact of all LLS assets – local and national – to achieve objectives.
- Highly organized, with strong project management skills and ability to balance multiple priorities effectively.
- Collegial, collaborative style and ability to influence people at all levels of the organization to drive to results.
- Advanced expertise in list management (via MS Excel and prospect databases).
- Superior writing and design skills to contribute to correspondence and stewardship pieces, as needed.
- Resourcefulness and problem-solving acumen.
- Strong interpersonal and verbal communication skills. Ability to work collaboratively as a member of a team, regardless of the task at hand.
- Professional demeanor and commitment to highest customer service standards.
- Advanced fluency in MS Office Suite and InDesign preferred.
Physical Demands & Work Environment:
- Physical demands are minimal and typical of similar jobs in comparable organizations
- Work environment is representative and typical of similar jobs in comparable organizations