Major Gifts Officer

POSITION TITLE:  Major Gifts Officer

LOCATION: Hybrid and within proximity to one of the following Per Scholas campuses: New York; Newark; Greater Boston

REPORTS TO: Director of Individual Giving

WHO WE ARE LOOKING FOR

Per Scholas’ Major Gifts Officer – an energetic accelerator of major gifts – identifies, cultivates, and secures five- and six-figure gifts by nurturing relationships between donors and the organization. This position is a new role focused on growing commitments from a portfolio of 100+ donors and prospects via regular touchpoints that include donor meetings, campus visits, and events. The Major Gifts Officer will leverage our upcoming 30th anniversary year of celebration and the launch of our 2030 strategic plan. The Major Gifts Officer is responsible for advancing best practices in moves management, traveling and meeting with donors and prospects in our national portfolio, as well as in high-opportunity markets on the East Coast. 

WHAT YOU’LL DO

• Serve as solicitor or orchestrator in soliciting and securing major gifts at the five- and six-figure level, helping to grow a base of future seven-figure prospects. 
• In close collaboration with the Director of Individual Giving, steward a portfolio of 50+ current donors, while simultaneously identifying, qualifying and cultivating 50+ new prospects with the capacity to make gifts of $10,000 or more. 
• Uphold a strong moves management system that ensures accountability and performance and builds an increasing base of major and leadership gift donors, and provide activity reports on moves management on a regular basis 
• Collaborate and engage the local teams, including geographically-assigned fundraisers, in donor cultivation and stewardship to bring the philanthropic potential of Per Scholas’ work to new donors
• Attend program and fundraising activities as needed (travel and occasional evenings will be required)

WHAT YOU’LL BRING TO US:

Professional Requirements

• A minimum of 5 years of sophisticated major gifts experience, with a proven track record of closing five- and six-figure gifts
• Proven achievement of building effective, long-term relationships with recurring and prospective donors
• Strong interpersonal, written, and verbal communication skills, including comfort dealing with high-net-worth individuals
• Ability to distill complex information into coherent, compelling stories that build a case for support 
• Knowledge of philanthropy landscape and trends, particularly in the NYC/tri-state area
• Self-motivated strategic thinker with a proven record of working independently and achieving results 
• Successful experience working with high-level board members and institutional leaders
• Ability to garner trust and confidence of senior staff, including program leaders, board members and donors 
• Proven research and funder prospecting abilities
• Experience with prospect and donor management fundraising software applications, including Salesforce and iWave (now Kindful)
• Experience with Microsoft Office, and Google Apps for Business (Docs, Drive, Gmail, Calendar, Chat, etc.) 
• Ability to travel up to 30%, and work occasional evening and weekend hours, as needed

Personal Characteristics

• You thrive in a creative, inventive, fast-paced environment with people who are passionate about their work and mission
• You are excited by the opportunity to build and develop a donor pipeline from the ground up, leveraging creativity and strategic thinking
• You are comfortable working independently and taking initiative as an individual contributor to drive fundraising success
• You are data-driven, results-oriented and a forward-looking catalyst for social change.
• You are an effective communicator with strong oral and written skills.
• You are detail oriented, with exceptional organizational and time management skills.
• You are interested in workforce development, technology, diversity, organizational growth, and scaling impact
• You stand behind our mission, believing that individuals from any community should have access to well-paying career positions, and that talent should be recognized and recruited from many diverse sources.

#LI Remote 

For this role specifically, the salary range is between $90,000/year and $105,000/year, where the difference in salary is typically determined by several factors, including geography in which the selected candidate resides, and alignment with qualifications and experience.