Director of Leadership Giving

Impact

Junior Achievement of Greater Boston (JA) seeks a Director of Leadership Giving (DLG). Reporting to the Chief Development Officer (CDO), the Director of Leadership Giving will contribute to fundraising and external relations that sustain and grow JA of Greater Boston’s annual budget. The current budget is approximately $3.1 million and expected to grow significantly in the coming years as we implement our evolving strategic vision. The DLG will serve on a Development Team comprised of five full-time employees and one part-time contractor.
The DLG plays a vital role in JA of Greater Boston’s success by securing contributions from new individuals and families, as well as retaining and maximizing current funders. The DLG will set and implement JAGB’s annual and multi-year individual giving strategy. Specific areas of focus include major gifts, multi-year commitments, donor advised funds, planned giving, a year-end appeal, and more.

The DLG must be a personable, team-oriented leader who is passionate about Junior Achievement’s mission of advancing educational equity. A Director of Leadership Giving will be highly organized, adept at forming and maintaining relationships, an exceptional communicator, a strong strategic thinker, and willing to think innovatively while taking risks.

This is a full-time, hybrid position, providing the option to work both remotely and in JA’s Innovation Centers in Charlestown and Lawrence. The DLG will be supplied with a laptop and monitor, must have reliable internet, and must have reliable access to a vehicle or be able to commute to sites, donors, and prospects without issue.

Primary Responsibilities:

1. Contribute to Junior Achievement of Greater Boston’s $3.1 million annual fundraising goal:
2. Cultivate, solicit and steward a portfolio of individual donors.
3. Work alongside the CDO to secure major, multi-year commitments from individuals and families (IG).
4. Lead on the creation of an IG prospect pipeline. This includes qualifying donors within JAGB’s existing relationship database, as well as conducting research to generate new business.
5. Work alongside CDO to engage individual Board and Advisory Board Members in an annual giving strategy.
6. Work with CDO to develop structured, strategic engagement and stewardship plans for donors at mid-tier and top-tier giving levels. Coordinate these deliverables with the broader JAGB staff team.
7. Convert one-time donors into multi-year commitments at a range of giving levels.
8. Work alongside the CDO to engage Board Members and Associate Board Members to facilitate new partnership opportunities.
9. Work with the CDO to develop structured, strategic engagement and stewardship plans, in turn creating an excellent customer experience and encouraging a high rate of partnership renewal. Coordinate these deliverables with the broader JAGB staff team.
10. Coordinate with JA USA and other JA chapters nationwide as appropriate.
11. Collaborate with our part-time grantwriter to produce proposals, reports, or other written deliverables as required.
12. Support Junior Achievement of Greater Boston annual events and key initiatives:
13. Serve as primary project manager for one annual event: the Spirit of JA Breakfast.
14. Support the Program Team to recruit, train, and steward volunteers through annual programmatic initiatives, including the JA Company Program, 3DE by Junior Achievement, and Career Pathway for Alumni.
15. Cultivate JAGB’s robust annual volunteer base as donors.
16. Collaborate with the Events Coordinator to encourage attendance at/participation in annual fundraising events.
17. Work alongside the Corporate Partnerships Manager to identify individual donors at corporate partners, and leverage individual champions to make introductions at area businesses.
18. Track partnership activity, pipeline, and results using JA’s national CRM database.
19. Serve as the primary Development Team liaison to JAGB’s Associate Board. Work alongside the Chief Development Officer as appropriate to support the Board of Directors.
a. Develop new programs:
b. Lead in the launch of Junior Achievement of Greater Boston’s inaugural major gifts program.
c. Lead in the creation of JAGB’s planned giving program.
d. Operationalize collaboration between Program Team and Development Team to increase organizational conversion rate of volunteers into donors, as well as donors into volunteers.

Qualifications (required)

- Strong mission-alignment and passion for empowering young people from underserved communities; passion for philanthropy and nonprofit work;
- 4-6 years of related experience, either in the non-profit or for-profit sectors;
- A record of measurable results in organizing and implementing such activities as: major gifts, annual funds, planned giving, fundraising appeals, and more;
- Knowledge and experience with a CRM system, preferably Blackbaud (e.g. Raiser’s Edge) and Microsoft. Actively use and ensure development team uses CRM system to capture stakeholder contact information, interactions and for prospecting; familiarity with Asana a plus;
- Ability to thrive in an inclusive organizational culture that attracts and retains diverse talent.
- Experience working effectively in a team environment with diverse staff and stakeholders.
- Reliable with a high level of maturity and sound judgment. Flexible and comfortable with ambiguity;
- Leads with humility, and learns and grows from mistakes; willingness to participate in and contribute to a real-time feedback culture;
- A track record as an effective communicator; highly developed skills in writing and speaking;
- Strong organizational and time management skills with exceptional attention to detail and ability to reliably meet deadlines;
- The ability to work independently and as a team player, to work effectively virtually, while managing a balance of in-person meetings, now and in the future; ability to take initiative, and to manage multiple tasks and projects at a time;
- Outstanding customer service skills.

Application Process