Join UVU as the Director of Annual Giving and Lead the Charge in Transformative Philanthropy!

Are you a visionary leader with a passion for philanthropy? Utah Valley University is seeking an innovative and strategic Director of Annual Giving to drive our fundraising efforts to new heights. UVU is in the middle of an exciting and comprehensive campaign, EverGREEN, that is focused on raising funds for the entire University, including scholarships and programming. Over ¾ of our graduates stay in Utah building our community. This is your opportunity to make a lasting impact in our state and help shape the future of education.

Summary of Responsibilities

• Directs, tracks, and reports on the work of UVU’s annual giving department through strategic efforts, outreach, analytics, and data driven decisions. Builds a multi-channel approach to cultivation, solicitation, education, and stewardship that includes face-to-face, direct mail, email, text, social media, giving days, volunteers, events, matching gifts, and digital campaigns. Collaborates with major gift officers and other campus departments for fundraising events and campaigns. Ensures campaign strategies are in place, directs the team in fulfilling and tracking tasks, reports results to leadership, and assesses ROI.
• Oversees and effectively directs fundraising efforts, creates new funding opportunities, extends the annual giving program to greater audiences, and in collaboration with the Donor Relations department, maintains a donor stewardship program. Ensures campaigns and outreach efforts are appropriately segmented, timed, and coordinated with other campaigns and campus events and in line with Advancement’s brand and overall marketing and communication strategy. Utilizes multiple software programs, including Excel, Word, PowerPoint, Blackbaud Raisers Edge database, Blackbaud Merchant Services, Double the Donation Matching Gifts, and Thankview. Ensures PCI compliance through fundraising efforts.
• Oversees the annual giving department by recruiting, supervising, mentoring, and evaluating staff. Creates a culture of donor centric care, encouragement, and accountability. Sets goals and strategy for fundraising efforts, efficient response, reporting, tracking, stewardship, accountability, and quality control. Coordinates with campus partners on the use of annual giving resources.
• Other duties as assigned, which may include supporting university-level and Annual Giving priorities in engagement-focused events, and seeking opportunities for professional development that will enhance job performance including building networks within the University and with colleagues at peer institutions.

Minimum Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in Business, Communication, Public Relations, English, or a related field, or equivalency (2 years related work experience may be substituted for 1 year of education).
• Five years of experience in fundraising, marketing, sales, business, public relations, annual, corporate, or foundation giving, which includes two years of budgeting and supervisory experience.
• Demonstrated human relations and effective communication skills required.

Preferred Qualifications: 

• Background working with print and/or electronic media, an understanding of university fundraising practices, and personnel management is preferred.

Knowledge, Skill, and Abilities

Knowledge

• Knowledge of soliciting diverse groups and best practices for annual fund programs.
• Management experience, including proven effectiveness at modeling, teaching, and leading best-practice fundraising skills.
• Demonstrated creativity, organizational ability, and strong attention to detail. Ability to make decisions in ambiguous situations, exercise good judgment based on information and analysis in a fast paced, dynamic, deadline-driven environment in an organized and professional manner.
• Knowledge of the fundraising continuum and related principals and policies.

Skills

• Former annual giving or fundraising experience.
• Demonstrated ability to establish, cultivate and steward strong relationships with students, donors, alumni and friends of the institution.
• Superior data analysis, marketing and writing skills. Strong focus on Excel formulas and pivot tables.

Abilities

• Ability to manage both small and comprehensive campaigns and projects, create detailed task lists, and delegate strategically to the team, while participating, overseeing and directing projects.
• Ability to work independently, problem solve, take initiative, set priorities and handle multiple projects efficiently and effectively. Takes responsibility and initiative to set and meet the goals, objectives and obligations while representing the mission, vision and values of the organization.
• Project management experience in leading, directing, or overseeing complex projects. Able to manage large projects in project management software, such as ClickUp, Asana, JIRA, etc.
• Intrinsically motivated and able to create innovative ideas to achieve results. Recognizes and seizes opportunities.
• Strong interpersonal skills and customer service. Poised, professional manner with the ability to express oneself clearly and empathetically in interactions with others in all forms of communications, verbal and written, one-on-one and group, etc. Ability to communicate in a direct and professional manner that engages dialogue in a manner that resolves differences.
• Demonstrated competency with a comprehensive and contemporary donor database system, merchant services, and fundraising and analytics platform, such as Blackbaud Raisers Edge.