Assistant Director of Prospect Research and Gift Administration

Summary: Reporting to the Director of Advancement Operations, the Assistant Director of Prospect Research and Gift Administration will work to create and nurture an effective prospect research and gift administration practice at Gwynedd Mercy University. They will use best practices and evolving tools in prospect research to create and implement plans to identify new donors while measuring inclination and capacity to give to the University. The AD will work closely with UA leadership and members of the UA team on prospect strategy and portfolio management. The Assistant Director will also be responsible for the day-to-day processing of gifts, maintaining data integrity of the UA database and execute gift entry and acknowledgements for gifts of all levels. 

ESSENTIAL DUTIES AND RESPONSIBILITIES include the following:

The purpose of this job description is to provide an overview of the scope of the position. This is not a comprehensive list of duties/responsibilities. Other duties and responsibilities may be assigned:

Prospect Research and Development

• Manages prospect research meetings and fundraiser portfolio reviews; manages portfolio optimization process for fundraisers, and assists in overall management of GMercyU’s prospect pool.
• Performs prospect identification and research through analysis and interpretation of biographic, business, and financial information on individuals and organizations based on the University’s fundraising strategies and objectives.
• Develops and manages internal rating system to help inform on fundraising strategies including segmentation, ask amount, and participatory involvement for prospects.
• Assists with special projects for University fundraising initiatives (i.e. campaigns, targeted mailings, etc.) by analyzing prospect pools, and developing top prospect lists.
• Uses prospecting tools such as data screening and modeling to provide analyses of targeted groups and overall prospect pool to better prioritize major gift prospects.
• Prepares accurate, clear, and concise research profiles and briefings to communicate relevant details that advance the qualification, cultivation, and solicitation of prospective donors to major gift officers and senior leadership.
• Helps to oversee the timely and accurate entry of newly acquired prospect management information (e.g. news articles about alumni, obituaries) into the CRM, communicating this information to key stakeholders as necessary.
• Conducts wealth screenings as needed and imports results into CRM appropriately.
• Inform on budgetary discussions involving the necessity of various researching software products for University Advancement and oversee relationship with prospect research vendors.

Gift Administration and Database Management

• Performs daily gift and pledge processing functions including depositing, sorting, balancing, entering and validating gifts, and updating pertinent information necessary for the proper receipt, administration and acknowledgement of gifts.
• Adds new constituent records into Raiser’s Edge when a gift is received from an individual, corporation or foundation not in the database.
• Performs daily updates of existing constituent contact information by processing returned mail, alumni update e-forms, employee status notifications, online obituaries, etc. while utilizing UA research tools.
• Accurately receipts and acknowledges all gifts and tributes as appropriate, including planned gifts.
• Scans and indexes all gift documentation, acknowledgement and gift receipts to donor records.
• Generates daily gift acknowledgement letters, major and planned gift acknowledgement letters, and weekly/daily gift reports with prospect and donor information.
• Directly coordinates with the President’s Office to obtain live signatures for major and top-priority gifts and ensures high-level stewardship by issuing timely thank you notes, donor benefits, etc.
• Tracks high-level requests, issues, and questions involving donor acknowledgments, gift agreements, and other stewardship activities that require quick attention.
• Assists with handling internal and external constituents’ questions and requests for information on scholarships and other restricted funds.
• Creates documentation to establish new annual and endowment scholarships working as a direct liaison to the Finance Department.
• Assists Director of Advancement Operations in database management by maintaining data integrity and accuracy, as well as handling all global changes, imports, exports, and other comprehensive database functions and clean-up projects assigned by the DAO.
• Manages and oversees appropriate database projects with student workers.
• Adheres to ethical and confidentiality guidelines as indicated by the Association of Professional Researchers for Advancement (APRA), the Association of Advancement Services Professionals (AASP), as well as university policies and procedures.
• Performs other duties as assigned.

QUALIFICATIONS:

• Education: Bachelor's degree in communications, marketing, journalism, business administration, a liberal arts field, or equivalent combination of relevant education and experience required.
• Minimum 2-5 years related work experience required preferably in an advancement office in a higher education or non-profit setting.
• Proficiency with RE/NXT (or comparable CRM). Preferred knowledge in prospect research data appends (i.e. ResearchPoint, DonorSearch, LiveAlumni, et al.)
• Strong proficiency in Microsoft Office suite products, particularly Excel for data manipulation and analysis.
• Effectively manage projects that are both data-driven and relationship-driven
• Outstanding time management skills, including the ability to organize, manage and prioritize multiple projects simultaneously.
• Writing and editing skills spanning multiple styles is required, excellent attention to detail
• Excellent customer service skills when working with University colleagues, students, alumni and donor communities.
• Skill in dealing with people, diplomacy, tact, discretion, and the ability to maintain confidentiality.
• Commitment to the mission and core values of Gwynedd Mercy University.
• Available to work occasional nights or weekends relating to University Advancement events or fundraising initiatives