Director of Development, University-Wide

WESTERN UNIVERSITY; London; On-site; CAD 82,000 - 117,000; Full time

Job summary

WESTERN UNIVERSITY is seeking a Director of Development, University-Wide to lead and oversee a diverse donor portfolio and a centralized fundraising team. This role focuses on discovery, cultivation, solicitation, stewardship, and strategic initiatives across campus.

The candidate will design and execute transformational fundraising strategies, collaborate with senior leaders, and drive multi-million dollar campaigns to support Western's academic objectives and financial needs.

Qualifications

• Requires a university degree; CFRE designation would be an asset
• 8 years' experience securing six- and seven-figure gifts in private or charitable sectors
• Demonstrated experience leading a fundraising team toward revenue targets
• Experience guiding donor strategy, implementation and evaluation
• Strong project management across multiple initiatives with tight deadlines

Responsibilities

• Lead and manage the Development Team in discovery, cultivation, solicitation, recognition and stewardship of a university-wide donor portfolio
• Design, develop and manage fundraising strategies aligned with university goals and multi-year targets
• Collaborate with senior academic and administrative officers to develop cultivation and solicitation plans
• Increase and diversify revenue to support the university's academic objectives and financial needs

Skills

Fundraising leadership

Donor strategy

Project management

Team leadership

Education

University degree

Honours degree in business/marketing/communications/public relations

CFRE designation would be an asset

Tools

MS Office

Donor CRM software

Job description

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Job Title Director of Development, University-Wide

Employee Group PMA - Professional and Managerial Association

The base salary will be $82,230 - $117,360 per annum. Starting salary will be aligned with the successful candidate's experience, skills, and demonstrated qualifications.

About Western

Since 1878, Western University has been committed to serving our communities through the pursuit of academic excellence and by providing students, faculty, and community members with life-long opportunities for intellectual, social, and cultural growth. We seek excellent students, faculty, and staff to join us in what has become known as the "Western Experience" - an opportunity to contribute to a better world through the development of new knowledge, new abilities, new connections, and new ways to make a difference.

About Us

The Western Advancement division plays a leading role in strengthening awareness of and support for the University’s mission and goals by leading alumni relations and fundraising efforts across campus and beyond. All departments within the Division build enduring alumni and public trust through understanding and support for Western University in a coordinated campus-wide effort that results in the engagement and funding needed to make an impact. There are 3 departments within the Division – Departments of Development, Alumni Relations and Advancement Operations.

Responsibilities

The Director of Development, University-Wide will play a key role on the Development Team. The Director will lead and participate in the full scope of development activities, relating to the discovery, cultivation, solicitation, recognition and stewardship of a portfolio of prospects and donors to the university. The role will manage and develop of team of centralized fundraising professionals, provide support to the Managing Director in oversight of the Major Gift portfolio across the university, and actively participate in raising philanthropic support for Western. The role will design, develop, implement, evaluate and manage effective, innovative and transformational fundraising strategies which support the goals of the University-Wide team. They will ensure efforts are focused and coordinated to meet the deliverables of fundraising priorities and that progress is continual towards meeting multi-year goals.

The role will be responsible for significantly increasing and diversifying revenue to the university and will design, develop, implement, evaluate and manage fundraising strategies as part of an overall development process which matches the University’s academic objectives and financial needs with the highest philanthropic aspirations of donors who have the capacity to make significant gifts. The Director will interact and work closely with senior academic and administrative officers to develop and implement cultivation and solicitation strategies to support their programs.

Qualifications

Education:

• University degree; Honours Degree in Business Administration, Marketing, Communications or Public Relations is preferred
• Accreditation through Certified Fund Raising Executive (CFRE) designation would be an asset

Experience:

• 8 years' experience securing six and seven-figure financial agreements within the private sector or similar levels of major gifts in the charitable sector
• Demonstrated experience leading a team towards revenue targets
• Experience leading a fundraising, or revenue generating, portfolio towards multi-million dollar targets
• Experience with donor strategy development, implementation and evaluation
• Experience successfully managing multiple projects from conception to completion within tight prescribed deadlines
• Experience fundraising with a university or other complex non-profit environment is preferred

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities:

• Ability to effectively collaborate in the achievement of a fundraising or revenue- generating campaign and realize targets, preferably in an academic setting
• Demonstrated oral and written communication skills with an emphasis on proposal development and presentation to internal and external contacts
• Strong project management skills and the ability to manage multiple projects at once from conception to completion with tightly prescribed timelines
• Ability to establish and build healthy working relations and partnerships with clients, peers and external stakeholders
• Exceptional organizational skills and the ability to manage activities both for self and others effectively
• A well-defined sense of diplomacy, including solid negotiation, conflict resolution and people management skills
• Flexible, resourceful, creative and pro-active work style with a can-do, enthusiastic attitude
• Emotional Intelligence (to ensure own work-life balance and good collegial relationships are maintained)
• Demonstrated commitment to ongoing learning and professional development to stay informed about fundraising initiatives and the unit’s missions and objectives
• Results-oriented with an ability to handle many tasks and maintain a high level of individual and team performance
• Flexibility to work outside of regular business hours and travel frequently
• Advanced computer skills in Microsoft Office and a client/donor relations management software

Western Values Diversity

The University invites applications from all qualified individuals. Western is committed to employment equity and diversity in the workplace and welcomes applications from women, members of racialized groups/visible minorities, Indigenous persons, persons with disabilities, persons of any sexual orientation, and persons of any gender identity or gender expression.

Accommodations are available for applicants with disabilities throughout the recruitment process. If you require accommodations for interviews or other meetings, please contact Human Resources or phone [phone].

Please Note:

This position is an existing vacancy. This position is fully in-person, on-site. We thank all applicants for their interest; however, only those chosen for an interview will be contacted.