Senior Manager, Leadership Giving

Jobvite, Inc.; Toronto; On-site; CAD 103,000 - 129,000; Full time

Benefits offered by this job

Discounts to GoodLife Fitness

Free tickets to major AGO exhibits

Discounts to major attractions

Free admission for friends and family

Job summary

The Art Gallery of Ontario in Toronto is seeking a Senior Manager, Leadership Giving to join our Development team. You will design and implement strategies to attract and engage major donors, manage leadership giving portfolios, and drive philanthropic revenue in alignment with the AGO's mission and priorities.

This role leads stewardship programs, volunteer engagement, and donor communications, while partnering with internal teams to broaden our donor base and deepen support for AGO

Qualifications

• Minimum 5 years of fundraising experience with revenue growth and donor diversification.
• At least 3 years in a supervisory fundraising role.
• Strong strategic thinking, project management, and budgeting skills.
• Experience leading senior volunteer committees and working with Boards.
• Knowledge of digital marketing, direct mail and portfolio management in annual giving.

Responsibilities

• Designs fundraising strategies and manages budgets to hit revenue targets.
• Oversees leadership giving portfolios, renewals, and high-priority donor relationships.
• Develops donor acquisition, retention and upgrade programs with internal teams.
• Represents AGO with external stakeholders to grow donor community.
• Tracks metrics to evaluate revenue pacing and portfolio optimization.
• Supports junior colleagues in developing young donor engagement strategies.
• Creates stewardship calendars and content to demonstrate impact of giving.
• Plans events with speakers and experiences to engage donors.

Skills

Fundraising strategy

Portfolio management

Data analytics

Leadership

Relationship building

Tools

Tessitura

Job description

Senior Manager, Leadership Giving

Regular Full-Time

35 hours per week; some evening and weekend work required

ART + AUDIENCE + LEARNING

Located in Toronto, the Art Gallery of Ontario is one of the largest art museums in North America, attracting approximately one million visitors annually. The AGO Collection of more than 120,000 works of art ranges from cutting-edge contemporary art to significant works by Indigenous and Canadian artists and European masterpieces.

We are currently seeking a Senior Manager, Leadership Giving to join our Development team. Under the direction of the Director, Philanthropy, the Senior Manager, Leadership Giving is responsible for developing and implementing powerful strategies to attract and engage individuals in the AGO community and beyond in philanthropic support of the AGO. Responsible for a range of programs in mid-level giving, the Senior Manager, Leadership Giving plays a central role in philanthropic revenue generation and growing and diversifying our donor base. The Senior Manager, Leadership Giving leads efforts to achieve established annual financial targets, oversees the strategic development and delivery of donor programs, and works to ensure alignment with the AGO’s mission, vision, values, brand and priorities.

As a member of Development’s management team this position contributes to the overall strategic direction and successful execution of the Development Division’s annual and multi-year plans and collaborates with colleagues in development and implementation of the long-term fundraising strategy for the AGO, aligned with the AGO’s strategic plan.

This role is vital to growing our community of supporters and inspiring generous and lifelong giving. The Senior Manager, Leadership Giving is an AGO ambassador who strives to build meaningful and productive relationships with our volunteers and donors, from introducing individuals to philanthropy at the Gallery to ever-deepening engagement and support at the highest levels.

An important aspect of this role is to ensure that we are a welcoming home for a broad and diverse community of individuals who support and believe in the AGO’s work, see themselves reflected in the art we present, and know that they are valued members of the AGO family. The AGO is also taking steps to build our capacity to actively work on addressing issues of inclusion, diversity, equity and accessibility in our galleries, programming and workplace. We have embedded diversity and inclusion into our strategic plan and ongoing priorities and all AGO staff contributions are key to achieving these goals.

The salary range for this position is $103,357 - $129,220 per annum.

What is this position responsible for?

FUNDRAISING

• Designs strategies, and establishes and manages budgets to achieve revenue targets.
• Manages leadership giving portfolios through including long-term and annual planning, overseeing renewal campaigns, and managing a personal portfolio of high-priority donor relationships.
• Develops and implements innovative strategies for donor acquisition, renewal, retention and conversion to higher giving levels, in collaboration with internal stakeholders – including but not limited to General Membership, Business and Brand, Curatorial Affairs, etc. Strategies may include segmentation acquisition campaigns, paid ad promotion, digital and print marketing channels, and cultivation through existing relationships.
• Represents the AGO in collaboration with external stakeholders – organizations, peer institutions, individuals, volunteers, etc. – who help inform our fundraising work and support the growth of our donor community through genuine connections and meaningful relationships.
• Tracks and reports on key metrics to evaluate revenue pacing, portfolio optimization across the Leadership Giving team, donor engagement trends and more.
• Supports Associate, Leadership Giving in developing and executing strategies for young donor engagement, retention and growth.

STEWARDSHIP

• Works with Associate, Leadership Giving and Development Special Events team to design stewardship calendars and content intended to bring donors closer to the impact of their generosity, educating them about all aspects of the AGO that rely on their steadfast support.
• Works with Development Special Events team to create engaging “surprise and delight” moments for donors at events, including exceptional guest speakers, performances, and behind-the-scenes learning experiences.
• Leverages exceptional stewardship calendars as marketing tools to grow midlevel giving through committee outreach, in‑museum marketing, segmented mail/email campaigns, etc. Develops and oversees engagement email calendars for Leadership Giving donors, ensuring emails provide timely communications about events, relevant AGO news, impact stories, and Member benefits.

VOLUNTEER MANAGEMENT

• Strategic management of volunteer committees, including recruitment, retention and succession planning.
• Develops annual committee strategy to meet revenue targets and mobilize committee-led donor acquisition channels.
• Works directly with AGO Trustees and volunteers to facilitate their active involvement in fundraising for midlevel giving.

DONOR PIPELINE

• In collaboration with the Development Operations team, researches and gathers information about new prospects or prospect segments, informing mail and email acquisition appeal strategies.
• Together with the Development Operations team, identifies individuals within leadership giving who may have capacity to increase their giving, working with Relationship Managers to assign and cultivate for larger gifts.

STAFF MANAGEMENT

• Manages the activities of departmental staff through assigning, scheduling and monitoring work completion; hiring and training staff; managing work performance.
• Supports the professional growth and development of direct reports, working together to identify opportunities for staff to develop their skills and gain valuable experience as it relates to their role and career trajectory.

STRATEGIC PLANNING

• Stays up-to-date on fundraising best practices and trends, regularly assessing program practices, processes and strategy to ensure alignment with AGO values and industry standards.
• In consultation with the Director, Philanthropy, develops and refines strategies for leadership giving, both evaluating current offering and reaching new segments. Leads strategy for leadership giving development and delivery, benefit analysis, recognition and growth strategies, and implements changes as necessary.
• Participates in multi-year and annual strategic planning for the Division and Gallery-wide funding priorities.
• Leads annual planning and refines priorities for Leadership Giving team.

PERFORMS OTHER DUTIES

• Performs other duties as assigned, including management of various initiatives as required.

What are we looking for?

• A minimum of 5 years of experience in fundraising, with a successful track-record in designing and executing strategies to grow revenue and diversify the donor base
• At least 3 years’ experience in a supervisory fundraising role
• Demonstrated ability to think and plan strategically, and organize and manage a diverse portfolio of fundraising initiatives
• Demonstrated experience providing leadership to senior volunteer committees and working with Board members
• Highly skilled in project management, including content development, work-back schedules, briefing documents, team and budget management
• Strong data analytics skills and a data-driven approach
• Knowledge of Tessitura an asset
• A confident and natural relationship-builder and persuasive communicator
• In-depth knowledge of fundraising techniques for annual fundraising, and high-end donor cultivation and acquisition, including digital marketing, direct mail, and portfolio management
• A passion for the visual arts is an asset
• Knowledge of the Toronto donor and art communities an asset
• Commitment to museum’s core values:
• Respect
• Openness
• Collaboration
• Accountability

What are the benefits of working at the AGO?

• Discounts to GoodLife Fitness.
• Free tickets to every major exhibit at AGO.
• Discounts to major attractions as a part of the Provincial/City Reciprocal Programs.
• Free admission to the AGO for friends and family, discounts at the gift shop, bistro, and Learning Centre.

Our commitment to Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Accessibility:

At the AGO, we lead global conversations from Toronto through extraordinary collections, exhibitions, and programs, reflecting the diverse community we serve. Committed to fostering inclusion, diversity, equity, and accessibility, we embed these values into our strategic plan and ongoing priorities.

We thank all applicants for their interest in the position; however, only those selected for an interview will be contacted. Our Applicant Tracking System (ATS) uses AI features to support efficiency and consistency, but all hiring decisions are made by our managers and HR team.

The Art Gallery of Ontario is an Equal Opportunity Employer.