Vice President, Planned Giving

Heart and Stroke Foundation of Canada; Toronto; Hybrid; CAD 150,000 - 200,000; Full time

Job summary

A charitable organization focused on health seeks a Vice President, Planned Giving in Toronto to develop and lead a national strategy for legacy giving, overseeing a substantial portfolio. The role requires strong leadership skills, the ability to collaborate with diverse teams, and the management of complex relationships to achieve a fundraising target of at least $30 million. The successful candidate will be strategic, detail-oriented, and possess excellent communication abilities.

Benefits

Generous paid time-off

Flexible hybrid working model

Professional development opportunities

Health and dental benefits

Qualifications

• Proven ability to lead high-performance teams.
• Experience managing complex relationships with stakeholders.
• Ability to translate complex technical concepts into plain language.

Responsibilities

• Develop and manage a national Legacy strategy with a portfolio exceeding $30 million.
• Design and manage plans to secure and steward legacy giving commitments.
• Collaborate with various internal and external stakeholders.

Skills

Strategic thinking

Collaboration

Communication skills

Analytical skills

Interpersonal skills

Education

Minimum ten years’ experience in a senior leadership role in Planned Giving

Bilingual (French/English) an asset

Tools

Microsoft Office

Fundraising databases

Job description

Who we are

At Heart & Stroke our mission is to promote health, save lives and enhance recovery. We are committed to a culture that exemplifies our core values: champion health, practice humility, embrace change, drive impact, learn and grow and be heartfelt as we work together to beat heart disease and stroke.

We believe in equity, diversity and inclusion ― it’s embedded in our values and core mission work to support all people in Canada to lead healthier lives. We are committed to applying this principle to cultivate a welcoming environment that embraces diversity among our employees. Candidates from diverse backgrounds, including but not limited to, Indigenous peoples, racialized communities, 2SLGBTQIA+ communities, women, and people living with disabilities are encouraged to apply.

To learn more about our mission, values, commitment to EDI, and the difference Heart & Stroke makes in the lives of people in Canada at every age, visit our website.

The opportunity

The Vice President, Planned Giving is responsible for developing and leading the implementation of the national Legacy strategy with a portfolio in excess of $30 million annually.

They achieve the goals of the program by managing a team of Legacy Advisors and working collaboratively with regional Development teams, Estate Administration team, marketing/communications, Direct Marketing and data analytics. This role will develop an external network of professionals to support the growth of legacy giving and hold a small, select group of expectants.

The role works collaboratively with the Senior Manager, Estate Administration and the team to ensure and seek opportunities for collaboration on key administration files. Together looking for opportunities to increase engagement and stewardship with NOK/lay executors, professional advisors and administrators.

A collaborative, team-based management style coupled with superior communication skills and a detail-oriented approach are vital to this role. Moreover, the Vice President, Planned Giving will have the required capability to implement sustainable change initiatives within a national, complex, results-oriented institution with multiple internal and external stakeholders. The incumbent will have the ability to quickly identify and develop mutually co-operative lateral working relationships with colleagues, vendors and suppliers.

Please note H&S offers hybrid option. Candidates can work from anywhere in Canada.

How you will make an impact every day

Our ideal candidate will bring a breadth & depth of experience in planned giving fundraising. The Vice President Planned Giving will inherit a very successful National Planned Giving portfolio and will play a key leadership role in designing, implementing, and managing the future strategy for the growth of Planned Giving at Heart & Stroke that integrates across the overall fundraising strategy for the organization. Working collaboratively with a national, complex, results oriented organization our successful candidate will have the ability to quickly identify and develop mutually co-operative lateral working relationships.

Key Accountabilities

This role will be accountable for an annual Planned Giving fundraising target of a minimum of $30M. Our successful candidate will:

• Design, implement and manage a comprehensive strategy and team to identify planned giving prospects, secure planned giving commitments and steward identified planned giving donors with the goal of increasing the number of legacy and major planned gifts and providing ongoing, meaningful stewardship to existing donors over their lifetimes.
• Develop an annual plan that includes accurate budget forecast for expenses and goal for confirmed expectancies. Participate and collaborate with other members of the fundraising team Nationally to develop a strategic, comprehensive approach to generating planned giving support and leveraging donors.
• Work collaboratively with Internal (regional development teams, estate administration, marketing/communications, central development, direct marketing, and data analytics) and External (professional advisors e.g. create a Trust Circle of Advisors, administrators, lay executors, Epilogue Wills etc.…) stakeholders to increase opportunities.
• Maintain a current and in-depth knowledge of planned giving vehicles, including bequests, life insurance, charitable remainder trusts, pension funds, gifts of securities, donor advised funds and their applicability to individual donor situations across Canada.
• Ensure the necessary systems, policies and procedures are in place to operate the planned giving program within the regulatory framework of the Canada Revenue Agency.
• Execute and manage the administrative duties of the position and, ensure the team is accurately tracking enquiries, monitoring relationships, and recording commitments and realized planned gifts.
• Conduct in-person meetings as required with planned giving prospects (cultivation/solicitation) and planned giving donors (stewardship).

Legacy Processes and Administration

• Collaborate with Senior Manager, Estate Administration to solicit their feedback and input in any process decisions regarding files to ensure they are administered accurately and expediently to realize funds efficiently.
• Look for opportunities to build relationships with external stakeholders, including allied professionals, executors, trustees and charitable co-beneficiaries.
• Advise Development Teams and Legacy Advisors on complex estate gifts and complicated gifts of securities, life insurance, annuities, trusts and residual interest and property.
• Lead the development, implementation and maintenance of standard policies and procedures for the acquisition, acceptance and administration of Legacy gifts.
• With Finance, develop and manage the financial outlooks and budgets for the Legacy program.

Legacy Giving Program Management

• Implement execution of all Legacy marketing and communication strategies including development of critical path and budgets and appropriate involvement of stakeholders from early stages through to final approval.
• Work collaboratively with Regional Development Leads and teams to provide gift planning opportunities to donor prospects.
• Work cross-functionally with Direct Marketing and Marketing/Communications teams to develop and plan the execution of all Legacy Marketing and communication initiatives.
• Manage information about the Legacy pipeline and bequest administration to enable useful management reporting and meaningful metrics that will inform the strategic direction of legacy.
• Work with data analytics team to gain insights on legacy prospect and expectant pipeline.

Talent Management

• Lead talent development, ensuring high standards, competence and that staff is well supported in fulfilling their accountabilities, developing their skills and achieving their career potential.
• Provide clear direction on business goals and priorities; ensure optimal deployment of resources to achieve business goals.
• Establish performance plan and objectives and review on an ongoing basis; provide coaching and feedback as per the performance management process.
• As required, recruit skilled talent in support of current and future Foundation needs, following Foundation policies, interviewing methodology and assessment guidelines.
• Familiarize and comply with all HSF policies while ensuring accurate administration of employee related information, absence records, vacation, title, etc.

The Ideal Candidate

The successful candidate will possess a passion for health philanthropy, highly strategic and be a consummate professional and role model, with excellent communication skills, exceptional collaborator, professionalism, and interpersonal skills that foster meaningful relationships with donors and prospects.

• Minimum of ten years’ experience in a senior leadership role in Planned Giving.
• 3-5 years’ experience leading a high-performance team.
• Demonstrated strategic thinking and planning.
• Ability to coach the team and where applicable develop long‑term, trust‑based relationships with potential donors that support the donor’s vision for philanthropic giving, the desire for a legacy and the donor’s personal needs.
• Ability to translate sometimes complex technical, legal and tax‑related language and concepts, where necessary, into plain English to aid in the donor’s and internal partners comprehension.
• Strong collaborator, with superior interpersonal and relationship‑building skills.
• Self‑motivated, with superior ability to produce high‑quality work under tight deadlines, combined with comfort managing multiple projects, priorities and deadlines.
• Sound judgment and ethical decision‑making skills.
• Ability to manage results and set and establish new standards of success.
• Excellent attention to detail and analytical skills, including database segmentation and ROI analysis and ability to manage complexity particularly with legal and financial processes, including tax treatments of various charitable gift arrangements.
• Ability to work and enjoys working in a multi‑layered, results‑oriented organization with multiple stakeholders.
• Experience working with lawyers/accountants and financial planners in a corporate environment is an asset.
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office applications and fundraising databases.
• Bilingual (French/English) an asset as is a CFRE and CAGP designation.

What we offer

At Heart & Stroke, we make it a priority to foster a culture of caring by implementing practices and programs that foster respect, compassion, trust and attentiveness to our own and others’ health and well-being.

In addition to a competitive salary, we believe that time off is integral to the personal health and wellness of our employees. We offer a generous paid time‑off package including vacation days, personal days, wellness days, and paid company‑wide closure between December 25 and January 1. We also provide competitive health, medical, dental and vision benefits, life insurance, disability benefits, an employee assistance program (EAP) and a defined contribution pension plan with employer matching. Our employees also enjoy a flexible hybrid working model and reimbursement for mobile phones and home office setup, as well as opportunities for professional development.

Apply now

If you want to join the fight to beat heart disease and stroke, please apply by sending your resume by January 16, 2026. Applicants must be currently residing in Canada and legally entitled to work in Canada. Only those candidates that qualify will be selected for an interview. At this time, all interviews are being conducted via phone and/or video call ― we look forward to virtually meeting you!

Accommodation

We are committed to fostering an inclusive, barrier‑free and accessible environment. If you have been contacted for an interview and require accommodation to participate in the recruitment and selection process, please let us know and we will do our best to address your needs.