Assistant Director of Development and Affinity Engagement

The Ohio State University Wexner Medical Center; Columbus (OH); Hybrid; USD 75,000 - 110,000; Full time

Job summary

The Ohio State University Alumni Association seeks an Assistant Director of Development and Affinity Engagement to lead leadership annual giving and engagement with OSU affinity groups and Buckeye Connected Communities. This hybrid role focuses on gifts $3,000 to $99,999 while strengthening donor relationships and advancing fundraising priorities.

Reporting to the Senior Director of Buckeye Connected Communities, you will travel regularly, cultivate donors, and collaborate across Advancement.

Qualifications

• Strong interpersonal, organizational, and analytical skills are essential.
• Experience in leadership annual giving and donor engagement is preferred.
• Ability to manage donor relationships and collaborate across units.

Responsibilities

• Meet activity, qualification, solicitation, and revenue goals through planned travel and outreach.
• Manage a portfolio of leadership annual giving donors and prospects with high activity.
• Develop engagement strategies for OSUAA affinity groups and Buckeye Connected Communities.
• Collaborate with Advancement and university colleagues to coordinate fundraising and donor pipeline.

Skills

Interpersonal skills

Organizational skills

Analytical skills

Budget management

Job description

Assistant Director of Development and Affinity Engagement page is loaded## Assistant Director of Development and Affinity Engagementlocations: Columbus Campustime type: Full timeposted on: Posted Yesterdayjob requisition id: R160212Screen reader users may encounter difficulty with this site. For assistance with applying, please contact [e-mail]. If you have questions while submitting an application, please review these .**Current Employees and Students:**If you are currently employed or enrolled as a student at The Ohio State University, please log in to to use the internal application process.Welcome to The Ohio State University's career site. We invite you to apply to positions of interest. In order to ensure your application is complete, you must complete the following:* Ensure you have all necessary documents available when starting the application process. You can review the additional job description section on postings for documents that may be required.* Prior to submitting your application, please review and update (if necessary) the information in your candidate profile as it will transfer to your application.## Job Title:Assistant Director of Development and Affinity Engagement## Department:Advancement | Alumni Association**Position Overview**The Assistant Director of Development and Affinity Engagement advances The Ohio State University's philanthropic priorities by managing leadership annual giving relationships and using alumni and affinity engagement as a strategic pathway for donor identification, cultivation, solicitation, stewardship, and pipeline development. This hybrid position is primarily focused on cultivating and soliciting leadership annual gifts of $3,000 to $99,999, while also strengthening alumni and constituent relationships through engagement strategies that support fundraising outcomes and Advancement priorities. As a member of the Connections team within the Ohio State University Alumni Association (OSUAA), the Assistant Director proactively manages an assigned portfolio of leadership annual giving donors and prospects through in-person visits, virtual outreach, engagement opportunities, and targeted cultivation activity. The role emphasizes discovery, qualification, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship of donors, identification and referral of future major gift prospects, and collaboration with volunteers and alumni leaders to advance fundraising and engagement strategies. The primary audiences for the Assistant Director include OSUAA affinity groups and Buckeye Connected Communities, with engagement activity intentionally focused on strengthening donor relationships, identifying prospective philanthropic support, and advancing leadership annual giving outcomes.In addition to direct fundraising responsibilities, the Assistant Director serves as a liaison to select affinity groups and Buckeye Connected Communities to support engagement strategies that deepen constituent relationships and create opportunities for donor cultivation, stewardship, and pipeline development. The position also contributes to the development, execution, and evaluation of engagement programs and communications within assigned audiences or regions, ensuring those activities support Advancement priorities, donor engagement, and leadership annual giving objectives. This role requires frequent travel, including approximately two overnight trips per month, evening and weekend work, and the ability to monitor and administer an allocated budget in alignment with Advancement policies and fiscal guidelines. Success is measured through established fundraising and engagement metrics, including donor meetings, qualifications, solicitations, dollars raised, major gift referrals, first-time event attendees, and increased volunteer participation.Reporting to the Senior Director of Buckeye Connected Communities, the Assistant Director operates with independence and professional judgment in managing assigned donor portfolios and engagement activities within established Advancement strategies, fundraising goals, policies, and performance expectations. Strong interpersonal, organizational, and analytical skills are essential, along with the ability to manage donor relationships, interpret engagement and fundraising opportunities, adapt to shifting priorities, and collaborate across Advancement and university departments.All members of External Affairs are part of creating a culture that inspires an exceptionally multifaceted and talented team and are expected to exhibit The Ohio State University's. The Office of External Affairs is committed to acting with kindness, respect, and integrity at all times and welcoming our colleagues' ideas, voices, and perspectives, acknowledging that we are better together.**Duties and Responsibilities**70% Meets established activity, qualification, solicitation, stewardship, and revenue goals by planning, managing, and maintaining a strategic travel and outreach schedule. Manages an assigned portfolio of leadership annual giving donors and prospects, with primary responsibility for identifying, qualifying, cultivating, soliciting, and stewarding individuals capable of making leadership annual gifts of $3,000 to $99,999 in support of university and Alumni Association priorities, including Buckeye Connected Communities. Conducts in-person visits, virtual meetings, targeted outreach, and donor engagement activities with a target of approximately 150 meetings per year. Evaluates donor readiness, capacity, and philanthropic interest, documents cultivation progress and visit outcomes, and communicates relevant information to appropriate Advancement colleagues. Identifies future major gift prospects and provides background and referral information to support assignment to major gift portfolios. Conducts stewardship activity and maintains ongoing contact with assigned donors to strengthen relationships, promote positive donor relations, and support continued philanthropic engagement with The Ohio State University.25% Develops and coordinates engagement and cultivation strategies for OSUAA affinity groups and Buckeye Connected Communities that support donor identification, leadership annual giving cultivation, stewardship, and Advancement priorities. Ensures relevant constituent, donor, volunteer, and engagement data is accurately captured in the proprietary database to support relationship management, reporting, and future cultivation strategies.5% Creates and maintains working relationships with colleagues across Advancement, the university, and Wexner Medical Center to support coordinated fundraising, engagement, stewardship, and donor pipeline activity. Works in tandem with Connections teammates to provide central support to colleges, units, and healthcare service lines by sharing relevant donor, prospect, and engagement information. Serves as a liaison between prospective major gift donors and appropriate development officers to support timely referral and continued cultivation. Contributes to Advancement by fostering teamwork, participating on internal committees or workgroups as appropriate, and performing other duties as assigned.**Metrics and Collaboration**The annual performance of all fundraisers at Ohio State is measured by the number of qualifications, cultivations, solicitations and commitments/dollars raised the individual accrues over each fiscal year. Each fundraiser may have different expectations regarding these figures based upon, but not limited to, their experience level, unit size, prospect portfolio, past performance, etc. Goal setting is done with the individual's manager prior to each fiscal year to assure transparency, consistency and alignment.All fundraisers at Ohio State are encouraged and expected to collaborate with their colleagues across the institution and can be counted as 'Secondary' on a gift in the solicitation,