Assistant Director of Development (LAG) The Ohio State University

Central Ohio; Columbus (OH); Hybrid; USD 90,000 - 110,000; Full time

Job summary

The Ohio State University’s Connections Team is seeking multiple Assistant Directors of Development to lead leadership annual giving initiatives. You will build relationships with donors, alumni, volunteers, and grateful patients to solicit leadership gifts ranging from $3,000 to $99,999, while managing travel and prospect engagement within established guidelines.

Reporting to senior leadership, you will manage day-to-day portfolio activity, plan solicitations, and document progress toward

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in related field or equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Two (2) years of professional fundraising experience or equivalent relationship-management experience.

Responsibilities

• Manage a defined leadership annual giving portfolio and achieve qualified meetings, solicitations, and dollars raised.
• Plan and document donor engagement, travel, and solicitation activity with budget adherence and manager guidance.
• Collaborate with Advancement colleagues and university partners to support donor discovery and stewardship.

Skills

Fundraising

Donor relationships

Communication

Education

Bachelor’s degree

Job description

Assistant Director of Development (LAG)

The Ohio State University

Columbus, OH

The Ohio State University’s Connections Team is hiring multiple Assistant Directors of Development to focus on leadership annual giving. Assistant Directors broaden the community of donor support for the university and its Wexner Medical Center by establishing and managing relationships with donors, alumni, volunteers, and grateful patients, soliciting leadership-level annual gifts targeting $3,000-$99,999. This position manages a defined leadership annual giving portfolio and is responsible for high-volume donor discovery, qualification, cultivation, solicitation, stewardship, documentation, and follow-up activity to meet established fundraising goals. The role requires frequent travel, including approximately two overnight trips per month plus regular in-state travel, and manages assigned travel and prospect engagement expenses within an allocated budget and established university and Advancement guidelines. The position uses reporting and analysis tools to assess portfolio activity, fundraising effectiveness, and prospect-specific cultivation and solicitation strategies, and is measured against established activity and revenue metrics, including meetings, solicitations, commitments, and dollars raised.

Reporting to a Senior Director or Director of Development (Leadership Annual Giving), the Assistant Directors of Development independently manages day-to-day portfolio activity, donor outreach, travel planning, solicitation preparation, and follow-up within established Advancement goals, performance metrics, procedures, and manager guidance. The role requires confidentiality, sound judgment, organization, analytical ability, and the ability to use tact, diplomacy, and discretion in donor and partner interactions. Assistant Directors of Development are expected to maintain collaborative relationships with colleagues across Advancement, the university, and the Wexner Medical Center to communicate donor interests, qualification outcomes, visit results, solicitation progress, stewardship needs. Successful candidates will be excellent verbal and written communicators who have the ability to adapt to shifting priorities and demands.

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 Shared Values. 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.

About the Leadership Annual Giving Cohort

Team members begin their professional journey as part of a close-knit cohort of peers, where they will take part in a comprehensive 4-week onboarding and training experience. During this time period, the cohort will be introduced to all aspects of higher education and health care philanthropy, and develop a thorough understanding of its important role in creating a more fair and welcoming future.

Duties and Responsibilities

• 90% Manages assigned portfolio activity to meet established qualifications, meetings, solicitations, commitments, and revenue goals by planning and maintaining an active travel and donor engagement schedule, raises unrestricted leadership annual gifts to fund core university priorities, particularly for colleges and units, and communicates cultivation progress, visit outcomes, solicitation status, and stewardship needs to appropriate Advancement partners. Builds, manages, and documents activity for a large assigned portfolio of leadership annual giving prospects. Proactively cultivates, solicits, and stewards Ohio State donors, alumni, volunteers, and grateful patients capable of making leadership annual gifts, with a target of approximately 150 donor or prospect meetings per year. Develops and executes prospect-specific cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship plans for assigned leadership annual giving prospects, incorporating established Advancement best practices, donor information, reporting tools, and manager guidance as appropriate. Uses reporting and analysis tools to monitor portfolio activity, identify opportunities, assess fundraising effectiveness, adjust outreach and solicitation activity within established parameters, and maintain accurate donor/prospect documentation. Manages assigned travel and prospect engagement expenses within an allocated budget and in accordance with university and Advancement policies, procedures, and guidelines.

• 5%Creates and maintains working relationships with colleagues across Advancement, the university, and the Wexner Medical Center, works in partnership with Connections teammates and unit-based Advancement colleagues to support donor discovery, leadership annual giving solicitation, and referral of qualified prospects, and serves as a liaison between prospective major gift donors and appropriate development officers.

• 5%Contributes to Advancement by fostering teamwork, participating on internal committees or workgroups as appropriate, applying established Advancement practices and university procedures, 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, commitments, and 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, commitment and dollars raised phases of the development cycle. A secondary fundraiser can be considered when a team is working on a multi-unit gift, the fundraiser is a subject matter expert in an area critical to the solicitation or a fundraiser has a pre-existing, meaningful relationship with the donor and their participation helps move the gift forward.

Required Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in related field or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
• Two (2) years of professional fundraising experience or professional transferable experience (i.e., managing relationships with required measurable output, making calls, conducting face-to-face appointments, creating and presenting proposals, and other fundamental elements of client relationship or sales-related activities)

Desired Qualifications

• Four (4) years of professional fundraising experience raising the highest level of philanthropic gifts at an organization (preferably five or six figures and above)
• Four (4) years of professional fundraising experience in higher education or a hospital/health care environment
• Experience working in other advancement departments such as donor relations and stewardship, donor communications and/or alumni relations
• Familiarity with the development function at Ohio State and knowledge of Ohio State’s donor database (TAS)

The university is an equal opportunity employer, including veterans and disability.