Associate Director, Market Events

American Cancer Society; Chicago (IL); On-site; USD 90,000 - 100,000; Full time

Job summary

The American Cancer Society in Chicago is seeking a skilled fundraising professional to lead a $1.5M+ event portfolio, cultivate donors, sponsors, and volunteers, and drive partnerships that advance the mission.

You will coordinate with cross-functional teams, recruit and lead volunteer chairs, monitor performance, and ensure strong donor experiences while meeting revenue goals.

Qualifications

• Bachelor's Degree required.
• Three+ years related fundraising responsibilities.

Responsibilities

• Identify, cultivate, and secure revenue opportunities through corporate partnerships, major gifts, and volunteer leadership engagement.
• Build and manage relationships with donors, sponsors, and volunteer leaders to drive retention, growth, and long-term engagement.
• Develop and execute event fundraising strategies, ensuring strong performance, donor experience, and alignment with organizational priorities.
• Align event participants and partners to broader donor engagement strategies, supporting movement through the pipeline.
• Monitor performance and financial results, adjusting strategies to meet or exceed revenue goals and maximize ROI.
• Collaborate cross-functionally to ensure coordinated execution and strong market presence.

Skills

Fundraising revenue

Relationship building

Volunteer engagement

Project management

Communication

Education

Bachelor's Degree

Job description

At the American Cancer Society, we'reworking to end cancer as we know it, for everyone.Our employees and 1.3 million volunteersare raising the bar every single day. We are a culture comprised of diverse backgrounds and experience, to better serve our communities.

The people who work at the American Cancer Society focus their diverse talents on our lifesaving mission. It is a calling. And the people who answer it are fulfilled.

Responsible for driving a $1.5M+ event fundraising portfolio through direct relationship management, volunteer leadership engagement, and corporate partnership development. Leads all aspects of event fundraising within the market, while collaborating across teams to align efforts, strengthen the donor pipeline, and advance broader organizational goals.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS:

• Identifies, cultivates, andsecuresrevenue opportunities through corporate partnerships, major gifts, and volunteer leadership engagement. 40%
• Builds and manages relationships with donors, sponsors, and volunteer leaders to drive retention, growth, and long-term engagement. 20%
• Develops and executes event fundraising strategies, ensuringstrong performance, donor experience, and alignment with organizational priorities. 15%
• Aligns event participants and partners to broader donor engagement strategies, supporting movement through the pipeline. 10%
• Monitors performance and financial results, adjusting strategies to meet or exceed revenuegoalsandoptimizereturn on investment. 10%
• Collaborates cross-functionally to ensure coordinated execution and strong market presence. 5%

EXPERIENCE/QUALIFICATIONS:

• Minimum Degree Required:Bachelor'sDegree
• Years of experience: Three+ years related fundraising responsibilities

KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS, AND ABILITY:

• Demonstrated success driving revenue throughdonor,sponsor, and volunteer engagement.
• Strong relationship-building and influencing skills with diverse stakeholders.
• Ability to develop and execute fundraising strategies within a defined market.
• Experience recruiting and leading volunteer leadership (e.g., event chairs, committees).
• Strong project management and organizational skills.
• Ability to analyze performance and adjust strategies to achieve goals.
• Strong understanding of donor pipeline development and engagement.
• Effective communication and presentation skills.
• Ability to collaborate across teams and contribute to broader organizational success.

TRAVEL REQUIREMENTS:

• Limited overnight travel to meetings and events
• Expectation to be external in market, 3 days per week average
• After hours and weekend work

PHYSICAL REQUIREMENTS:

• No specific physical requirements

The starting rate is $90,000 to $100,000. The final candidate's relevant experience/skills will be considered before an offer is extended. Actual starting pay will vary based on non-discriminatory factors including, but not limited to, geographic location, experience, skills, specialty, and education.

ACS provides staff a generous paid time off policy; medical, dental, retirement benefits, wellness programs, and professional development programs to enhance staff skills. Further details on our benefits can be found on our careers site at: jobs.cancer.org/benefits.

We are a proud equal opportunity employer.