Director of Charitable Planning

The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven; New Haven (CT); On-site; USD 120,000 - 135,000; Full time

Job summary

The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven seeks a Director of Charitable Planning in the Development and Foundation Communications department. This exempt, senior leadership role focuses on major gifts, endowment and planned giving, delivering high-touch philanthropic guidance to individuals, families, and professional advisors.

The Director will build a strong donor portfolio, collaborate on messaging with Communications, supervise staff, and ensure donor intent while expanding charitable

Qualifications

• Demonstrated ability to build and manage donor relationships at a high level.
• Experience guiding major gifts, endowment, and planned giving programs.
• Strong written and verbal communications with ability to tell a compelling philanthropic story.

Responsibilities

• Cultivates, solicits, and secures gifts from donors.
• Ensures the Foundation’s mission is clearly articulated to donors and stakeholders.
• Manages a portfolio of major gift and planned giving prospects through the development cycle.
• Develops and maintains relationships with volunteers and advisory groups to advance goals.
• Develops outreach, messaging and marketing strategies with Foundation Communications.
• Provides strategic philanthropic advising to donors and professionals on charitable giving options.
• Maintains accurate donor records, reports, and pipeline in the donor database.
• Leads staff development and mentoring; represents the Foundation at community events.

Skills

Relationship management

Donor relations

Communication skills

Leadership

Confidentiality

Fundraising knowledge

Education

Bachelor's Degree required

Advanced degree or CAP designation preferred

Tools

Raiser’s Edge NXT

Job description

The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven, the region's largest grant maker and permanent charitable endowment, is seeking qualified candidates for the position of Director of Charitable Planning. The Community Foundation’s mission is to inspire, support, inform, listen to and collaborate with the people and organizations in Greater New Haven to build an ever more connected, inclusive, equitable and philanthropic community.

As an organization committed to Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, The Community Foundation is seeking applicants from all backgrounds to ensure we get the best, most creative talent on our team.

Title: Director of Charitable Planning

Department: Development and Foundation Communications

Reports to: Senior Director of Development & Donor Services

FLSA Status: Exempt

Salary Range: $120,000 - $135,000

POSITION:

The Director of Charitable Planning is responsible for major fundraising as well as designing and implementing aspects of a comprehensive and ongoing development program. The emphasis is on relationship building with donors, prospects, volunteers and professional advisors in the areas of major gifts, endowment and planned giving. This position provides high-touch, strategic philanthropic advising to individuals and families, manages a portfolio of major gift and planned giving relationships, and identifies opportunities to establish new funds and secure current use and legacy gifts.

The Director will also lead the development of compelling messaging and marketing strategies to promote giving opportunities, planned giving and other charitable planning solutions, in close collaboration with Foundation Communications. The successful candidate will be a strategic, collaborative development professional with strong fundraising, organizational, communication, volunteer management and supervisory skills who is committed to delivering an exceptional donor experience and strengthening The Community Foundation’s role as a trusted philanthropic partner and community resource.

CORE RESPONSIBILITIES:

• Cultivates, solicits, and secures gifts from donors.
• Ensures The Foundation’s mission is clearly articulated to current and potential donors to assure institutional integrity and donor intent.
• Demonstrates a full range of relationship building and development skills including prospect research, cultivation, solicitation and donor stewardship, with a focus on major and planned gifts.
• Manages a broad portfolio of major gift and planned giving prospects, donors, private foundations and professional advisors through the entire cycle of development.
• Develops and maintains relationships with Foundation volunteers and advisory groups and recruits, onboards and manages advisory groups and volunteer committees as appropriate to advance Foundation goals.
• Develops and implements outreach, messaging and marketing strategies that support donor engagement, and major and planned gift cultivation with multiple audiences, in collaboration with Foundation Communications.
• Provides strategic philanthropic advising to donors, prospects and professional advisors on charitable giving options, planned giving, endowment and other charitable options that align with donor intent.
• Maintains accurate and timely donor and prospect records, contact reports, pipeline opportunities and related activities in the donor database.
• Manages, mentors and guides professional development for assigned staff. Represents and serves as an ambassador for The Foundation at community events.

QUALIFICATIONS:

• Bachelor's Degree required.
• Advanced or professional degree, or CAP® designation preferred.
• Demonstrated experience managing a portfolio of major gift prospects and securing significant major and planned gifts.
• Minimum 8 years of progressive experience in major gift solicitation, or an equivalent combination of related experience.
• Community foundation knowledge a plus.
• Knowledge of the Greater New Haven philanthropic landscape a plus.
• Experience managing or supporting a comprehensive campaign, including donor engagement and solicitation, campaign operations, gift recording and tracking, and monitoring progress toward fundraising goals.
• Experience working with attorneys, financial advisors, accountants and other professional advisors on their clients’ charitable and planned giving strategies.
• Demonstrated ability to develop compelling donor-facing messaging, outreach and marketing strategies that inspire philanthropic engagement.
• High-touch relationship management style with the ability to build trust and navigate sensitive or complex donor conversations.
• Experience working with advisory groups and volunteer committees.
• Strong written and verbal communications skills.
• Demonstrated staff management and mentoring experience.
• Ability to maintain confidentiality.
• Demonstrated proficiency in Microsoft Word, Excel and donor databases.
• Experience with Raiser’s Edge NXT a plus.

The Community Foundation for Greater New Haven is an equal opportunity employer.