Purpose of Position
The Director of Prospect Development and Campaign Management provides strategic leadership for the University's prospect development and research, campaign management, and principal giving program support. The Director leads prospect identification, research, portfolio and pipeline management, and moves management processes that strengthen fundraising performance. In partnership with University Advancement leadership, the Director coordinates the planning and execution of UTA’s first comprehensive fundraising campaign, including campaign work plans, milestones, metrics, analytics, dashboards, and executive reporting. The Director also supports the Executive Director of Principal Giving and University Initiatives in building and managing a coordinated program for donors capable of making gifts of $1 million or more, including prospect tracking, strategy support, and pipeline reporting.
Essential Functions
- Leads and manages the Prospect Development and Research function, including staff supervision, work planning, quality control, vendor and resource management, and the effective use of prospect research and analytics tools.
- Oversees the identification, research, and evaluation of principal, major, and planned gift prospects; ensures accurate and timely biographical, philanthropic, professional, and financial information; and produces profiles, briefings, event bios, and prospect lists that support fundraising strategy.
- Coordinates campaign management for UTA’s comprehensive fundraising campaign in partnership with the Vice President for University Advancement, Chief Development Officer, and Assistant Vice President for Advancement Services and Campaign Strategy.
- Develops and maintains campaign work plans, timelines, milestones, unit-level goals, decision logs, and accountability processes.
- Supports campaign planning meetings, monitors progress across priorities and units, identifies risks or gaps, and coordinates follow-up to keep campaign activity aligned and on schedule.
- Provides program management support for the Principal Giving program in collaboration with the Executive Director of Principal Giving and University Initiatives.
- Develops and maintains the principal giving prospect pipeline for donors capable of making gifts of $1 million or more; coordinates prospect tracking, strategy documentation, briefings, and follow-up; supports principal giving strategy meetings and leadership engagement; and produces reports that show prospect stage, next steps, proposal activity, and progress toward program goals.
- Oversee prospect management and moves management processes.
- Partner with frontline fundraisers and development leadership to build and refine portfolios, strengthen pipeline development, prioritize prospect activity, monitor movement through the solicitation cycle, and facilitate portfolio reviews and prospect strategy discussions.
- Collaborate with Development Data and Technologies to maintain accurate prospect and activity information in Raiser’s Edge NXT and related systems and provide guidance and training on prospect management practices and tools.
- Oversees campaign analytics, performance measurement, and reporting.
- Establishes reporting standards and data definitions; develops and maintains campaign dashboards, scorecards, and executive reports; monitors fundraising results, proposal activity, pipeline health, donor participation, and progress toward campaign and unit goals; analyzes trends and variances; and translates data into clear insights and recommendations for University Advancement leadership, academic leaders, campaign volunteers, and other stakeholders.
- Partners with Development Data and Technologies to validate data quality and improve reporting processes.
- Performs other duties as assigned.
Required Qualifications
- Bachelor's degree and five (5) years of relevant experience in a combination of frontline fundraising, prospect research, prospect management, campaign management, fundraising operations, or fundraising data analytics, preferably in a higher education environment.
- Experience coordinating complex, multi-stakeholder initiatives and developing metrics, dashboards, and reports for leadership.
- An equivalent combination of relevant education and experience may be substituted as appropriate.
Preferred Qualifications
- Experience supporting a comprehensive fundraising campaign and/or a principal giving program.
- Advanced proficiency with Smartsheet, Power BI, and Raiser’s Edge NXT or comparable systems.
- Advanced understanding of fundraising data analytics, campaign reporting, and pipeline management.
- Proficiency with Microsoft Office Suite. Experience supporting Assistant Vice President (AVP) and Vice President (VP) level leaders.
Knowledge, Skills & Abilities
- Strong analytical and problem-solving skills.
- Knowledge of prospect research and moves management practices.
- Ability to analyze financial and fundraising information and work with highly sensitive and/or confidential information.
- Excellent oral and written communication skills.
- Ability to work well under deadlines and manage multiple projects simultaneously.
- High degree of professionalism, discretion, and customer service.
- Strong project management, organizational, and follow-through skills.
- Ability to synthesize complex information, develop clear reports and presentations, and communicate actionable insights to varied audiences.
- Detail-oriented with a commitment to data quality and accuracy.
- Knowledge of fundraising databases, prospect research resources, campaign management practices, and principal giving strategy.
- Proficiency with Microsoft tools, including Outlook, Excel, Word, PowerPoint, and Teams.
- Excellent interpersonal and time management skills.
Work Schedule
- Monday through Friday; 8:00am through 5:00pm.
Benefits Information
Position is benefit eligible: Yes
We are proud to offer a comprehensive benefits package to our employees at the University.
https://www.uta.edu/hr/employee-benefits