Reporting to the Director of Principal Gifts, and through immersion in the work of the principal gifts unit, work to understand more fully the principal gift pool of donors and grow the pool of prospective donors with capacity to give to Duke at a $5M+ level. Work would also focus on the top of the leadership gifts pool with capacity of $1-$5M.

Assess the Current Principal Gifts Prospect & Donor Pools

• Curate consistent sets of information for the principal gifts prospect and donor pools including WealthX dossiers, philanthropy to other organizations, corporate and volunteer board memberships, and related other data.
• From that work, record connections to other Duke donors, and identify non-Duke affiliated persons of wealth our donors can connect us with.
• Submit reports to development and principal gifts leadership on the health and status of the pool, including strategic recommendations around interests and connections to Duke and its alumni and donors. Search for information that would inform our work on our high-net worth, yet hard to engage, prospective donor pool.
• Conceive of innovative ways to sort data around the prospect pool to inform our efforts (e.g. high-net worth individuals who are local, trends by age of donors).
• In these activities, collaborate with the Prospect Management Research & Analytics team in University Development, utilize the tools and resources provided by PRMA, and adhere to standards for analyzing and recording information.

Seek to Expand the Principal Gifts Prospect Pool

• Research philanthropic landscape and stories for donors giving to other organizations in areas where Duke has strength or has identified as a fundraising priority. Seek connections to Duke, its priorities and its alumni and donors through relationship research tools.
• Monitor information provided by PRMA on trends in business, higher education, and philanthropy and use it to make connections to university priorities and potential donors.
• Using requests and directives from development leadership, search for individuals not known to Duke who fit into identified categories of interest (e.g. Science & technology, computing, etc.), including any possible connections to Duke.
• Using wealth screening data, donor giving capacity, and giving to other organizations, put forward ideas for possible donor interest in various programs across the university.
• Using hard, soft, and public wealth indicators identify, evaluate, and track highly appreciated assets and estimate donor gift capacity through the analysis of complex individual, corporate, and foundation financial information. Report how individuals hold wealth to principal gifts and gift planning colleagues for consideration.
• Seek to understand the giving complexities of non-US donors.

Analyzing the Wider Philanthropic Landscape

• Track gifts of $25M and more to educational institutions and other nonprofits that have helped them move their priorities forward.
• Build a repository of case studies of gifts over $25M that match with Duke’s current institutional priorities, or that are an innovative combination of components of support. Build into these studies an awareness of a donor’s historical relationship with the institution they are supporting.

Project Work

• Supporting principal gifts activity with top-level donors, keep cultivation, solicitation and proposal strategies moving forward by collaborating with colleagues around the university to gain information and engage subject matter experts to keep a project moving.
• Understanding the complexities of the University, efficiently know how to navigate in order to obtain necessary information to keep projects on timeline.

Briefings, Bios and Other Document Writing

• In collaboration with PRMA’s research function, prepare presidential briefings, bios, and related documentation as necessary. Assist with driving support for vice presidential development work.
• Using information gained by a wide philanthropic view, suggest areas of priority where a strategic discussion would be supported by a pool of prospective donors (e.g.: climate, clean energy, data science). Aid in the development and/or coordination of written strategies for briefings and bios.

Education and Experience

• Bachelor’s degree required with demonstrated skills in research, writing, and editing.
• One to three years of successful development or research experience in a non-profit or institution of higher education.
• A strong understanding of higher education fundraising; understanding of the complexity of a decentralized organization preferred.
• Highly developed scanning, skimming, and reading comprehension skills are essential, as well as superior ability to assess the relative value of, synthesize, and summarize relevant information into coherent, well-written documents.
• Ability to take initiative and exercise sound independent judgement.
• Ability to comfortably handle multiple priorities with attention to detail and timeliness.

Skills

• Deep curiosity around seeking information related to individuals’ philanthropy
• Well-developed interpersonal skills and excellent written and oral communication skills with an aptitude for critical thinking and problem-solving; ability to work well under pressure and maintain flexibility. Ability to support peers and leaders is essential.
• Ability to learn to navigate unfamiliar information systems and use a variety of computer applications with little guidance.
• Position requires diplomacy and sensitivity related to institutional prioritization of needs.
• Skillful problem solving, curiosity, discretion, and continuous attention to detail
• Excellent analytical skills and ability to interpret and analyze data

OR AN EQUIVALENT COMBINATION OF RELEVANT EDUCATION AND/OR EXPERIENCE

Behavioral Competencies

• Curiosity and information seeking
• Creativity and Initiative
• Express ideas orally and in writing
• Plan, prioritize, and multitask
• Exercise attention to detail
• Collaborate with others
• Organizational awareness
• Teamwork
• Provide excellent customer service

Interested Candidates

Please submit cover letter and resume to [email protected].

Please put “Principal Gifts Research Project Specialist” in the subject line.

Duke University is an Affirmative Action/Equal Opportunity Employer committed to providing employment opportunity without regard to an individual’s age, color, disability, gender, gender expression, gender identity, genetic information, national origin, race, religion, sex, sexual orientation, or veteran status. Duke aspires to create a community built on collaboration, innovation, creativity, and belonging. Our collective success depends on the robust exchange of ideas—an exchange that is best when the rich diversity of our perspectives, backgrounds, and experiences flourishes.