Reporting to the assistant director for donor engagement programs, the stewardship coordinator will support the initiative to revitalize Duke’s giving recognition programs, with a primary focus on managing the work of stewarding Annual Fund donors. Annual Fund programs include Parents, Leadership Giving, Reunions, Young Alumni and Students, and the stewardship coordinator will oversee a comprehensive stewardship plan for donors at all levels.

The stewardship coordinator will oversee processes for effective outreach, timely acknowledgement of gifts, appropriate recognition of donors and volunteers, etc. As liaison to Annual Fund donors and prospects, this individual will serve as a source of contact and be responsible for timely response to questions and requests from individual regarding gift issues, gift clubs, coding, campus tours, reservations, engagement opportunities, etc.

Job Responsibilities

Annual Fund Stewardship (60%)

• Together with the assistant director, Annual Fund programs, and fundraising communications staff, create a comprehensive stewardship plan for all donors to the Annual Fund, with special focus on leadership donors, loyalty donors, new donors, young alumni, and students.
• Manage the Annual Fund acknowledgement process for donors to Trinity College of Arts & Sciences and The Graduate School, creating new opportunities for stewardship touchpoints using a variety of formats including written and digital.
• Train on Duke’s CRM system to understand donor giving records and giving society coding. Work with data specialists to ensure donors fall into the correct category for acknowledgement and giving societies.
• Oversee Cornerstone Society (loyalty donors) and Annual Fund gifts clubs, ensure proper coding in DADD, and assist with all processes related to membership and stewardship.
• Manage recognition of donors  and volunteers through acknowledgements, events, social media, publications, donor walls, honor rolls, Chronicle ads, gift incentives, etc.
• Develop and manage the True Blue honor roll and True Blue Add-Your-Name solicitation.  Work with colleagues to ensure accuracy of data and timeliness of projects. Coordinate with Annual Fund staff and school/unit colleagues on testing, proofing, and production.
• Design, ordering and administration of birthday and thanksgiving card mailings.

Recognition Societies (30%)

• Work with the assistant director to plan and implement a robust recognition program for donors for donors to Duke’s Annual Funds, leadership level donors ($100K and up), and consecutive (loyalty) donors.
• Manage communications related to the giving society, including welcome letters, invitations, and correspondence from university leaders.
• Work with stewardship professionals across campus to create a recognition matrix. Partner to ensure that we are not duplicating efforts or causing donor communication and invitation fatigue.
• Attend and participate in Annual Fund events and gift club receptions as needed (i.e. Homecoming, Graduation, Parents’ Leadership reception, Annual Fund Advisory Board meetings, and Reunions Weekend).
• Coordinate with Alumni Engagement and Development colleagues and campus partners to leverage engagement opportunities on campus and in the regions for leadership donors who want more engagement with Duke and where appropriate, create new opportunities for involvement.
• Serve as source of contact for alumni, parents and friends associated with the Annual Fund.  Handle responses to correspondence, emails and phone calls.

Campus Partnerships (10%)

• Stay apprised of trends in donor relations and stewardship, share opportunities for professional growth such as workshops, classes, and webinars.
• Help plan meetings of the stewardship working group and coordinate any guest speakers as needed.

Behavioral Skills: 

• Collaborating with Others:  The willingness and ability to work with others to achieve shared success. Includes formal and informal collaborative efforts within one’s work group and across the organization.
• Attention to detail:  Creates a personal system for making sure details are not overlooked; double checks the accuracy of work. Provides information in a usable form and timely manner. Understands the importance of being consistent with documentation.
• Task Management:   Ability to create appropriate timelines, adjust them as needed, and set clear expectations.
• Planning, Prioritizing, and Multitasking:  The ability to plan, organize, and prioritize work; effectively manages multiple tasks or projects simultaneously.
• Curiosity and Information Seeking:  Ask probing questions to get to the root of a situation or task and eventually come up with their own system or habits to get information or training.

Preferred Skills/Experience: 

• Ability to interact with donors and senior-level executives and administrators.
• Ability to maintain high degree of confidentiality and responsibility regarding information related to donors and the university.
• Strong customer service mentality.
• Attention to detail and the ability to prioritize and execute multiple projects under demanding deadlines.
• This position requires the ability to work occasional evenings and weekends for events and programs.
• Experience working within a CRM to manage donor information and data.
• Demonstrated understanding of donor relations and stewardship to a successful fundraising program, and experience working in a complex environment and managing situations involving numerous and competing priorities.
• Proficiency in data analysis and report preparation.
• Ability to remain flexible and adaptable to fundraising trends, leadership direction, and donor needs.
• Interest in developing best practices and partnering with colleagues to advocate for improvements across the development enterprise.
• Prefer three years of progressive experience in the field of stewardship, donor relations, development, or related field

Minimum Qualifications: 

Education:

Work requires communications, analytical and organizational skills normally acquired through completion of a bachelor’s degree program.

Experience:

Work requires two years of experience in fund raising, alumni affairs, public relations, student activities, program administration or a related field to become familiar with activities involved in planning special events or programs.  OR AN EQUIVALENT COMBINATION OF RELEVANT EDUCATION AND/OR EXPERIENCE

Duke 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. To achieve this exchange, it is essential that all members of the community feel secure and welcome, that the contributions of all individuals are respected, and that all voices are heard. All members of our community have a responsibility to uphold these values.