Associate Director of Annual Fund Initiatives

Posted on 08/15/2022

Columbia University

New York, NY

The Associate Director leads the strategic planning, implementation, marketing, and management of annual fund solicitations for the Columbia Climate School. The Associate Director is responsible for the development and execution of broad-based fundraising strategies, direct mail, and e-mail to ensure strong donor retention, reactivation, and acquisition.

The Associate Director manages donor data, gift processing, list management, analytical reporting, and gift tracking for the Climate School in collaboration with partners in the Office of Alumni and Development.

The ideal candidate will have strong direct marketing, project management, and annual fund experience, be proactive, and anticipate problems that may arise and quickly and independently resolve unforeseen situations along the way. Responsibilities include start to finish execution of given projects or coordination and oversight of a defined aspect of a project, depending on the needs of the team at the time.

Responsibilities

Managing the Climate School’s annual fund programs:

  • Develop the strategy for the Climate School’s annual fund fundraising, including
  • Design and implement direct marketing solicitation strategy
  • Design mailing list segmentation for appeals
  • Create direct mail and e-mail content for appeals in collaboration with Director of Development Communications.
  • Provide cost-benefit analysis of direct marketing projects outlining the return on investment.
  • Track and analyze response to annual fund appeals to assess performance.
  • Send appeals through Mailchimp/Salesforce.
  • Manage the Climate School’s fundraising for Giving Day
  • Utilize data to benchmark efforts and inform strategic and tactical decisions; analyzes and reports ROI and cost-benefit analysis of direct marketing projects
  • Manage the logistics of new donor welcome packages, ad hoc mailings, stewardship pieces, and appeals.
  • Implement e-mail solicitations via mass e-mail utility.

Manage Climate School Donor Data and Reporting:

  • Run regular reporting on Climate School fundraising for the annual funds, major gifts, and corporate and foundation giving.
  • Track gifts for stewardship.
  • Ensure Climate School records are updated and maintained in the database.
  • Utilizing database to track gifts, interactions with donors and store information on funds.
  • Track grants and gifts with reporting requirements to ensure financial accountability.
  • Conduct data analysis on annual giving programs. Performs additional duties, special projects, and strategic initiatives as assigned.

Minimum Qualifications

Bachelor’s degree required. Minimum of four to six years related experience required.  Experience with development fundraising or related transferable experience required. Experience in higher education a plus Ability to work well in fast-paced, multi-faceted environment and to manage several projects at one time required. Exceptional written communication and relationship-building skills are required. Must be professional, highly organized, creative and efficient, collaborative, organization, and have a strong attention to detail. Able to work successfully both individually and as part of a team. Must be flexible and willing to take on new responsibilities within a growing program. Must also be flexible to travel between Columbia campuses as required.

Preferred Qualifications

Proficiency in Microsoft Word and Excel required; knowledge of Advance, Salesforce or similar development databases preferred.

Equal Opportunity Employer / Disability / Veteran

Columbia University is committed to the hiring of qualified local residents.

To apply for this job please visit opportunities.columbia.edu.