Position Summary

The Assistant Director of Annual Giving – Affinity Giving is a role within Annual Giving that will focus on strategies to engage, solicit, and steward specific prospect pools such as parents, current students, and graduates of the last decade. This role will utilize Annual Giving direct solicitation channels (direct mail, email, telemarketing, CrowdPower) to ensure targeted audiences receive a compelling and strategic ask to drive increased giving and participation. In addition, this role will be responsible for implementing cause-based affinity campaigns, strategically highlighting giving opportunities coordinated around recognition months, awareness days, holidays, campus events, DEIB initiatives, or by alumni affinity groups. This role will also be responsible for working with the Annual Giving team to ensure these audiences are properly thanked, based on their affiliation.

Basic Function and Responsibilities:

• Assists in the organization and operation of a comprehensive annual giving program, focusing on affinity audiences and giving opportunities from alumni and friends of Michigan State. These audiences include, but are not limited to, students, graduates of the last decade, parents, and employees of the university, as well as other cause-based or DEIB initiatives.
• Responsible for working directly with our UA partners who manage and are experts with these targeted audiences to coordinate their outreach and messaging.
• Researches and analyzes trends, results, and new initiatives and reports on each while developing new strategies to increase results for fundraising programs.
• Has a strong familiarity with donor databases and prospect tracking systems.

Characteristics Duties and Responsibilities:

Manage audience-specific campaigns:

• Develop and implement immediate and long-term plans for increasing revenue and participation rates for appropriate audiences (including young alumni, parents, and students) through comprehensive annual giving fundraising and stewardship initiatives.
• Build relationships across campus with units directly communicating with these audiences to collaborate on outreach and integrate philanthropy in their communications.

Cause-Based Campaigns and Giving Days:

• Serves as project manager for established cause-based campaigns such as Veterans Day, Earth Day, Black History Month, and Pride Month.
• Crafts and implements new cause-based campaigns that align with MSU priorities to showcase programs and causes on campus, creating philanthropic opportunities for our donors to engage in.
• Utilizes connections across campus to provide opportunities for programs to participate in our Giving Tuesday and Give Green Day campaigns.

Supporting Annual Giving Digital Philanthropy Objectives:

• Generates content for online philanthropic initiatives including landing pages, emails, social media, texting, and more. Assists with optimizing content, including creative tactics, to increase results.
• Coordinates marketing and promotional activities designed to promote awareness of the new programs within the campus community and public.
• Ensures good customer service to both internal and external audiences by researching issues to resolve problems, providing appropriate information to answer questions, and explaining services or strategies.
• Measures and reports performance of all digital marketing campaigns and assesses against goals, reporting results to appropriate higher levels of administration and making recommendations to improve.
• Plans, executes, and measures experiments and conversion tests.
• Keeps abreast of new and innovative methods to increase donations through online opportunities.
• Supports the Associate Director(s) and Director on additional projects as requested.

Related Duties:

• Conduct and assist with University Advancement fundraising activities as assigned.
• Serve as an annual giving consultant to university and advancement personnel as necessary.
• Attend conferences and professional development seminars related to job responsibilities.

Unit Specific Education/Experience/Skills

Knowledge equivalent to that which normally would be acquired by completing a four-year college degree program in Communications, Public Relations, Marketing, and/or Business; One to three years of related and progressively more responsible or expansive work experience in professional fundraising, public relations, marketing, higher education fundraising or a related field; or an equivalent combination of education and experience.

Desired Qualifications

• Bachelor’s Degree preferred.
• One to three years of related and progressively more responsible or expansive experience in professional fundraising, marketing, or related field.
• Ability to recognize the importance of teamwork and foster a good working environment.
• Excellent written and oral communication skills and strong interpersonal skills are required.
• Experience in training and supervision of student employees and/or volunteers is required.
• Ability to work during evening hours and weekends is required.
• Experience in fundraising or public relations is desirable.
• Knowledge of and experience in direct mail and telephone fundraising techniques is desirable.

Equal Employment Opportunity Statement

All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, citizenship, age, disability or protected veteran status.

Required Application Materials

Resume and cover letter