Major Gifts Manager, Individuals & Family Foundations

Room to Read seeks to transform the lives of millions of children in developing countries by focusing on literacy and gender equality in education. Working in collaboration with local communities, partner organizations and governments, we develop literacy skills and a habit of reading among primary school children, and support girls to complete secondary school with the relevant life skills to succeed in school and beyond.

We are non-governmental, non-religious and work with many local NGOs and community based organizations to implement our programs. We currently work in Bangladesh, Cambodia, India, Laos, Nepal, South Africa, Sri Lanka, Tanzania, Vietnam, and Zambia – countries with a desperate lack of resources to educate their children. Since our inception, Room to Read’s worldwide team has impacted over 6 million children by constructing more than 1,500 schools, establishing over 13,000 libraries, publishing 700 new children’s book titles in 11 local languages, and rewarding over 16,000 girls with long-term, holistic scholarships.

Room to Read has an annual budget of approximately US$44 million and our global staff numbers over 600. Our global headquarters is located in San Francisco, and we have smaller fundraising offices in Delhi, New York, Hong Kong, London, Mumbai, Sydney, and Tokyo. We have an Asia Regional Office located in New Delhi, a Southern Africa Regional Office in Pretoria, and program offices in Colombo, Dar es Salaam, Dhaka, Hanoi, Ho Chi Minh City, Kathmandu, Lusaka, New Delhi, Pretoria, Phnom Penh, and Vientiane.

Position Overview:

We are seeking a dynamic and creative Major Gifts Manager to join the Individuals and Family Foundations (IFF) team and contribute to the IFF team’s responsibility of sourcing private support from the U.S. and Canada in support of Room to Read’s global operations. In addition to leading the major gift prospect tracking process for the IFF team, the Major Gifts Manager will also have equal responsibility for developing his/her own portfolio of donor prospects. This position may be based in Room to Read’s San Francisco or New York office, dependent upon the candidate selected for the role, and will spend 15-20% of his/her time traveling to meet with donors in that market.

The Major Gifts Manager is a newly created position on the Individual and Family Foundations team and reports directly to the Sr. Development Director for North America, based in our San Francisco office. The ideal candidate will enjoy building multifaceted relationships with donors, have experience developing and managing an annual fund, have a strong entrepreneurial spirit, and derive great job satisfaction from enhancing and scaling fundraising systems.

Duties & Responsibilities:

• Manage and prioritize the pool of individual prospects across the U.S. and Canada; bring top prospects to the attention of the IFF team for assignment to Major Gift Officers and integration into Moves Management

• Create and manage a portfolio of 75-100 donor prospects through the identification, discovery, and qualification process with a focus on renewing and upgrading donors to the $5,000-$10,000 level
• Conduct initial exploratory meetings with donors and prospects to determine capacity and interest in supporting Room to Read at the major gift level

• Using sound fundraising principles, develop donor engagement and cultivation strategies that utilize the expertise of key Room to Read staff and volunteer leadership in deepening donors’ commitment to the organization
• Provide strategic input into annual communication and solicitation plans for unmanaged segment of donors
• Responsible for implementing and managing donor-related activities by designing and executing an annual campaign
• Use research and analysis to create a comprehensive strategic program for new donors, renewal donors and upgrading donors
• Organize and lead prospect meetings to ensure timely assignment, engagement, qualification and tracking of new and current prospects
• Represent Room to Read to internal and external constituents as necessary

• Collaborate with Room to Read’s volunteer Chapter Network to identify new major donors, as appropriate

• Support the planning and execution of prospect cultivation and stewardship events

• Maintain accurate donor records and files in Raiser’s Edge
• Manage administrative staff and volunteers, as necessary
• Other responsibilities as assigned

Qualifications:

Required:

• Bachelors degree
• 5-7 years’ work experience and a minimum of 3 years professional fundraising experience in a fast-paced, growth-oriented organization
• Track record of designing, implementing, and directing fundraising initiatives, including customized cultivation, solicitation and recognition strategies
• Proven ability to manage complex processes, as well as modify processes in response to changing circumstances
• History of dedicated volunteer activity and/or commitment to non-profit organizations
• Strong computer skills, including MS Office applications and Outlook
• Experience working with fundraising databases (Raiser's Edge preferred)
• Excellent interpersonal, written and oral communication skills
• Experience working with donor research
• Ability to work thoughtfully and collaboratively with diverse groups of people
• Highly organized, detail oriented and self-motivated
• Ability to juggle multiple priorities simultaneously and take initiative
• Willingness to travel 15-20% of the time, primarily within the candidate’s home market
• Strong work ethic and sense of humor
• Legally eligible to work in the United States; no sponsorship provided

Preferred:

• Experience living or working internationally
• Track record of fundraising for international programs

To be successful as a member of the Room to Read team, you will also:

• Have passion for our mission and a strong desire to impact a dynamic nonprofit organization
• Be an innovative and creative thinker that tries new things and inspires others to do so
• Have a very high level of personal and professional integrity and trustworthiness
• Have a strong work ethic and require minimal direction
• Work well independently as well as part of a team
• Thrive in a fast-paced and fun environment

Compensation:

Room to Read offers a competitive salary with excellent benefits. Benefits include health, dental, vision, long-term disability insurance, flexible spending accounts, commuter benefits, and a 401K match. The non-monetary compensation includes a unique opportunity to be part of an innovative, meaningful, fun, and rapidly growing organization that is changing the world through literacy and gender equality in education.

Application Procedure:

Please send a cover letter and resume by email, with “MGM, I&FF” in the subject line, (no letters, calls, faxes, or drop-ins) to hiring@roomtoread.org. Due to high applicant volume, we regret that we cannot personally respond to all applicants. Applications are accepted until the position is filled.

Room to Read is an equal opportunity employer committed to identifying and developing
the skills and leadership of people from diverse backgrounds.