The School of Humanities and Sciences External Relations team is seeking an Assistant Director of Donor Relations. Reporting to the Director of Donor Relations, you will work to implement creative, consistent, and donor-centric donor relations in support of Stanford’s largest school. Working as part of the External Relations team, the donor relations team is responsible for planning and executing a broad range of donor relations and development communication activities designed to strengthen ties to the School of Humanities and Sciences donors and inspire philanthropic support. If you are a motivated, positive individual, who thrives in a collaborative environment with excellent writing and editing skills and demonstrated strong project management, this role may be a great fit for you!

The School of Humanities and Sciences (H&S) is the center of a world-class liberal arts education at Stanford University. H&S encompasses 23 departments from art and art history, English, and history to economics, mathematics, and biology  as well as 23 interdisciplinary programs. As the university’s largest school, H&S serves as the foundation of a Stanford undergraduate education no matter which discipline students pursue as a major. All undergraduates take a range of courses in H&S that challenge them to think critically about the world and their roles in it. Graduate students work alongside world-renowned faculty to pursue and shape foundational research that leads to breakthroughs and discoveries that shed new light on the past, influence the present, and shape the future. Together, faculty and students in H&S engage in inspirational teaching, learning, and research every day.

The Assistant Director of Donor Relations main responsibilities include:

•    Stewarding a portfolio of more than 300 endowed graduate fellowships in order to produce annual narrative reports.
•    Executing fiduciary responsibility to ensure that gifts are awarded and utilized in accordance with donor expectations and university policies in a timely manner, resolving discrepancies and escalating when needed.
•    Managing the process of requesting gift usage information from beneficiaries, (such as students, faculty). May draft, edit, rewrite, and exercise judgement to determine appropriateness of content.
•    Managing the gift acknowledgment process including identifying gifts that qualify for acknowledgement. Ensuring process is completed in a timely manner; working on solutions to avoid possible delays. May write original copy of acknowledgements on behalf of university leaders (e.g., the president, board chair, dean).
•    Developing and providing recommendations on best methodologies to engage individual donors by analyzing past trends, researching donor profiles, and collaborating with colleagues to identify and produce key deliverables.
•    Performing an annual audit of assigned portfolios against the development database to ensure that all related documents, fund, stewardee, and beneficiary information is accurate and complete in the database system, identifying and resolving any inaccuracies.

The Assistant Director also:

]•    Develops a deep understanding of Stanford’s donor management database and financial reporting systems.
•    Builds relationships with partners across campus to ensure best practices in donor relations, facilitates ease of process, and serves as a representative for the external relations team.
•    Collaborates with The School of Humanities and Sciences External Relations team to shape philanthropic messages and effectively communicate those messages to donors and prospects.
•    Project manages donor relations tasks, in close coordination with the full external relations team.
•    Maintains a highly-detailed shared file system to accurately record donor relations activity in accordance with the university’s donor relations standards.
•    May assist with creating and executing events and participates in special projects as assigned.

To be successful in this position, you will bring the following:

•    Bachelor's degree and three years of relevant experience or combination of education and relevant experience.
•    Superior organizational skills.
•    Excellent writing, copyediting, and proofreading skills; ability to synthesize information and compose clear and effective materials.
•    Excellent analytical and information management skills, including the ability to conduct research in multiple databases and systems and manage information using Excel and other applications.
•    Strong organizational skills and demonstrated ability to manage multiple tasks and projects simultaneously, meet deadlines with minimal supervision, and proactively keep all collaborators informed of project progress.
•    Strong attention to detail and ability to quickly understand and remember details about donors and projects to which they are assigned.
•    Ability to listen and communicate clearly, concisely, and diplomatically with a range of audiences.
•    Strong customer service focus; excellent interpersonal and communication skills. Ability to listen and respond with diplomacy and tact.
•    Demonstrated sound judgment in situations requiring independent decision-making and in handling confidential and sensitive material.
•    Advanced proficiency in Microsoft Office suite and database applications.
•    Demonstrated project management skills.

Additional preferred skills include:

•    Experience in a fundraising organization, ideally in development communication or donor relations roles.
•    Experience in higher education, particularly complex research institutions.
•    Experience with relationship or prospect management systems.
•    Experience with project management software.

Why Stanford for you:

Imagine a world without search engines or social platforms. Consider lives saved through first-ever organ transplants and research to cure illnesses. Stanford University has revolutionized the way we live and enrich the world. Supporting this mission is our diverse and dedicated 17,000 staff. We seek talent driven to impact the future of our legacy. Our culture and unique perks empower you with:

•    Freedom to grow. We offer career development programs, tuition reimbursement, or audit a course. Join a TedTalk, film screening, or listen to a renowned author or global leader speak.
•    A caring culture. We provide excellent retirement plans, generous time-off, and family care resources.
•    A healthier you. Climb our rock wall, swim in our Olympic-sized pool, or choose from hundreds of health and fitness classes at our world-class exercise facilities. We also provide highly competitive health care benefits.
•    Discovery and fun. Stroll through historic sculptures, trails and museums.
•    Enviable resources. Enjoy free commute programs, ridesharing incentives, discounts and more!

Stanford is an equal opportunity employer and all qualified applicants will receive consideration without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, disability, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.

Consistent with its obligations under the law, the University will provide reasonable accommodation to any employee with a disability who requires accommodation to perform the essential functions of the job.

How to apply:

We invite you to apply for the position by clicking on the “Apply for Job” button. To be considered, please submit a cover letter and a resume with your online application. The cover letter should briefly describe why you believe you are a good fit for this position.

Additional Information

Schedule: Full-time
Job Code: 4321
Employee Status: Regular
Grade: G
Requisition ID: 84151