Position Focus:

As Yale prepares for an upcoming capital campaign, this position will play a key role within Yale School of Medicine. Reporting to the Associate Vice President for Development and Alumni Affairs, the Principal Gift Officer will work with prospects who have the capacity and interest in making complex gifts in support of the school of medicine’s highest priorities. The Principal Gift Officer will focus on identifying and engaging a new portfolio of high capacity individual philanthropists who do not have affiliations with the university or the school as alumni or parents and connecting them to institutional priorities of the highest value and priority. The Principal Gift Officer will pursue growth of this portfolio by partnering with the school’s faculty and activating the network of committed alumni, parents and friends to engage individuals in the significance of the school’s research and teaching initiatives. The Principal Gift Officer will, at the same time, have important responsibilities for managing philanthropic relationships with current alumni and parent prospects.

The  Principal Gift Officer we seek will develop and implement cultivation and solicitation strategies for a select high-end donor portfolio and build and manage high-profile institutional relationships between donors and school faculty, staff, and administrators at the highest level. The successful candidate will be strategically oriented, knowledgeable and experienced with principal gifts fundraising and capital campaigns, highly motivated, and a team player who is goal-oriented.

Essential Duties

Partners with School of Medicine Development research team, other development staff, volunteer leaders, School of Medicine officers and administrators and faculty to develop a portfolio of unaffiliated high net worth individual prospects whose giving interests are aligned with the highest priorities and areas of excellence at the Yale School of Medicine.

1. Collaborates with school and volunteer partners to pursue strategies to engage, cultivate and solicit unaffiliated prospects in order to secure gifts for the School’s highest priorities.
2. Develops cultivation and solicitation strategies for a portfolio of affluent friends, alumni, and parent prospects and donors.
3. Facilitates and coordinates all communication with prospects and among the prospect’s campus relationships.
4. Promotes positive relations with these prospects and donors.
5. Evaluates various gift opportunities and giving vehicles and recommends those most suitable for a particular donor.
6. Assists with the strategy for, and creation of, written communications from various university administrators appropriate to a donor’s interests.
7. May travel (possibly extensively) commensurate with Yale’s standard expectations for fundraising activity, contact and travel. May involve international travel, depending upon prospect assignments.
8. Performs additional development-related activities/efforts at the request of manager.
9. May perform other duties as assigned.

Required Education and Experience

Bachelor’s Degree in a relevant field. Eight years of experience in high-end fundraising or a related field or equivalent combination of education and related experience. Experience working with sensitive information and ability to maintain strict confidentiality.

Required Skill/Ability 1:

Proven experience cultivating, soliciting, negotiating and stewarding principle gifts.

Required Skill/Ability 2:

Well-developed oral and written communication skills with the ability to deliver highly effective presentations and create and present complex funding opportunities in person and in writing to high-level and prospective donors.

Required Skill/Ability 3:

Highly developed organizational and analytical skills with the ability to interpret financial information and manage data.

Required Skill/Ability 4:

Ability to meet deadlines and function effectively in an fast paced environment; demanding discretion, flexibility and high quality work.

Required Skill/Ability 5:

Superior interpersonal and listening skills with the ability to engage, motivate, inspire, build strong relationships with faculty, university administrators, volunteers, colleagues and a diverse portfolio of donors in a complex academic environment.

Preferred Education, Experience and Skills:

Experience engaging unaffiliated, prospective donors, preferably in a university setting. Experience working closely with an institution’s president or CEO, faculty, and senior officers.

Weekend Hours Required?
Occasional

Evening Hours Required?
Occasional

Drug Screen
No

Health Screening
No

Background Check Requirements

All candidates for employment will be subject to pre-employment background screening for this position, which may include motor vehicle, DOT certification, drug testing and credit checks based on the position description and job requirements. All offers are contingent upon the successful completion of the background check. Please visit www.yale.edu/hronline/careers/screening/faqs.html for additional information on the background check requirements and process.

Posting Disclaimer

The intent of this job description is to provide a representative summary of the essential functions that will be required of the position and should not be construed as a declaration of specific duties and responsibilities of the particular position. Employees will be assigned specific job-related duties through their hiring departments.

Affirmative Action Statement:

Yale University considers applicants for employment without regard to, and does not discriminate on the basis of, an individual’s sex, race, color, religion, age, disability, status as a veteran, or national or ethnic origin; nor does Yale discriminate on the basis of sexual orientation or gender identity or expression. Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 protects people from sex discrimination in educational programs and activities at institutions that receive federal financial assistance. Questions regarding Title IX may be referred to the University’s Title IX Coordinator, at TitleIX@yale.edu, or to the U.S. Department of Education, Office for Civil Rights, 8th Floor, Five Post Office Square, Boston MA 02109-3921. Telephone: 617.289.0111, Fax: 617.289.0150, TDD: 800.877.8339, or Email: ocr.boston@ed.gov.

Note

Yale University is a tobacco-free campus