The Director of Major Gifts, a key member of the Museum’s fundraising team, raises unrestricted and restricted gifts from high-net-worth families and individuals to support the Museum’s goals. The position manages a significant portfolio of principal and major gift donors and prospects, and will be responsible for personally cultivating, soliciting, closing and stewarding gifts of $50,000 to $1,000,000+. In collaboration with the Chief Development Officer and with leadership across the Museum, the Director of Major Gifts will formulate strategic direction and program development to enhance private individual philanthropic support including through memberships annual appeals, campaigns, events and endowments.

Responsibilities:

• Directs the efforts of the individual giving teams including all membership programs, annual major gifts, and special campaigns, and special event fundraising;
• With the Chief Development Officer, establish fundraising goals, monitor overall expense budget, ensure donor database records are up-to-date, and aid in preparation of analytical reports to measure progress toward fundraising goals;
• Maintain a portfolio of 100+ major gift donors and prospects
• Create and implement effective cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship strategies for donors and prospects across donor levels from membership to major gifts;
• Design and implement creative strategies for building individual philanthropic support, including multi-year gifts opportunities for a wide range of institutional priorities in collaboration with department heads;
• Work with staff and consultants to revitalize and expand planned giving program;
• Manage the Individual Giving team and Memberships team in developing and implementing strategy to grow a successful, engaging, and mission-focused program for membership across the institution;
• Participate in all aspects of the principal and major gift cycle including initiating contacts with potential leadership and donors, developing cultivating strategies including working, moving potential donors toward solicitation and closure, making solicitations, and maintaining stewardship contacts with donors;
• Lead major gift prospect identification, qualification and rating process to assess and expand major gift prospect pool;
• Support the President & CEO and the Chief Development Officer in engaging existing Trustees and cultivating new prospects for the Board and Advisory Boards.

Requirements:

• At least eight years of progressive experience in individual or major gift fundraising in the non-profit field, preferably in the arts and/or Jewish philanthropy;
• Proven ability to personally cultivate, solicit, and steward principal and major gifts ($50,000+) from individuals;
• Experience managing a development team in the non-profit sector
• Ability to ground relationships with donors and prospective donors in Jewish culture and values;
• Superior written and oral communication skills, ability to write and speak in clear, crisp and compelling ways and to articulate the goals, mission and values of the Museum;
• Intellectual depth, maturity and interpersonal skills to foster the trust and confidence of Museum leadership and donors;
• Must adhere to the highest ethical standards, demonstrate an empathetic disposition, exhibit perseverance, and project an optimistic and positive attitude;
• Willingness to work weekends and evenings as necessary;
• Working knowledge of philanthropic vehicles to facilitate sophisticated philanthropic conversations, proficiency in Altru or Raiser’s Edge or other development technology for prospect identification and research;
• Bachelor’s degree required

Position Details

• Reports to the Chief Development Officer
• Salary $125,000-$150,000 with generous benefits
• Full-Time, 40 hours a week with hybrid schedule available after 90 days

The Museum of Jewish Heritage is an equal opportunity employer. As a cultural institution that teaches about the dangers of intolerance, the Museum is dedicated to promoting diversity, multiculturalism and inclusion in its hiring practices.

For consideration, candidates should submit a resume and cover letter to: humanresources@mjhnyc.org with “Director of Major Gifts” in the subject line