Senior Director, Planned Giving

Job Purpose
Provide vision, leadership and direction for the university’s Planned Giving program. Design and implement a comprehensive planned giving program; manage fundraising strategies and initiatives. Manage staff and office operations in order to cultivate, solicit and steward planned gift donors to meet established fundraising goals within allocated budget. This position reports to the Associate Vice President, Major Gifts and Planned Giving.
Essential Functions
Responsible for the design and implementation of a comprehensive planned giving program to increase donor giving, including management of a personal portfolio of 100-150 prospects. Model best practices in planned giving fundraising.
Responsible for leading team to meet annual fundraising goals and achieving individual fundraising goals; allocating and prioritizing time and resources to achieve the greatest return on investment. Performance and productivity will be measured on the following core metrics as determined annually:
    Dollars raised toward Campaign goal
    Number of planned gift solicitations of $25,000+
    Number of planned gifts documented at $25,000+
    Number of meaningful contacts each month
Collaborate with division leadership and direct reports to develop fundraising plans and strategies for increasing planned gifts to the university. Establish realistic and achievable timelines; remain current with fundraising trends and serve as a resource on successful development activities, techniques and methods. Manage and strengthen creative donor marketing strategies as the key communications tool for the planned giving program.
Partner with development professionals within the schools and colleges to identify planned gift opportunities for donors, alumni and friends. Develop related proposals and assist development professionals to secure planned gifts. Conduct one-on-one solicitations and work with donors’ advisors, as appropriate, to strengthen donor relations and increase planned gift revenues.
Attend and participate in prospect review meetings to strategize and prioritize donor cultivation and solicitation for major and planned gifts.
Work in partnership with the Office of General Counsel, Vice President for Finance and Business Operations, Cash Management and Investments office and Gift Administration to ensure planned gift agreements are in compliance with university policies and procedures. Responsible for managing pending estates and trusts to ensure gifts are received upon settlement of the donor’s estate.
Work closely with President and VP Development to secure principal estate gifts including drafting of complex contractual gift agreements. Train major gift officers in the schools and colleges to integrate planned gifts into overall donor and prospect strategies.
Supervise a diverse staff, effectively managing performance to meet individual and team initiatives; foster a collegial and highly productive work environment. Recruit, interview, hire, train, coach, evaluate, and discipline staff. Establish and communicate performance expectations in a manner that motivates and empowers staff to fulfill job duties. Encourage, support, and ensure employee participation in training and development programs.
Manage annual budget for the planned giving program. Develop revenue and expense projections, approve expenditures for the program and monitor transactions for compliance with university policies and procedures. Provide donor or donor’s representative with necessary broker/bank information for completion of stock or IRA gift transactions.
Network with outside professional groups and organizations to keep abreast of current industry trends and best practices related to fundraising. Represent the Division of Development & Alumni Affairs at industry or community meetings at the request of leadership. Special projects and other duties as assigned.