"Assistant Athletic Director of Development, Annual Fund"

Job Description

Reporting to the Associate Vice President for Athletics Development the Assistant Athletic Director of Development, Annual Fund is a position responsible for overseeing a comprehensive annual fund strategy and the acting liaison for Legends, within the Cuse Athletics Fund (CAF).

The Assistant Athletics Director of Development, Annual Fund will provide oversight for all CAF annual fund operations with a focus on growing our philanthropic pipeline and grass-roots efforts. Along with renewing, growing, and developing new contributions associated with annual memberships, priority points and donor rank, premium seating, suites, gameday hospitality, parking, and tickets.

Education and Experience

• Bachelors degree is required.
• Masters degree and/or equivalent combination of education and experience is preferred.
• 5+ years of progressive experience in fundraising, donor relations, event management, or advancement operations.
• Demonstrated experience in building and managing comprehensive annual fundraising plans.
• Strong project management skills with ability to manage multiple complex initiatives simultaneously.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills with ability to interact effectively with donors, volunteers, coaches, and senior administrators.
• Experience working with CRM/fundraising databases (Salesforce, Blackbaud, or similar platforms)
• Valid Drivers license and access to a reliable vehicle is required.
• Ability to work flexible hours, including evenings, weekends and holidays, as required by event schedules and athletics competitions.

Skills and Knowledge

• Strong verbal and written communications skills, ability to problem solve and lead teams, along with strong work ethic, reliability, and ability to keep confidential information as well as maintain professional code of conduct.
• Work effectively under pressure and time constraints and ability to work off-hours, including weekends and nights.
• Well-developed interpersonal skills necessary to build relationships with volunteer leaders and campus partners.
• Demonstrate ability to maintain confidentiality of event logistics, participants and security planning as required.

Responsibilities

• Strategize, develop and execute fundraising plans to solicit and secure annual fundraising gifts from alumni, parents and friends of Syracuse University in support of Athletics. The key results for this role are overall growth in donors, increased alumni giving, increased renewals, and continued growth in upgrades for pipeline development for leadership annual giving, gift planning, family giving, and other programs.
• Oversee and coordinate broad annual fundraising cycles (fall campaign, calendar year end, winter/spring campaigns, Day of Giving, with many smaller segmented initiatives in each fiscal quarter.
• Lead renewal and premium sales strategy and leverage contributions associated with memberships, annual benefits, priority points and donor rank, premium seating, suites, gameday hospitality, parking, and tickets.
• Oversee and evaluate annual fund performance on a year-over- year basis, utilizing key performance indicators and trend analysis to assess fundraising effectiveness and donor engagement.
• Monitor total contributions, donor count, and giving levels to proactively anticipate and plan for shifts in funding patterns throughout the donor lifecycle.
• Provide strategic recommendations and implement targeted initiatives to optimize fund performance, drive donor retention, and expand the contributor base to support sustainable growth.
• Manage and direct one full-time employee in the Data Analyst. This includes hiring, training, supervising, and meeting regularly with them to discuss business intelligence and prospecting strategies and progress toward goals.
• Support their efforts in analyzing data.
• Identify, amplify and balance the right mix of messaging, channels, segmentation, and digital tools to maximize growth of the donor engagement pipeline as well as strategies for renewals and upgrade of donors.
• Maintain updated plans, solicitations and opportunities for identified/segmented groups, as well as all other activities relative to donors and prospects.
• Report results of all solicitations/gifts in the CITRUS/CRM database including meaningful interactions and ensuring the accuracy of the data entry.
• As part of the overarching business intelligence (BI) strategy, partner with Prospect Management and Analytics to advance reporting efforts to effectively understand donor acquisition, renewal and reactivation programs.
• Liaison to Legends Group General Manager and Sales & Service team.
• Provide consistent assistance, including direction and guidance for the CAF annual benefits and membership program. Work collaboratively across various athletics departments, teams, campus department and corporate sponsorships in order to ensure proper workflow and communication.

About Syracuse University

Syracuse University is a private, international research university with distinctive academics, diversely unique offerings, and an undeniable spirit. Located in the geographic heart of New York State, with a global footprint, and over 150 years of history, Syracuse University offers a quintessential college experience.

The scope of Syracuse University is a testament to its strengths: a pioneering history dating back to 1870; a choice of more than 200 majors, 100 minors, and 200 advanced degree programs offered across the Universitys 13 schools and colleges; over 15,000 undergraduates and over 6,000 graduate students; more than a quarter of a million alumni in 160 countries; and a student population from all 50 U.S. states and 123 countries. For more information, please visit http://www.syracuse.edu.