Director, Major Gifts
American Jewish World Service
Remote, Bay Area (CA) Preferred
About America Jewish World Service (AJWS)
American Jewish World Service is the leading Jewish organization working to fight poverty and pursue justice in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean. Through philanthropy and advocacy, we respond to the most pressing issues of our time—from disasters, genocide and hunger, to the persecution of women and minorities worldwide. With Jewish values and a global reach, AJWS is making a difference in millions of lives and building a more just and equitable world.
AJWS works to advance equity and justice — from tackling authoritarianism and the climate crisis to supporting Indigenous communities and strengthening the leadership of women and LGBTQI+ people — by supporting social change organizations in the Global South and advocating for U.S. and global policies protecting human rights.
In both our international grantmaking and advocacy, AJWS focuses on four central issues that we believe are key to securing human rights and ending poverty:
• Humanitarian and Disaster Response
• Civil and Political Rights
• Land, Water, and Climate Justice
• Sexual Health and Rights
At AJWS we're united by a deep belief in the human dignity of each and every person. For some of us, that belief is anchored by history. For others, it's rooted in religious teachings or in the personal relationships that shape our lives. No matter who we are or where we're from, everyone in the AJWS community finds sources of inspiration to work for a better world.
Learn more about AJWS here: https://ajws.org/
The Opportunity
The Director, Major Gifts (Director) plays a critically important role in raising the revenue that supports AJWS’s grantmaking and advocacy. Reporting to the Associate Vice President for Development (AVP), the Director will have a portfolio of high-level donors and supervise a team of four major gift relationship managers.
The Director works closely with the AVP, Development to create and implement strategies to expand and diversify the donor base and ramp up efforts to generate new gifts from individuals. Serving as a member of the Development Division’s Senior Leadership Team, the Director will collaborate closely with the Vice President for Development, AVP and other divisional directors on planning, overseeing, and executing AJWS’s major gifts program.
The Development Division at AJWS includes the following departments: Institutional Giving, Major Gifts and Planned Giving, Development Operations and Donor Engagement. Members of the Division partner closely with the Communications and Marketing, Programs, Finance and Administration, and People and Culture teams, as well as the Executive Office and Board of Trustees, to instill a culture of philanthropy across the organization.
The Division is responsible for cultivating, stewarding, and soliciting donors, building a deep connection and commitment to our work for our supporters. As part of the Development Division, the Major Gi[s team contributes to achieving our annual fundraising goal at the $10K+ level.
The Director’s responsibilities include, but are not limited to:
• Manage a portfolio of high-level individual donors and prospects ($10k+ donor capacity) with an annual goal of approximately $2.5M.
• Manage and motivate team of four major gifts relationship managers, ensuring that they are accountable for meeting their fundraising goals and contributing to a team culture rooted in strong collaboration, cohesion, and a collective commitment to best practices.
• Develop clear short-term and long-range fundraising plans that are both realistic and ambitious, both for themselves and for the major gifts team.
• Successfully identify prospects, funding opportunities, and strategies that will help achieve AJWS and Divisional annual and longer-term development goals.
• Analyze fundraising results against projections and ensure timely and accurate reportng to internal and external constituencies.
• Serve as an effective and persuasive spokesperson and representative for AJWS and its mission, polices, culture, values, and history by working effectively across teams and divisions; enhancing AJWS’s culture of philanthropy and organizational values; and building strong, trusting relationships and partnerships with colleagues across the organization.
Candidate Profile
The following offers an aspirational view of the ideal candidate profile; we encourage applications from candidates with a wide range of experiences and backgrounds, especially those from underrepresented groups.
Passion for the Mission
A storyteller at heart, our ideal candidate is eager for the chance to advance AJWS’s efforts in promoting humanitarianism, human rights, and international development. They embrace global citizenship, appreciate community values and Jewish teaching, and feel compelled to support a mission-driven organization with global reach. Inspired by AJWS’s mission and impact, they see this as an opportunity to inspire donor engagement and investment while contributing to AJWS’s impact on a global scale.
Major Gifts Fundraising
A senior fundraising professional, the Director is highly skilled at making ambitious asks and securing major gifts for their organizations. They bring a record of success in identifying, cultivating, soliciting, and stewarding high net-worth donors. They transcend transactional interactions, emphasize authentic connections with the donor community, and bring a history of success characterized by astute prospect identification, meticulous cultivation, compelling solicitation, and thoughtful stewardship of high net-worth individuals. Unafraid to make big asks, they use their success to build and develop high-performing teams, lead by example, and continually seek opportunities for growth, learning, and reflection. The understand that collaboration is critical to develop and execute sophisticated major gift fundraising campaigns and bring significant experience with face-to-face major gift solicitations.
Leadership and Team Management
A seasoned leader, successful candidates bring a career marked by progressively increasing leadership responsibilities. They excel in mentoring and coaching development professionals at all career levels and understand how to motivate teams within a complex, dynamic, and mission-driven nonprofit environment. They bring significant experience leading and managing fundraising teams, successfully guide them to achieve individual and collective fundraising goals, and use data to drive strategy, benchmark progress, inform decision-making, and consistently deliver timely reporting.
Strategic Planning and Implementation
A big picture thinker, the next Director drives significant revenue growth through innovative campaigns tailored to organizational goals, needs, and aspirations. They excel in developing and executing strategic major gifts fundraising strategies, collaborate seamlessly across departments, and work effectively and respectfully with members of the senior leadership team, including the President and Board Members, to maximize their impact with high-level donors.
Communication and Relationship Building
A skilled communicator and storyteller, the Director deftly articulates funding needs in a manner that is compelling, effective, and inspires action. They excel at building strong relationships with donors and their networks, represent their organizations effectively, and foster the trust necessary to drive fundraising success and advance organizational mission. A highly proficient and emotionally intelligent leader, they collaborate across teams and divisions to communicate fundraising goals, progress, and victories to cultivate an organization-wide culture of philanthropy.
Strong candidates will offer:
• Understanding of fundraising for human rights or international causes is preferred.
• Ability to travel nationally and internationally is needed.
• Knowledge of the Jewish community is desirable; however, individuals who align with our mission and values are strongly encouraged to apply.
Compensation & Benefits
Salary for the role is anticipated to range from $150,000 to $180,000, commensurate with experience. Company offers fringe benefits, life, health, dental, disability insurance, vacation days, 403(b) as currently offered to at-will employees and applicable for the current salary band for the role.
Contact
Koya Partners l Diversified Search Group has been exclusively retained for this engagement, which is being led by Molly Brennan and Malissa Brennan. Submit a compelling cover letter and resume by filling out our Talent Profile: https://apptrkr.com/5070025. All inquiries are strictly confidential.
Koya Partners l Diversified Search Group is committed to providing reasonable accommodation to individuals living with disabilities. If you are a qualified individual living with a disability and need assistance expressing interest online, please email NonprofitSearchOps@divsearch.com. If you are selected for an interview, you will receive additional information regarding how to request an accommodation for the interview process.
AJWS Additional Considerations
Black, Indigenous and People of Color; Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Intersex, Trans and Gender non-conforming people; women; and differently abled people are encouraged to apply. We also encourage applications from people of diverse religious, spiritual and cultural backgrounds.
As an organization committed to promoting social justice around the world, it is essential that we incorporate a diverse, equitable and inclusive lens into all aspects of our work at AJWS. We encourage applicants with a global perspective and a commitment to values around diversity, equity, and inclusion to apply.
For more information, please see AJWS’s commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion here: https://ajws.org/who-we-are/diversity-equity-and-inclusion-at-ajws/
Authorization to work in the US is required.
About Koya Partners l Diversified Search Group
Koya Partners, a Diversified Search Group company, is the nation’s premier search firm dedicated to mission-driven leadership. Since its founding in 2004, Koya has had an exclusive focus on mission-driven clients and was founded on the belief that the right leader can transform an organization and have a deep and measurable impact on our world. Koya works with nonprofits & NGOs, responsible businesses, and social enterprises in local communities and around the world.
Diversified Search Group is consistently recognized by Forbes on its top 10 list of “America’s Best Executive Recruiting Firms” and is an industry leader in recruiting transformational leaders for a changing world. The firm is deliberately different in its approach, with best-in-class teams who have decades of experience in cultivating inclusive leaders, understanding the dimensions of diversity, and building equitable teams.
Learn more about Koya Partners l Diversified Search Group via the firm's website: http://diversifiedsearchgroup.com/our-brands/koya-partners/