Annual Giving Officer

Annual Giving Officer

Rhode Island School of Design (RISD) seeks two Annual Giving Officers to join Institutional Advancement (IA). If you're looking to join a cohesive and talented team dedicated to engaging alumni, parents and friends through creative outreach strategies, we are interested in hearing from you.

Reporting to the Director, Annual Giving Programs, the Annual Giving Officer is responsible for the management of donor relationships in support of RISD. This position plays a key strategic role in RISD's Annual Giving efforts as we work to establish a more robust culture of philanthropy both on campus and in the wider RISD community.

In their frontline fundraising work, the Annual Giving Officer will employ an in-depth donor-centric management mindset to identify, cultivate, solicit and steward new and existing donors in support of RISD. They will develop an annual plan to cultivate and solicit a portfolio of prospective and current donors for annual support. The Annual Giving Officer creates personalized engagement plans for each assigned donor and conducts meaningful personal local and virtual visits to secure gifts. The Annual Giving Officer also plays a vital role in building a robust donor pipeline, serving as a key conduit between the annual fund level and major gift level of giving.

The successful candidate will thrive in a campus environment that is committed to advancing the principles of social equity and inclusion, environmental and climate justice, and equal access to resources and opportunities.

Essential Functions :

Frontline Fundraising Responsibilities :

• Tasked with personally executing solicitations and closing gifts to secure annual fund gifts for both the RISD Fund and the Museum Annual Fund.
• Conduct independent research through the Institutional Advancement database, Internet sources, and referrals from RISD representatives and volunteers to identify and appropriately engage prospective donors.
• In conjunction with the combined assigned portfolio of current and prospective donors, conducts meaningful solicitation, stewardship, and cultivation visits either in person or virtually.
• Develop and execute an annual solicitation plan for submitted proposals and gift closures providing gift projections of commitments.
• Maintain a rigorous schedule of personal contacts with assigned prospects, creating moves management plans related to them that include strategies of engagement and solicitations.
• Collaborate with the RISD Fund, Alumni + Family Relations, and Donor Engagement teams to leverage appropriate Alumni Association, 1877 Society, and volunteer opportunities for select prospective and current donors.
• Seamlessly transition newly identified prospective and current donors with a major gift capacity to Philanthropy Officers for further relationship development.
• Utilize Raiser's Edge NXT system, which identifies, assigns, rates, and tracks assigned prospects, to comply with department policies and procedures.

Additional Functions :

Required Knowledge / Skills / Experience :

No Union

Work Schedule : 35 hours per week; 12 months per year

Employment Status : Full-time; Exempt; Regular

Grade : 535EX

Work Modality : Hybrid Eligible

Documents Needed to Apply : Resume (Required) Cover Letter (Required)

Incomplete applications will not be considered. Please upload all required documents.

The successful candidate will be required to meet our pre-employment background screening requirements.

RISD recognizes diversity and inclusivity as fundamental to its learning community and integral to an art and design education. We welcome candidates whose experience has prepared them to contribute to our commitment to diversity and excellence. RISD is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Employment decisions are made without regard to race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin, disability, veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, genetics, or any other protected characteristic as established by law.