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Senior Director of Individual Giving

SENIOR DIRECTOR OF INDIVIDUAL GIVING

Reports to:        Chief Development Officer
Status:                 Exempt
Schedule:           Full-Time

OVERVIEW

Since 1970, Meals on Wheels San Francisco (MOWSF) has provided a network of services that allows thousands of seniors each year to live in their homes with dignity and independence. When we provide nutritious meals and daily safety checks for homebound seniors, we help reduce the risks associated with loneliness, depression and falls and increase the quality of life for these valued members of our community. We are the only organization in San Francisco that offers two home-delivered meals a day, 7 days a week City-wide, that are nutritionally-tailored to meet the dietary needs of seniors. In addition to meals, we provide home delivered groceries, nutritional counseling, social work case management and more. Our annual operating budget is $20 million, supported through generous individuals, government grants and private corporate and foundation support.

In 2020, at the height of the COVID-19 global pandemic, we served more than 100,000 additional meals and opened our state-of-the-art kitchen, The Sangiacomo Flynn Building. This incredible facility will enable MOWSF to serve thousands more seniors per year, as well as support and partner with other senior-serving nonprofit organizations in the Bay Area. We are building on a 50-year history of accomplishment, and every team member plays a vital role in our success.

THE OPPORTUNITY & POSITION SUMMARY

The San Francisco Department of Finance estimates that there will be 100,000 more seniors living in the City by 2037, which means MOWSF’s client base will continue to grow. To meet the increasing need for MOWSF’s services, we are seeking an entrepreneurial, relationship-centered individual donor fundraising expert to join our passionate and collaborative development team.

MOWSF has a large and loyal base of donors. Thousands of new supporters responded to the COVID-19 crisis with swift and generous action, enabling us to meet the unprecedented demand for our services. Meanwhile, the public’s awareness of food security and senior nutrition issues, particularly at the intersection of racial justice and equity, position MOWSF well for increased revenue, influence, and impact. As we emerge from the Covid crisis, now is the time to reintroduce ourselves to our donors, redouble our efforts to build durable relationships, and reinforce the importance of their contributions to our mission.

MOWSF has a solid and diversified fundraising program on which to build. We raise approximately $7.5 million of our $20 million annual operating budget from individuals. Over the next three years, we will prioritize the opportunity to refine our existing approaches, test new tactics, and build new programs. This requires even stronger and expanded leadership at the Board of Directors and staff levels, a clear and inspiring vision, savvy strategies, and significant and sustained financial support.

In this newly created position, and with a recently adopted 3-Year Strategic Development Roadmap, the Senior Director of Individual Giving holds primary responsibility for individual donor fundraising, which includes the major gifts, direct mail, online fundraising, legacy, and stewardship programs. The Director prioritizes relationships with donors and the community and works collaboratively with staff and fundraising volunteers to achieve the ambitious goals of the Roadmap.

CORE RESPONSIBILITIES

Major Gifts

  • Coordinate major donor portfolios managed by staff (CEO, CDO, and others), facilitating regular strategy meetings and using data and moves management techniques to secure meaningful investments and build long-term and authentic relationships with donors.
  • Serve as the lead relationship manager for a personal portfolio of donors, developing and implementing strategies to move these prospects towards established goals and soliciting major gifts, while choreographing moves, making assignments to other staff and volunteers as appropriate and ensuring timely follow-through.
  • Ensure all major donors receive appropriate, consistent engagement/acknowledgement and updates on the impact of their gifts.
  • Ensure strong practices around tracking and following up on major gifts fundraising activities in the database.
  • Manage individual donor and prospect research, serving as the primary user of research tools and providing data, analysis and recommendations to key staff and board solicitors in preparation for major gifts solicitation.
  • Partner with MOWSF’s Director of Marketing and Communications and outside consultants to develop major donor solicitation materials, including case statements, prospectuses, proposals and decks.
  • Support the fundraising of the Board of Directors and other fundraising volunteers, providing data, materials and follow up.

Direct Mail & Online Fundraising

  • Partner with MOWSF’s direct mail vendor to assess and strengthen the organization’s direct mail program, ensuring omni-channel integration of campaigns and prioritizing donor retention.
  • Work closely with the Chief Development Officer and Director of Marketing and Communications to strengthen digital marketing and online fundraising campaigns to complement direct mail.
  • Produce reports and analyses of campaigns to inform and iterate upon the direct mail program and to identify major donor and legacy giving prospects.

Legacy Program

  • Partner with the Chief Development Officer to expand the legacy program, building relationships with current members, identifying new prospects for planned gift solicitation and soliciting prospective donors.
  • Partner with the Director of Marketing and Communications to develop and execute a legacy-specific communications plan, develop solicitation materials and identify legacy donors for profiles and testimonials.
  • Support the Board’s, CEO’s and Chief Development Officer’s solicitation of new planned gifts by providing data, research, materials and follow up.
  • Create opportunities to bring planned giving education to MOWSF’s donor base, including through relationships with professional advisors.

Stewardship

  • Lead donor stewardship and donor engagement efforts to properly recognize donors’ contributions and achieve and maintain high levels of donor satisfaction.
  • Identify targets and tactics to realize the full potential of MOWSF’s current donor base and to expand the base in order to increase financial investments, deepen engagement and increase MOWSF’s influence in the field.
  • Train and engage the MOWSF staff in stewardship activities, building fundraising savvy across the organization.

Team Management & Cross-Team Collaboration

  • Manage and mentor development team members who support individual donor fundraising.
  • Ensure the organizational systems and practices that support strong fundraising, donor stewardship and sustainable growth.
  • Promote a culture of high performance, continual learning and commitment to excellence.
  • Stay informed and knowledgeable about programmatic activities, maintaining the capacity to converse in authentic and compelling ways with donors about our work.

CANDIDATE PROFILE & QUALIFICATIONS

The incoming Senior Director of Individual Giving will be driven by their belief in and commitment to MOWSF’s vision and mission. Through their track record and expertise as a development professional, the successful candidate will lead individual donor fundraising approaches that generate the resources necessary to elevate the work of MOWSF to our next levels of impact. The Director builds authentic and lasting relationships with donors, listening to their interests and philanthropic goals and engaging with them as partners in MOWSF’s mission.

The incoming Director joins a fast-paced team that operates with a sense of urgency and a track record of excellence in execution. The Director is entrepreneurial and has the experience of growing/scaling a successful development program. MOWSF has the opportunity to take our development program to the next level and seeks a Senior Director of Individual Giving with drive, determination and the ability to instill confidence, trust and inspiration.

This role requires strong collaboration and the ability to manage through influence in a matrixed team. Despite the enormity of the challenges that lie ahead, MOWSF leadership understands how to celebrate successes and seeks a Director who leads with positivity and a belief in what is possible. The successful Director demonstrates a zeal for donor outreach and stewardship and models excellence and integrity in fundraising. The selected candidate will also possess the following Core and Preferred qualifications:

Core

  • Must possess a strong commitment to the mission, policies and goals of MOWSF.
  • At least 8 years of increasing responsibility in nonprofit fundraising, with a proven track record of success in securing major gifts ($10K+), managing campaigns and engaging a community of motivated supporters.
  • Experience engaging a Board of Directors or other fundraising volunteers in revenue generation.
  • Outstanding oral and written communications skills with understanding of how to convey a compelling story about MOWSF’s work and impact.
  • Experience designing and executing effective donor engagement strategies that generate deeper satisfaction and loyalty.
  • Outstanding relationship-building skills with the ability to engage with people from diverse backgrounds.
  • Ability to inspire trust and galvanize support for MOWSF’s mission with a balance of diplomacy and tenacity that is required to pursue top prospects.
  • Highly collaborative work style with the ability to operate as a peer and thought partner to the Chief Development Officer.
  • Self-driven ambition and an innate understanding of how to manage through influence.
  • Experience with Salesforce or another donor database, prospect research tools, MS Outlook and Office Suite (especially Word and Excel).
  • Highly organized, flexible and comfortable in a fast-paced environment with excellent attention to detail and follow-through.
  • Demonstrated ability to exercise good judgement and maintain confidentiality at all times.

Preferred

  • Knowledge of social service, senior-services, food security and/or nutrition programs.
  • Knowledge of Bay Area food and wine industry trends.
  • Intellectual curiosity and ability to become a credible, respected representative of MOWSF.

COMMITMENT TO RACIAL EQUITY, DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION

MOWSF values diversity in all its forms and is committed to inclusive and transparent recruitment, hiring and promotion processes. Applicants and employees shall not be discriminated against because race, color, national origin, ancestry, sex, gender, sexual orientation, sexual identity, age, religion, creed, disability (actual or perceived), medical condition including genetic characteristics, marital status, domestic partnership status, citizenship, military service, height, weight, HIV/AIDS status, or any other characteristic protected by state or federal law or local ordinance.

PHYSICAL DEMANDS AND WORK ENVIRONMENT

The physical demands of the work described here are representative of those that must be met by an employee to successfully perform the essential functions of this job. Reasonable accommodations will be made to enable individuals with disabilities to perform the job’s essential functions.

SALARY AND BENEFITS

The salary for this position is commensurate with experience. MOWSF also offers a generous and competitive benefits package, including health coverage, retirement benefits, paid vacation, sick time and holidays and access to professional development resources. This position is located in San Francisco.

APPLICATION PROCEDURE

To apply or nominate a candidate, please send a resume and cover letter to developmentjobs@mowsf.org with “Senior Director of Individual Giving Search” in the subject line. Submission in a combined PDF or Microsoft Word file is preferred. This position is open until filled, with an initial application deadline of 5PM PDT on Friday, September 10, 2021. Candidate review and phone screens begin immediately and will be conducted throughout the search period.

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