Office Location: This position will be hybrid, working in the downtown Chicago office, as well as remotely, engaging with staff and stakeholders through virtual platforms. This position is not eligible for paid relocation.

Reports to: Chief Advancement Officer

Schedule: Full-time

Mikva Challenge is a nonprofit, nonpartisan organization whose mission is to develop youth to be engaged, informed, and active citizens and community members who will promote a just and equitable society.  We do this by engaging youth in an authentic and transformative learning process built on youth voice and youth expertise. Youth in Mikva’s programming experience unique civic learning opportunities. Our approaches include direct youth work, teacher support, and liaising with civic leaders and institutions. We believe strongly in the potential of youth and are committed to youth voice.

Mikva Challenge evaluations show the lasting impact of its programs.

  • 82% of students reported an increase in their civic knowledge.
  • 77% of students developed their sense of civic agency and increased their future commitment to civic action.
  • 83% of students took on new civic leadership.
  • 79% of students reported gains in their socio-emotional skills — many of which have direct academic outcomes.

About the Position

Mikva Challenge is seeking a frontline fundraiser to build a strong base of individual donors in key priority locations nationwide, supporting the organization’s ambitious goals. Based in Chicago, the Major Gifts Officer will work closely with the Chief Advancement Officer to execute a long-term vision and strategy for growing Mikva Challenge’s revenue from individual donors. The Major Gifts Officer will envision and build a comprehensive major gifts program, including the identification, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship of current major donors, as well as prospects with the capacity to support the organization with an annual gift of $2,500 or more.

Success in this role will require exceptional relationship-building skills to cultivate new prospects as well as strengthening relationships with existing donors to maximize philanthropic support; utilizing data to inform comprehensive donor engagement plans; and strong written and verbal communications skills.

Additionally, the Major Gifts Officer will work closely with the CEO and CAO, preparing meeting agendas and briefing documents for them and other leadership team members who are conducting meetings with major donors. This individual will manage a portfolio of Advisory Board members and both steward and activate board members to engage their networks on behalf of Mikva Challenge. This position also manages the Manager of Individual Giving and actively engages with key donors in priority locations to drive philanthropic growth.

Core Responsibilities

Fundraising Strategy and Execution

  • Execute the overall vision and direction of Mikva Challenge’s individual giving strategy set by the Chief Advancement Officer
  • Design and execute Mikva Challenge’s major gifts program, including creating operational plans to implement this strategy and delegating tasks to others responsible for supporting major gifts initiatives
  • Consistently monitor progress against revenue goals and proactively create strategies to fill any gaps in fundraising projections
  • Be aware of, and engaged in, conversations surrounding philanthropic trends and best practices in major and individual giving; recommend new ideas as appropriate to the Chief Advancement Officer to creatively secure funding.

Donor Portfolio and Relationship Management

  • Manage an active portfolio of 75-100 major and prospective major donors by creating individualized engagement plans for donor cultivation, stewardship, and solicitation
  • Directly solicit major gifts and partner with senior staff and/or volunteers on solicitations by creating donor briefings, strategic guidance, and assistance with donor communications
  • Consistently conduct prospect research to identify and qualify new major donors and create and maintain a system to track referrals and research
  • Develop, plan, and execute strategic donor engagement opportunities, such as site visits to observe programming and small and large donor stewardship events
  • Develop a high-quality donor experience through regular correspondence, professional proposals, and timely acknowledgements

People Management

  • Manage the Manager of Individual Giving
  • Develop SMART goals for staff and provide direction on their strategies and execution of their work
  • Coach and develop the manager toward their work goals and personal development goals through our performance management process and perform  mid-year and annual Performance Reviews for all direct reports
  • Provide continuous feedback to staff to assist in their growth and improvement
  • Attend monthly org-wide Supervisors’ meetings

Operations and Data Management

  • Maintain accurate data records for individual donors in our CRM, including tracking engagement activity and analyzing data to support strategic goals
  • Assist in development operations initiatives, including CRM data review and analysis, gift processing, and donor acknowledgements
  • Project accurately on anticipated and forecasted revenue to support organizational programmatic, fiscal and operational goals

Requirements

Education: Bachelor’s degree or an equivalent combination of education and experience.

Experience: Minimum of five years’ experience managing donor relationships with proven track record of successfully closing major gifts

Qualifications

  • Experience with building or growing a major giving program
  • Strong interpersonal and relationship-building skills and a proven ability to create and foster excellent relationships between donors and an organization
  • Strong verbal and written communication skills
  • Ability to create and implement an ambitious major gifts program
  • Ability to effectively communicate organization’s mission and goals to a diverse group of stakeholders
  • Strong project management skills
  • Demonstrated ability to work in a fast-paced environment, meet concurrent deadlines, organize time and priorities
  • Ability to manage multiple tasks and flexibility with competing deadlines.
  • Experience supervising and coaching a direct report
  • Passionate about youth development for underserved communities and/or addressing social injustice
  • Familiarity with current issues and trends in education, and an understanding of philanthropic funding landscapes in education and youth programming
  • Strong knowledge of MS Excel, Word, & PowerPoint
  • Experience with a donor database platform such as Salsa
  • Willingness to work periodic weekends and evenings

Compensation 

The salary range for this position is $72,000 – $85,000 annually commensurate with experience. We offer a competitive benefits package to include paid time off, medical, dental, vision, 401K, disability and life insurance.

Additionally, we offer an additional two weeks of paid time off for scheduled organization downtime.

How to Apply

Please email a resume and cover letter to careers@mikvachallenge.org with “Major Gifts Officer” in the subject line. Please, no phone calls. Review of applications will begin immediately.

 

Equity Statement

Mikva Challenge is an equal opportunity employer and we highly value diversity in our workplace. Mikva Challenge provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex (including pregnancy and gender identity), gender expression, sexual orientation, national origin, age, genetic information, disability, political affiliation, marital status, membership in an employee organization, retaliation, parental status, military service, or other non-merit factors. Applicants from historically underrepresented and/or marginalized communities, including people of color, are strongly encouraged to apply.