Individual Giving Manager

About ScholarMatch

Founded in 2010 by author Dave Eggers, ScholarMatch began as a scholarship crowdfunding platform and has since evolved into a full-service college access and persistence organization.

At ScholarMatch, we are committed to supporting first-generation college students from low-income backgrounds earn a bachelor’s degree within five years. We’re working towards realizing our vision where all students have access to higher education, support to persist to graduation, and opportunities to succeed in fulfilling careers.

Education opens doors to opportunity and social mobility by allowing students a chance to build fulfilling careers. However, the road to higher education is paved with challenges that can be particularly daunting for first-generation college students. We strive to change this scenario for young people from low-income backgrounds by offering them comprehensive support services focusing on individualized college and career advising, targeted scholarships, and ongoing mentorship from high school to college graduation and the launch of their careers.

Our ultimate goal is to nurture a community of young people who can successfully navigate the higher education landscape, confronting its challenges, breaking barriers, and redefining success on their paths to graduation and beyond. Learn more at ScholarMatch.org.

Position Description

ScholarMatch is seeking a full-time, exempt Individual Giving Manager to play an important role in our growing non-profit. This position reports to the Director of Advancement and is part of the development team. The Individual Giving Manager is responsible for stewarding, cultivating, developing, and overseeing relationships with existing donors and new prospects in support of ScholarMatch. The position will qualify, cultivate, and solicit prospective donors and build through research our donor pipeline. They will proactively outreach to secure face-to-face qualification visits, and ultimately solicit individual prospects for gifts, or recommend prospects to other members of the team for solicitation at other appropriate gift levels. This position is ideal for a candidate who has a passion for our mission, strong relationship-building and project management skills, and experience with donor relations and communications.

ScholarMatch offers flexible hours with remote capability depending on business needs; travel to different sites and evenings and weekend hours may be required as needed or necessary to conform with changing priorities and meet deadlines. The candidate must live in the San Francisco Bay Area.

Primary Responsibilities

• In collaboration with the Director of Advancement, provide vision and leadership for all aspects of ScholarMatch’s individual giving program which includes a comprehensive strategy targeting long and short-term giving goals
• Identify, cultivate, solicit, and steward gift prospects
• Manage a portfolio of prospects to secure philanthropic support annually with the potential of raising major gifts
• Proactively and autonomously create a new pipeline for mid-high level individual gifts by utilizing industry best practices, networking abilities, wealth-screening, and data analysis.
• Provide strategic partnership to staff and others in designing and implementing Development programs needed to sustain major gift support
• Solicit and close gifts at all levels with support from the Director of Advancement and Executive Director
• Work with the Director of Advancement to manage ScholarMatch funding goals and growth
• Create and implement donor communications and acknowledgements related to cultivation and stewardship of donors and prospects.
• Prepare written proposals, informational, and other materials needed to secure gifts
• In consultation with the Director of Advancement, annually establish personal goals, objectives, and strategies for major gift fundraising, and regularly assess progress toward goals
• Proactively reach out to qualify leads through cold calls and emails
• Solicit individual prospective donors, when appropriate, and qualify major gift prospects to proactively cultivate additional future gifts
• Responsible for prospect/donor call coordination and briefing materials associated with activities for potential major donors
• Qualify, develop and maintain year-round relationships with a portfolio of individual gift donors or prospects to grow immediate funding, long term funding and planned gifts.
• Serve as a primary out-the-door fundraiser along with Director of Advancement and Executive Director, building donor relationships through face-to-face cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship activity
• Assist with the development and implementation of intentional strategies to move donors through the donor continuum through the establishment of giving societies, affinity groups, donor engagement activities/events, and stewardship touchpoints to ensure a rewarding donor experience.
• Maintain donor records and activity within the CRM.
• Serve as the point of contact for all planned giving inquiries.
• Collaborate with the Communications and Marketing Manager to develop the appropriate print materials (brochures, promotional materials, appeals and online content) to support every aspect of the individual giving plan
• In collaboration with the Director of Advancement, develop Case Statements to be used in donor solicitation meetings
• Collaborate with the Finance Coordinator and Data Team for reconciliation work
• Monitor progress against performance targets.
• Attends community events to support program promotion as needed
• Perform all other duties and tasks as assigned, “all-hands-on deck” mindset

Qualifications

• Bachelor's degree, preferably in Communications, Public Relations, or a related field
• Five (5) years of experience working in the nonprofit industry, specifically in public relations, fund development, communications, outreach
• Excellent verbal and written communication skills
• Extremely organized and detail oriented
• Proficient in MacOs, Google Suite and social media platforms
• Familiarity with AFP Code of Ethics
• Must be able to lift up to 15 pounds at times
• Must be able to sit prolonged periods at a desk and work on a computer
• Superior interpersonal skills and ability to work as part of a team
• Excellent persuasion skills, and strong personal integrity
• A proven record of securing visits with prospective donors, and soliciting, closing, and stewarding mid and major gifts
• Ability to work well under pressure and manage sensitive or controversial subjects with tact, kindness, and professionalism
• Must be able to perform all functions of this position within what would be deemed to be reasonable accommodations
• Must be able to communicate effectively with a variety of personalities throughout the organization
• Must be comfortable working in an anti-racist organization with a diverse group of external constituents and internal staff at all levels

Preferred but not Required

• Bilingual (e.g. Spanish, Cantonese or Mandarin, Vietnamese, Tagalog)
• Familiarity with CRMs (i.e. Bloomerang)
• Have an extensive network of contacts in the non-profit community, i.e. family foundations, corporations, philanthropic investment firms, DAF management firms

Compensation and Benefits

Starting salary is commensurate with experience, regional location, and is based on a competitive public interest salary scale.

ScholarMatch practices a transparent, negotiation-free salary process. While starting salary is commensurate with experience, regional location, and is based on a competitive public interest salary scale, ScholarMatch aims to provide a living wage to all staff :

The salary range for this position is:

• San Francisco Bay Area: $79,800 - $90,641/year
• As a growing organization, ScholarMatch prides itself in offering a competitive benefits package:
• 100% paid medical, dental, vision, and basic term life for full-time employees
• 401k retirement plan with 4% employer automatic contribution, 100% vested on day 1
• 20 accrued PTO days per year
• 11 paid holidays every year, birthday off, plus a staff-wide “winter break” from Christmas Eve through New Year’s Day with reduced workload
• Annual retention bonus that increases with every year
• Eligibility for a one-month paid sabbatical after your 5-year anniversary
• FSA/HSA
• Chiropractic/Acupuncture
• Pre-tax commuter benefits
• Phone and internet stipend
• Staff and dependent EAP access