Advancement Officer

Application Deadline: Thursday, Sep 15, 2016

Description

YOU:
You’ve put in the time. You have the experience and working knowledge of how to reach, steward, and raise funds from donors across all the platforms a front-line NGO uses today. You’ve taken on increasingly complex duties working with individual donors, including in-person meetings—and you understand the challenges and possibilities of moving donors into a deeper relationship with a cause and organization they care about.

Now, you’re looking for the next big step in your professional development. And you’re looking to make it with an organization that’s known for innovative approaches to fundraising, and whose work makes a genuine difference in the world. You know how you work best: with a lot of independence, but with a team of terrific collaborating professionals.

US:
Mother Jones is a world-class nonprofit journalism organization with more than 40 years of history, tested leadership, and a clear sense of mission and position. We reach more than 10 million people in print and online each month, and with 40,000 donors we have the largest community of support in the nonprofit journalism field outside of public television and radio.

We cover the issues that matter—democracy and inequality; global security, war and peace; racial justice, gun violence, and criminal justice; climate, health, food and agriculture; the future of work and education; gender and reproductive rights—and do it in a way that reaches millions, influences opinion, and impacts the public debate. That’s why we’ve been called an “internationally recognized powerhouse” that believes that “news is what’s hidden, everything else is publicity.”

THE POSITION:
As Advancement Officer, you’ll be responsible for taking our “Hellraiser” ($500 to $2,500 in annual gifts) and “Muckraker” ($250 to $499) mid-level giving programs up a notch. You’ll work at the intersection of our direct response membership program and our six-person development team, and lead the way in designing strategies to successfully identify donors with giving potential and move them forward into a durable and financially significant philanthropic relationship with Mother Jones, whether as a mid-level annual donor, as a monthly sustainer, as a major donor, or by making a planned gift. You’ll have your own portfolio of donors to qualify, cultivate, solicit, and steward. You’ll be involved in breakthrough innovations in the nonprofit journalism field, as we demonstrate how to deepen and broaden the case for journalism as a public good. You’ll work alongside and report directly to Mother Jones‘ Publisher.

The Advancement Officer will:

• Develop and manage a portfolio of mid-level donors whose gifts range from $500 to $2,500, based on an annual fundraising goal developed with the Publisher.
• Identify and qualify a “discovery portfolio” of donor names generated from Mother Jones‘ membership/direct response efforts and other sources, and seek face-to-face meetings with the objective of securing a gift in six months. The Advancement Officer will also collaborate with the Mother Jones Major Gifts Team to assign donors to a Mother Jones Major Gift Field Officer as appropriate.
• With the Development Associate, coordinate with Mother Jones‘ membership department on direct response (mail, phone, and digital) fundraising efforts, including creative content and message, calendar and schedule, integration of materials and efforts, and list selection and production.
• Design and manage a full-circle communications schedule with donors in the Advancement Officer’s portfolio, and keep track of all communication and live contacts made through Salesforce Nonprofit Starter Pack database.
• Develop a mid-level donor sustainers’ circle program
• Manage planned giving marketing efforts in cooperation with Mother Jones‘ membership department, and coordinate planned giving gift solicitation and donor stewardship efforts with development staff.
• Various other duties or tasks as assigned and/or needed.

Qualifications:

• Minimum 3 to 5 years of relevant fundraising experience
• Demonstrated increasing experience in direct response (direct mail, phone, digital) and relationship-based major gift fundraising
• Exceptional written and oral communications skills
• BA/BS, preferably in a business-related field (or equivalent work experience)
• Ability to work independently and as part of fast-paced collaborative teams
• Grace under pressure, and the ability to manage difficult situations with tact, diplomacy, and good humor
• Demonstrated sound judgment and ability to maintain confidentiality
• Able to travel and work some evenings
• Experience with Salesforce preferred
• Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite

What we have to offer you is a competitive wage, great benefits, ownership of your role, the opportunity for mentorship and growth, and a great team.

The terms of this job are covered under the terms of a collective bargaining agreement with Local 2103, United Automobile, Aerospace and Agricultural Implement Workers of America, AFL-CIO. Mother Jones and its parent organization, the Foundation for National Progress, are committed to a diverse and welcoming workplace. We encourage people with all kinds of backgrounds to apply. We do not discriminate in our hiring based on race, color, religion, ancestry, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, marital status, veteran status, union activity, physical or mental disability, AIDS/HIV status, on-the-job injuries, age, or any status otherwise protected under applicable federal, state, or local law.

To apply, please send us a résumé and a personalized cover letter outlining why this is the place you want to work and what you bring to the table. Email both documents to jobs (at) motherjones (dot) com with “Advancement Officer” as the subject line. No calls.

For additional information about this position, please contact: