Major Gifts Officer

Sarah Shatzkin

Introduction

The Air Force Museum Foundation (Foundation) was chartered in 1960 as a philanthropic corporation with the purpose of supporting the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force™ (Museum).

The Foundation works to raise funds and awareness in support of the Museum’s mission - to inform and educate the public on the important role of the U.S. Air Force in the nation’s defense. To date, the Foundation has raised over $100M in philanthropic support from donors to fund the capital construction costs for the world’s largest military aviation museum. In addition, donors help to restore aircraft, educate the public, install new exhibits, hold special events, support volunteers, and maintain a world-class collection.

The Foundation created a formal Development department in 2009 to cultivate long-lasting relationships with donors for the fourth building capital campaign and beyond. While the team has cultivated and secured major gifts, the Foundation is actively working to strengthen and grow our major giving program.

Position Description

The Major Gifts Officer (MGO) is responsible for developing personal relationships with an assigned portfolio of donors that result in gifts that support our needs.

The MGO will engage in and be responsible for all aspects of the donor development cycle including donor identification, qualification, cultivation, solicitation, acknowledgment, and stewardship.

The primary focus of the MGO in the first year will be qualifying donors into the major giving program, with an end-goal of overseeing a portfolio of 100-150 qualified donors. The current threshold for a major gift is $1,000, but soon the MGO will be responsible for annually securing $10,000+ contributions from individuals, corporations, and foundations in support of Foundation funding priorities.

This position works under the direct supervision of the Senior Major Gifts Officer of the Foundation. This position is non-supervisory, full-time, salaried, exempt.

Duties and Responsibilities

The MGO will qualify, cultivate, and build donor-centered relationships to solicit gifts from donors and prospects in support of the Foundation’s funding priorities.

Relationship Management and Fundraising:

• Build a qualified portfolio of 100-150 donors.
• Facilitate engagement of donors on a personal level (face-to-face meetings, video meetings, phone calls, and other meaningful touchpoints). Discover donor passions and interests and align them with funding priorities.
• Manage cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship processes for individual, corporate, and foundation major gift donors/prospects in your portfolio.
• In partnership with the SMGO, create and implement donor cultivation and solicitation strategies.
• Develop proposals, solicit and secure gifts in support of funding priorities of the Foundation.

Tracking and Reporting:

• File contact reports on an on-going basis in the Foundation’s CRM system (Raiser’s Edge).

General:

• Lead by example to set tone for performance expectations, creating and fostering a positive environment where employees feel valued and appreciated.
• Communicate in a timely and effective manner.
• Foster teamwork by working cooperatively and effectively with others to set goals, resolve problems, and make decisions that enhance organizational effectiveness.
• Positively influence others to achieve results that are in the best interest of the organization.
• Maintain a consistent and visible presence in the execution of job responsibilities and interactions with Foundation and Museum colleagues.
• Other duties as assigned.

Requirements

• Demonstrated experience in building relationships, establishing strategic partnerships, and managing long-term relationships
• Superb verbal and written communication skills, with an ability to communicate empathy, gratitude, and philanthropic impact
• Strong organizational skills; ability to manage multiple projects simultaneously
• Demonstrated attention to detail
• Donor-focused; service-oriented
• Flexibility, enthusiasm, and professionalism to work effectively with Museum/Foundation’s diverse constituents
• Self-motivated with the ability to exercise considerable independence in the performance of day-to-day duties
• Adherence to strict confidentiality of donor-related information, as well as all gift information files, documents, and reports
• Proficient with the Microsoft Office suite; demonstrated ability to track actions in a CRM (experience with Blackbaud’s Raiser’s Edge preferred)

Minimum Education and Experience Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree required; CFRE is a plus
• 2-4 years of success qualifying, cultivating, soliciting, closing, recognizing, and stewarding individual, corporate, and/or foundation donors

Compensation

• Salary Range: $60,000-$70,000
• Benefits: Health Insurance, Dental Insurance, Vision Insurance, Short-term Disability Insurance, Life Insurance, Employee Assistance Program, Paid Time Off (PTO) Leave, Paid federal holidays, 401K Plan with employer match of 100% up to 5% of employee salary.

Other Significant Facts

• The Air Force Museum Foundation performs background checks on 100% of its employees prior to hiring. Candidate must be willing to submit to a background check, as a condition of employment.
• The Air Force Museum Foundation requires that all employees provide COVID-19 vaccine verification/or have an AFMF approved medical or religious accommodation, as a condition of employment.
• The Air Force Museum Foundation is open seven days a week. Incumbent must be able to work to meet those needs. Incumbent’s acceptance of employment carries with it a commitment to work as directed and/or scheduled by the Air Force Museum Foundation. Excessive requests for deviation to such work schedules and reporting for work after scheduled times may not meet the requirement for continued employment. Evening and weekend hours may be required to support fundraising/donor activities. Position will require some local, regional, and national travel.
• The Air Force Museum Foundation provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state or local laws. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoff, recall, transfer, leaves of absence, compensation, and training.
• This is a non-DoD position with a private organization and does not require military service (including commission and enlistment).

AFMF Vision:

Honoring every Airmen’s story with a permanent home to inspire future generations.

AFMF Mission:

Raise funds and awareness to support the National Museum of the U.S. Air Force mission.

AFMF Core Values:

Candidate must agree to adhere to the Air Force Museum Foundation’s Core Values:

Passion – Performing our roles with purpose, pride, and a positive attitude

Integrity – Accepting responsibility for our actions by making business decisions through experience and good judgment

Accountability – Dedicated to achieving positive results; owning and learning from our successes and failures

Respect – Committed to an inclusive and collaborative work environment