Assistant Director, Donor Relations

Position Focus :

Acting with independent judgment and autonomy and employing industry best practices, the Assistant Director, Donor Relations will strengthen Yale School of Medicine’s relationship with its generous donors and their families by working with the donor relations team to execute the YSM donor relations program. This will include : efficiently composing a wide range of gift acknowledgements and annual stewardship narrative reports for donors with endowed and current-use funds; spearheading complex communications projects by liaising between the donor relations team and faculty members, development officers, and other university staff; managing complex and data-heavy report production processes across multiple platforms, and performing other duties as assigned. Writing samples will be requested at time of interview. The following essential duties are generic in nature; potential applicants will find the information in this Position Focus to be most relevant.

Essential Duties

Oversees the editing process, and supervises research, drafting, and mailing of personalized and timely annual stewardship reports to donors on endowed and current use funds. 2. Supervises the selection of appropriate undergraduates to be matched to Yale's named scholarship funds, the preparation of undergraduate and graduate student award letters, and the tracking and mailing of student thank you letters. 3. Oversees the management of data recorded regarding stewardship reporting responsibilities and reporting information in the Gift Administration data base. Identifies and resolves any issues related to the administration of reporting funds. 4. Trains, supervises, appraises performance, and mentors staff. Sets unit's timeliness metrics to achieve annual reporting goals; develops project plans specifying strategy, scheduling, contingency plans and allocation of staff resources. 5. Builds and maintains productive working relationships with development and donor-relations staff in the professional schools and other units to coordinate fund reporting responsibilities and ensure high quality donor reporting. Serves as a resource for sharing best practices with colleagues and other universities. 6. May perform other duties as assigned.

Required Education and Experience

Bachelor's degree and four years of relevant professional experience, with two or more years in donor relations, stewardship, or a comparable area, preferably in higher education or an equivalent combination of education and experience.

Required Skill / Ability 1 :

Ability to write clearly and elegantly, concisely, quickly and effectively. Requires the ability to adapt writing style to a wide variety of situations and audiences. Excellent verbal communications and interpersonal skills. Extreme attention to detail and accuracy.

Required Skill / Ability 2 :

Strong research, analytical, organizational and problem-solving skills. Experience conducting research using Internet resources. Proficiency in Word and Excel. Excellent project management and process improvement skills. Ability to quickly learn new processes, software, and systems.

Required Skill / Ability 3 :

Flexibility to adapt to changing and conflicting priorities. Ability to work in a deadline-oriented, production environment. Ability to handle multiple tasks and meet production metrics and goals.

Required Skill / Ability 4 :

Ability to work effectively with colleagues, administrators, development officers and students. Ability to work both independently and as part of a team, and to handle multiple projects simultaneously. Ability to maintain strict confidentiality.

Required Skill / Ability 5 :

Appreciation and respect for principles of diversity, equity, and inclusion. Ability to engage with diverse audiences (age, gender, nationality, race / ethnicity, profession, sexual orientation, etc.). Ability to demonstrate and promote a positive, “can do” attitude via helpfulness, teamwork and support for others.

Preferred Education, Experience and Skills :

Prior CRM, survey tool, and design software experience. Professional experience writing, copy-editing, and proofreading.

Drug Screen

Health Screening

Background Check Requirements

All candidates for employment will be subject to pre-employment background screening for this position, which may include motor vehicle, DOT certification, drug testing and credit checks based on the position description and job requirements. All offers are contingent upon the successful completion of the background check. For additional information on the background check requirements and process visit "Learn about background checks" under the Applicant Support Resources section of Careers on the It's Your Yale website.

Health Requirements

Certain positions have associated health requirements based on specific job responsibilities. These may include vaccinations, tests, or examinations, as required by law, regulation, or university policy.

Posting Disclaimer

The intent of this job description is to provide a representative summary of the essential functions that will be required of the position and should not be construed as a declaration of specific duties and responsibilities of the particular position. Employees will be assigned specific job-related duties through their hiring departments.