Director, Board Engagement & Donor Strategy

Department: Kellogg Advancement
Salary/Grade: EXS/12

Job Summary

The Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University is an elite business school that is proud of its global network of more than 72,000 alumni. With our broad network, we know how important it is to facilitate connections between and among alumni and the school to build a strong, engaged, supportive community.

Our alumni are Kellogg Leaders who exemplify excellence in management and represent the competitive advantage of the Kellogg experience that uniquely positions us to drive meaningful change through business education. To sustain and elevate our ability to create positive impact, Kellogg has recently launched the $600M Full Circle Campaign, with significant alumni engagement and fundraising activity led by Kellogg's Alumni Relations and Development department, including the Dean, Boards and Councils, and the Major Gifts team.

As a vital role on Kellogg's best-in-class, highly effective fundraising team, the Director of Board Engagement and Donor Strategy is responsible for creating and implementing an executive strategic plan to ensure the most influential and impactful alumni are actively involved in and supporting the school. Reporting to the Senior Managing Director of Major Gifts and Campaign Strategies, this position supports Kellogg's dean, faculty members, board and council members, and other senior leaders and volunteers to create curated opportunities that generate new philanthropic gifts to advance Kellogg's priorities.

This position works closely with internal and external stakeholders to develop, coordinate, execute, and track meaningful engagement strategies, correspondence, interactions and next steps, including all dean alumni activity and related travel, and all board and council strategy, activity, programming and meetings, membership considerations, and data management and operations. The position coordinates regularly with the Integrated Marketing and Communications department and others to provide leadership and execution of integrated communications to top supporters and board and council stakeholders. The role ensures all board and council missions are clearly defined and in alignment with Kellogg's strategic goals, as defined by the Dean and senior leadership. This director is responsible for all aspects of leading, managing, and developing talent personnel assigned to this team, including performance and employee management and talent development.

Specific Responsibilities:

Donor Strategy (Dean and top alumni engagement and fundraising-related activity)

• Develop, implement, and manage an executive strategic plan to ensure all top prospective donors and donors are engaged with the school in continuous, meaningful ways.
• Develop, execute, and track strategic individual engagement activities and next steps for the Dean's top 200 campaign prospects to ensure cultivation and solicitation.
• Create, execute, and manage the highest quality of Dean alumni-related correspondence driving school engagement.
• Manage, develop, and ensure proper preparatory materials for Dean and senior leadership, including all briefings for individual meetings and events.
• Work with Major Gift Officers, faculty members and others across Kellogg as appropriate to develop strategies and collect relevant information for preparatory materials and briefings.
• Monitor performance metrics to ensure goals are on track to being achieved.

Boards and Councils Management (Global Advisory Board, Kellogg Alumni Council, and industry-related Kellogg Councils)

• Direct and manage cross-functionally with integral senior administrators to ensure close collaboration between ARD, Communications, the Dean's Office and the Senior Leadership Team, in service of seamless board, council and committee operations.
• Manage a matrixed support system for all programs to leverage each department's/constituent's strengths and create the infrastructure for institutional strategy and objectives related to boards, councils and committees.
• Collaborate with the Dean, and appropriate senior leaders to communicate updates to senior-level executives, as necessary.
• Responsible for translating senior leadership's vision through materials and meetings.
• Serve as an in-house expert/advisor on all board and committee-related issues, providing vital, up-to-date information and recommendations to senior leadership, including the Dean, while navigating internal and external political landscapes (including sensitive handling of confidential information).
• Responsible for the maintenance and support of the Global Advisory Board and subcommittees and related taskforces including acting as an advisor to the Dean and the senior leadership team in the development of strategic meeting workflows.
• Manage, execute, and track board strategy for Kellogg Global Advisory Board and Kellogg Alumni Councils.
• Track and report strategy for other department/strategic initiative related councils (Real Estate, Corporate Executive Women and Asset Management Practicum).
• Evaluate board and council progress based on established objectives, documented outcomes and mission.

Workflow and Employee Management:

• Active daily management of high volume workflow, ensuring all requests, projects, information, and deadlines are communicated and delivered upon with the highest of quality, timeliness, and professionalism.
• Active daily management and support of direct reports and other collaborators to ensure all deliverables are strategic, comprehensive, complete, and timely.

Minimum Qualifications: (Education, experience, and any other certifications or clearances)

• A Bachelor's degree.
• At least 7 years in campaign fundraising at a college or university with experience leading a comprehensive development program, preferably with a strong background in campaign management.
• Experience with impactful alumni engagement preferably in a University setting.

Minimum Competencies: (Skills, knowledge, and abilities.)

• Demonstrated leadership ability to implement programs, organize, initiate and motivate.
• Proven ability to communicate effectively and collaborate across a wide variety of stakeholders.
• Excellent oral and written communication skills, as well as strong organizational and creative skills.
• Proven record of accomplishment that demonstrates initiative, creativity, managerial and interpersonal skills, preferably in a university setting.
• Well-developed leadership abilities and a willingness to take risks and creatively solve problems.
• Ability to articulate a compelling case for annual and major gift giving in a complex internal and external fundraising environment.
• Strong experience in analyzing and interpreting data to drive strategies and the ability to conceptualize, develop, implement and assess strategic development activities.
• Willingness to adapt to changing priorities and to working in a complex organization.
• The ability to build effective long-term relationships both internally and externally and the ability to articulate and advocate for institutional goals clearly.
• Must be a goal oriented and self-motivated individual who can demonstrate accountability, initiative, energy, creativity and focus in a rapidly changing and intellectually stimulating environment.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office Suite, including experience with large databases and reports.

Preferred Competencies: (Skills, knowledge, and abilities)

• Familiarity with of Kellogg School of Management and Northwestern University's operations structure.

Target hiring range for this position will be between $118,000 - $140,000 per year. Offered salary will be determined by the applicant's education, experience, knowledge, skills and abilities, as well as internal equity and alignment with market data.

Benefits:
At Northwestern, we are proud to provide meaningful, competitive, high-quality health care plans, retirement benefits, tuition discounts and more! Visit us at https://www.northwestern.edu/hr/benefits/index.html to learn more.

Work-Life and Wellness:
Northwestern offers comprehensive programs and services to help you and your family navigate life's challenges and opportunities and adopt and maintain healthy lifestyles.
We support flexible work arrangements where possible and programs to help you locate and pay for quality, affordable childcare and senior/adult care. Visit us at https://www.northwestern.edu/hr/benefits/work-life/index.html to learn more.

Professional Growth & Development:
Northwestern supports employee career development in all circumstances whether your workspace is on campus or at home. If you're interested in developing your professional potential or continuing your formal education, we offer a variety of tools and resources. Visit us at https://www.northwestern.edu/hr/learning/index.html to learn more.

Northwestern strongly recommends COVID-19 vaccinations and boosters for people who can obtain them as a critical tool for minimizing severe illness. More information can be found on the COVID-19 and Campus Updates webpage.

The Northwestern campus sits on the traditional homelands of the people of the Council of Three Fires, the Ojibwe, Potawatomi, and Odawa as well as the Menominee, Miami and Ho-Chunk nations. We acknowledge and honor the original people of the land upon which Northwestern University stands, and the Native people who remain on this land today.

Northwestern University is an Equal Opportunity, Affirmative Action Employer of all protected classes, including veterans and individuals with disabilities. Women, racial and ethnic minorities, individuals with disabilities, and veterans are encouraged to apply. Click for information on EEO is the Law.

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