Major Gifts Officer

About KIND

Kids in Need of Defense (KIND) is a global leader in the protection of unaccompanied refugee and migrant children. Launched in 2008, KIND champions a world in which every child’s rights and well-being are protected throughout their journey to safety. Since 2008, KIND has accepted over 29,000 referrals of children seeking legal representation in their immigration proceedings. KIND has worked with over 9000 pro bono volunteers from over 740 law firms, corporate legal departments, law schools, and bar associations across the country.

KIND’s social services program ensures that migrant and refugee children – who have often endured trauma – receive counseling, educational support, medical care, and other comprehensive services.

To address the root causes of child migration from Central America and strengthen the protection of unaccompanied children, KIND advocates for policy changes and educates lawmakers, the media, and the broader public on the conditions that drive these children to flee their home countries. KIND supports children returning to their home countries by connecting them to essential support services and sponsors gender-based violence prevention programs in Central America to protect children in countries of origin and transit.

KIND is also building upon its expertise in the protection of unaccompanied children to encourage the development of pro bono initiatives across Europe in partnership with European NGOs.

Position Summary:

KIND seeks a Major Gifts Officer to join a growing team of development professionals working directly with high-capacity donors and prospects to accomplish their giving objectives in the form of annual giving, and major and planned gifts. The Major Gifts Officer (Philanthropy Officer) will build and maintain a territory-based portfolio and be responsible for the identification, cultivation, solicitation, acknowledgment, and stewardship of donors with a history of or capacity for major gifts to KIND.

With forecasted revenue growth and increased recognition on the national stage, this position requires an individual who enjoys and is particularly skilled in interfacing with a high volume of donors, with the ambition to maximize untapped opportunities, as well as attract new supporters aligned to the organization’s work and mission. The qualified individual will have a track record of managing a portfolio of donor relationships; will be a self-starter; and will be prepared to work in a fast-paced, high-energy environment. They will be organized, analytical, collaborative, detail oriented; possess excellent verbal and written communication skills as well as high numerical literacy; and demonstrate passion for fundraising.

Key measures of success for the position include increasing contributed income, growing an overall portfolio of major gift prospects and donors, and engaging personally with donors and prospects.

This position reports to the Director of Major Gifts.

This is a fully remote position for candidates residing in Atlanta, GA; Baltimore, MD; Boston, MA; Hartford, CT; New York, NY; Orlando, FL; or Washington, DC.

Essential Functions:

Manage a portfolio of 100-150 individuals and family foundations with the capacity to make major gifts, in accordance with established team goals on meetings, solicitations, donor retention, and salesforce management.
Develop strategies to upgrade current donors, identify and qualify new prospects, and personally cultivate and solicit high-level gifts.
Serve as development liaison to 5-10 advisory committees and/or field offices, offering fundraising oversight and developing regional strategies based on local donor base, opportunities, and obstacles.
Approach work with creativity and persistence, including but not limited to pursuing specific donor networks and interest groups to reach a diverse range of prospective donors.
Provide comprehensive, timely and innovative stewardship for existing donors. Elevate the importance of stewarding all gifts and programs in ways that strengthen donor interest in, satisfaction with, and commitment to KIND.
Collaborate with and support KIND’s senior leadership team, program staff, board members, and advisory committee members with respect to cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship efforts, using their time appropriately and ensuring their effectiveness as spokespersons and fundraisers for KIND. Prepare meeting briefings and correspondence, event scripts, talking points, and other support materials.
Effectively navigate institutional resources to be an effective KIND representative with donors. Stay informed of institutional priorities, regional work and achievements, and current updates on key immigration issues.
Executes small-scale cultivation events, both virtual and in-person, to engage doors and prospects with KIND.
Adeptly manage Salesforce and other processes such as tracking donor gift projections and list management for portfolio.
Travels throughout the assigned region to cultivate donors with in-person meetings and engagements.
Lead on team projects as needed.
Other duties as assigned.

Qualifications and Requirements:

Minimum of 6 years of development experience, with at least 3 years of experience managing a major gifts portfolio.
Demonstrated experience building and managing a donor and prospect portfolio, knowledge of fundraising and moves management best practices, a track record of securing six figure or higher donations from a variety of individual funders, and facility working with board members and/or volunteers.
Relationships are your “thing.” The people you work with trust that you leverage relationships to get things done in a mutually beneficial, non-transactional way. You are both warm and insistent, and extremely dependable.
You have extraordinary interpersonal, diplomatic, and communication (verbal & written) skills, and the ability to interact effectively and sensitively with a wide variety of people of diverse professional and cultural backgrounds.
You fiercely prioritize and track timelines, data, and information in an organized and systematic fashion. You don’t miss deadlines or forget to respond to someone’s inquiry – and you’re not afraid to roll up your sleeves to do the work.
You’re a driver of results. You’ve demonstrated the ability to pursue ambitious goals, and you combine your strategic, analytical, and critical thinking skills with your penchant to use data to drive decision-making to achieve impressive outcomes.
You roll with the punches and can turn on a dime. You remain flexible and operate comfortably in rapid response fundraising conditions.
CRM is your favorite set of letters. You juggle dozens of active relationships by staying organized, transparent, and communicative, internally and externally. You rarely drop balls, and others would describe you as someone who follows up with them to follow up with you.
You are genuinely committed to prioritizing diversity, equity, and inclusion as well as embracing transparency and authenticity in daily work life.
Willingness to travel throughout assigned region (about 30% time) and ability to attend functions/activities outside of normal work hours, with advanced notice. The administrative aspects of this role can be conducted remotely but candidates must live in the metro area of one of the following KIND offices: Atlanta, GA; Baltimore, MD; Boston, MA; Hartford, CT; New York, NY; Orlando, FL; or Washington, DC

Desired Qualifications:

Experience with Salesforce and DonorSearch preferred.

Language requirement:

English: Fluent

Salary Range: $85,000 – $100,000 depending on experience

KIND requires all staff be COVID vaccinated with the exception of those who have medical or religious beliefs exemptions.

Application Instructions:

In order to be considered for the desired role please apply here. Please be advised that an employment application will need to be submitted along with your resume and cover letter.

KIND has an organization-wide commitment to diversity, equity and inclusion. We strive to create a work environment where everyone has a sense of belonging. Individuals from historically underrepresented or underserved communities are strongly encouraged to apply.

Disclaimer: KIND is committed to an ethical recruitment and hiring process and maintains a firm “no fees” recruitment policy. We will never charge a fee or ask for money as part of the application process. KIND also conducts all interviews via telephone or video conference, and at no time will KIND engage in a text or mobile app-based application or interview process. For more information, please visit the following website: https://supportkind.org/join-the-team/kind-employment-practices.