Major Gifts Officer
Position description
Seva is a global nonprofit eye care organization that transforms lives by restoring sight and preventing blindness. Since 1978, Seva has provided sight-saving surgeries, eyeglasses, medicine, and other eye care services to more than 72 million people in underserved communities worldwide.
Globally, at least 2.2 billion people have a vision impairment, and of these, at least 1 billion people have a vision impairment that could have been prevented or is yet to be addressed. Our programs have been instrumental in making eye care available to those who can't afford it. They are driven by 4 pillars - establishing self-sustaining vision centers, eye care for kids, bringing the best in technology, and training & job creation. Seva believes that restoring sight is one of the most cost-effective ways to relieve suffering and reduce poverty. When a blind person gets her sight back, she can go back to work, earn and support her family. In more than 20 countries, Seva has helped 7 million people who were blind to regain their sight.
POSITION DESCRIPTION:
The Major Gifts Officer plays a key role in advancing Seva's fundraising success and growth. The position will develop and lead a comprehensive strategy to qualify, cultivate, and steward new and existing high‑capacity donors, ensuring retention, recapturing, and long‑term philanthropic partnerships that lead to sustained growth. The Major Gifts Officer will lead and support efforts that focus on building a pipeline of donors capable of high five, six, and seven figure gifts.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES:
- Develop and implement customized cultivation and stewardship strategies for a portfolio of 75-100 Major Donors, including prospect, current, and lapsed donors, with the capacity to make gifts of $5,000 and above. Nurture relationships through personalized communications, meetings, reports, and engagement opportunities in accordance with Seva's policies, procedures, and funding priorities. Ensure timely and meaningful acknowledgment, recognition, reporting, and updates on the impact of their contributions.
- In the first year, the fundraising goal for this position is between $350,000-$550,000at least one quarter of the funds should reflect new money or increased giving from current donors. Portfolio numbers and fundraising goals will be reviewed and adjusted in the second year, based on performance.
- Review and create written strategies, processes and procedures to strengthen the Major Donor Program.
- Partner with the Senior Manager of Development Operations to create reports that track and analyze individual giving and progress toward meeting fundraising targets. Propose changes to engagement strategies to increase funding opportunities.
- Maintain accurate and up-to-date donor records in the CRM database through Moves Management, documenting all interactions, proposals, and gift agreements related to major gifts in accordance with Seva’s policies and procedures.
- Work with prospect research to identify new individual donor prospects and understand their philanthropic interests and capacity to give.
- Review reports and identify new Major and Leadership funders. Assign new prospects to the appropriate portfolio. Work with the CEO and the CPO to prepare them for engagement with their portfolio donors, as needed.
- Negotiate gift agreements and terms with donors, in collaboration with Executive Leadership, and the Grants and Program teams.
- Actively participate in meetings with the Director of Grants and Leadership Gifts and the CPO to coordinate prospect review and discuss specific prospect strategies as they relate to prioritized fundraising needs. Provide input for creating new funding menus to increase Major Donor giving.
- With the Grants and Program teams, help develop compelling proposals, presentations, and reports aligned with donor interests.
- Maintain an active, current body of knowledge of Seva and its mission, programs, activities, institutional needs, and fundraising priorities.
- Analyze portfolio giving trends to inform fundraising strategies and forecasts.
- Oversee the Manager of Donor Relations. Serve as a mentor and informal leader, providing expertise in donor retention and relationship management.
This job description provides a general overview of the role and its key responsibilities. It is not an exhaustive list of all duties, and Seva reserves the right to assign additional tasks as needed.
In the event the selected candidate resides in the Bay Area, during the first six months of employment, the position will be required to work in the Berkeley, CA office a minimum of one day a week. After six months, this requirement can be reviewed to ensure it meets the needs of the position.
Qualifications
- Minimum of 5 years of professional fundraising experience required, preferably in a nonprofit environment.
- Demonstrated track record of successful solicitation of new and upgraded giving at the major gift level (five and six-figure gifts). Outstanding strategic thinking and analytical skills, interpersonal skills, and experience handling highly confidential information.
- Ability to build rapport with a diverse group of stakeholders, including high-net-worth individuals, colleagues, and senior executives.
- Excellent communication skills, both verbal and written, with superior attention to detail and strong storytelling skills.
- Display a positive attitude and show good judgment, common sense, and excellent listening skills; committed to transparency, accountability, and direct communication.
- Ability to anticipate and be responsive to multiple stakeholders' needs simultaneously, internally, and externally, including individual donors and prospects.
- Excellent organizational skills with the ability to see projects through to completion while meeting tight deadlines.
- Ability to multi-task and meet deadlines in a fast-paced environment.
- Prior experience working with CRM databases (Raiser’s Edge preferred), MS Office applications, and online collaboration tools.
- Self-motivated with the ability to work both independently and as part of a team in meeting goals.
- Committed to advancing the mission and goals of Seva Foundation.
WORK EXPERIENCE:
- The ideal candidate has front-line fundraising experience, including a demonstrated record of soliciting and closing five and six-figure gifts, including multi-year commitments.
- Experience in a national organization is a plus.
- This position requires access to a vehicle or reliable mode of transportation to travel to donor meetings and occasional air travel. Some evening and weekend work may be required.
EDUCATION:
- Bachelor's degree or equivalent professional experience required.
BENEFITS:
- This position offers a competitive benefits package including; medical, dental, vision, LTD, Life insurance, Flexible Spending Accounts, EAP, paid time off and 401(k)/401(k) employer match.
Application instructions
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