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Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research

Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research

19 jobs near Columbus, OH

Director, Major Gifts (Relocation Assistance Available!)

Whitehead Institute

Cambridge, MA • On-site

Full-time

Re-posted 8 days ago

Job description

Classification:
Exempt
Job Family:
Operations
Reports to:
Vice President External Relations
Job Description Summary:
OVERALL RESPONSIBILITIES
Execute Whitehead Institute's individual giving program, including major gifts and annual/mid-level giving, with responsibility for managing direct reports, overseeing performance management, and developing a high-performing fundraising team. Focuses on revenue strategy, managing gift officer performance, maintaining disciplined portfolios, and driving measurable growth in individual philanthropy.
Maintain a personal portfolio of major gift prospects and ensure consistent cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship practices across the team. Partner closely with Advancement leadership to ensure coordinated, data-informed fundraising aligned with institutional priorities.
In partnership with the Vice President, External Relations, and Advancement leadership, contribute to the development of integrated, institution-wide individual giving strategies. Strategy development is collaborative across the Advancement team; help shape and lead implementation of individual giving priorities aligned with institutional goals.
CHARACTERISTIC DUTIES
Major Gift Program Management
  • Manage a personal portfolio of major gift prospects.
  • Oversee full lifecycle (qualification through stewardship) strategies across portfolio.
  • Manage execution of portfolio size, contact frequency, and pipeline movement.
  • Conduct/participate in regular portfolio reviews and support moves management discipline.
  • Support gift officers in donor strategy development, preparation, and execution aligned with institutional priorities.

Annual & Mid-Level Giving Strategy
  • Oversee implementation of annual and mid-level giving revenue strategy, including, retention and upgrade efforts, reactivation campaigns, and segmentation priorities.
  • Set annual revenue targets and track performance against goals.
  • Partner with Advancement leadership on appeal strategy, messaging, segmentation, deployment, and reporting, ensuring alignment with institutional goals.

Revenue Planning & Performance Management
  • Track monthly and quarterly revenue performance.
  • Maintain accurate forecasting.
  • Develop annual revenue projections for individual giving.
  • Work with Operations to monitor and report on pipeline health, closed gifts, and retention and upgrade rates.
  • Ensure data accuracy and forecasting discipline in partnership with Operations & Analytics.

Team Leadership & Development
  • Provide strategic leadership to staff supporting major gift, annual, and mid-level giving programs, including oversight of direct reports.
  • Drive a high-performance culture through clear goal-setting, metrics, and accountability standards.
  • Lead, coach, and develop staff in donor strategy, portfolio management, and long-term professional growth.
  • Oversee performance management, including conducting evaluations, delivering actionable feedback, and supporting career development.
  • Foster a collaborative, inclusive, and results-oriented team environment aligned with organizational priorities.

Cross-Functional Collaboration
  • Partner with Institutional Narrative and Foundation Relations to ensure aligned messaging and funding priorities.
  • Coordinate with Constituent Engagement and Advancement Operations to support cultivation and stewardship efforts, and ensure accurate portfolios and reporting.
  • Contribute to advancement-wide planning and reinforce a coordinated, non-siloed approach across teams.

Other duties, as assigned.
REQUIRED QUALIFICATIONS
  • Bachelor's degree required.
  • 10+ years of progressive fundraising experience.
  • Demonstrated success in securing significant (six-figure+) gifts.
  • Strong organizational and execution skills.
  • Clear communicator with strong interpersonal skills.
  • Ability to collaborate effectively across communications, operations, and leadership teams.

PREFERRED QUALIFICATIONS
  • Experience in annual and mid-level giving programs
  • Experience managing fundraising staff.
  • Experience in higher education, biomedical research, or similarly complex nonprofit environments.
  • Experience working within CRM-driven portfolio management systems.

Whitehead provides pay ranges representing its good faith estimate of what the Institute reasonably expects to pay for a position at the time of posting. The pay offered to a selected candidate during hiring will be based on factors such as (but not limited to) the scope and responsibilities of the position, the candidate's work experience and education/training, and internal peer equity. This pay range represents base pay only and does not include any other benefits or compensation.
  • Pay Range Minimum: 120,000
  • Pay Range Maximum: 150,000

Whitehead Institute is an E-Verify employer
https://www.e-verify.gov/sites/default/files/everify/posters/EVerifyParticipationPoster.pdf
https://www.e-verify.gov/sites/default/files/everify/posters/IER_RightToWorkPoster%20Eng_Es.pdf

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