Donor Relations Assistant - University Development
Grand Rapids, MI (Pew Campus)
Full Time
R103214
Position Summary:
The Donor Relations Assistant provides essential administrative and coordination support for the Director of Donor Relations. This position is responsible for communications support, database management, donor stewardship, team logistics including scheduling, purchasing, and expense reporting. Skill levels should demonstrate strong attention to detail, excellent proof-reading and editing skills, strong proficiency in Microsoft Excel and/or Access, prioritization of complex and varied tasks, ability to make independent and informed decisions, and capability to oversee complex projects that significantly impact donor engagement. This position operates in a fast-paced, detail-oriented environment. This role requires exceptional interpersonal communications and the ability to build relationships across a diverse team, the ability to learn quickly and effectively, and an openness and flexibility to new processes and procedures.
Job Type:
Professional Support Staff
Job Classification & Benefits:
C4 Level. Minimum starting wage of $22.04 per hour
Essential Functions:
• Independently compiles, analyzes, and interprets all gift-related donor data to ensure accurate stewardship of donor gifts.
• Responsible for planning and coordinating complex and long-term projects that showcase donor impact, which include developing production schedules to meet deadlines, gather and analyze statistical data to be included in reports, and coordinating appropriate team members to facilitate in completion of project.
• Edit and manage correspondences from university leadership, along with donor relations communications, to ensure accuracy and alignment with divisional goals and messaging.
• Leads the annual Scholarship Impact Report project.
• Responsible for the weekly review, proofing, and approval of scholarship thank you notes within Financial Aid's awarding system.
• Work in collaboration with Financial Aid to compile academic year stats.
• Manage the scholarship initiator list and systematically match student awardees with the correct scholarship donor.
• Confirm scholarship donor information is accurately maintained and updated when errors are identified to ensure reports are going out accurately.
• Schedule and organize meet-and-greet opportunities for the scholarship donors, students, and appropriate university staff members.
• Acts with a high degree of independence while facilitating donor relations projects.
• Maintains budget, compiles expense reports, tracks budget year-over-year and recommend budget needs.
• Helps create a donor-centered environment, meet customer needs, and collaborates on donor communications.
• Implements timely and tailored thank you letters.
• Implements monthly mailings to new donors and special stewardship initiatives.
• Maintain Donor Relations team inventory.
• Order flowers and gifts for various occasions.
• Proofreads donor recognition lists, donor signage, and other communications materials with extreme attention to detail, spelling, and grammar.
• Utilizes CRM to create new tools for tracking and analysis of donor relations and stewardship activities.
• Assists with maintaining and updating information in University Development's CRM software, following departmental procedures, and entering actions as requested by Director of Donor Relations.
• Provides accurate standard weekly, monthly, and annual reports in addition to ad hoc reports requested by team members; identify and research potential errors for correction.
• Participates in departmental workgroups providing insight from a donor relations and stewardship perspective as new processes and policies are designed.
• Documents and maintains department processes, including, but not limited to, daily tasks, data collection, reporting, and policies and procedures.
• Receives information and requests from diverse publics, both internal and external to the University, and determines the appropriate way to handle.
• Processes and maintains all information in a confidential and professional manner.
• Creates, maintains, and updates files and record keeping systems.
• Hires, mentors, trains, and helps oversee student employees.
• Provides clerical support for the Director of Donor Relations. This includes scheduling and meeting preparation, travel arrangements, purchasing, mail processing, file maintenance, other clerical tasks for the department as assigned.
• Shares in clerical/administrative support for the University Development as required.
• Other duties as assigned.
Required Qualifications
• High school graduate or equivalent.
• Minimum of four years of relevant work experience.
• Demonstrated administrative and organizational skills.
• Experience with various computer software applications such as Microsoft Office and/or equivalent.
• Data entry experience.
• Typing and spelling competency with grammar and proofreading skills.
• Possess strong verbal and written communication skills.
• Demonstrated experience to successfully provide quality customer service.
• Demonstrated experience to successfully work independently, organize own work and coordinate work activities of others.
• Demonstrated experience to successfully coordinate large projects.
• Demonstrated experience to successfully handle multiple demands efficiently.
• Demonstrated experience to successfully organize and prioritize workload.
• Demonstrated experience to successfully navigate challenging situations in the workplace, while using good judgement.
• Demonstrated experience to successfully work under pressure and meet deadlines.
• Demonstrated experience to successfully maintain satisfactory work performance and attendance records.
• Ability to successfully maintain positive intercultural and interpersonal relationships.
Working Conditions:
Typical office environment, Monday - Friday 8:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
To apply, visit https://apptrkr.com/6366780
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