Director of Philanthropy

Des Moines, IA, USA | Philanthropy & Church Relations | 63,000-77,000 per year | Full Time

Are you looking to make a meaningful and important impact through your professional work? Would you enjoy securing philanthropic support to bring hope, healing and wholeness to thousands of children, families and individuals?

For over 160 years, Lutheran Services in Iowa (LSI)has a legacy of compassionate service to vulnerable people whose lives have been changed in countless ways. This impact and legacy is made possible by the commitment of dedicated and competent staff who partner with individuals, churches, and other funders and ministry partners who have mutual respect and purpose.

LSI seeks a competent and mission-focused fundraising professional to serve as a full-time Director of Philanthropy based in its Des Moines or Davenport office.

Position Summary:

The Director of Philanthropy is a key member of LSI's Development team, responsible for cultivating, soliciting, and stewarding donors who support the mission through major gifts, annual fund contributions, congregational giving, and planned giving. This role focuses on building long-term donor relationships, expanding philanthropic partnerships across Iowa, and advancing LSI's culture of Philanthropy.

The Director works collaboratively with the CDO, development colleagues, program leaders, and other team members to drive revenue growth, deepen donor engagement, and support agency-wide strategic priorities.

Customers:

The Director of Philanthropy serves the following stakeholders:

• Donors

• Potential Donors

• Congregations and Synods

• Board of Directors

• LSI Foundation Board of Directors

• Volunteers

• LSI staff

Key Responsibilities

• Major Gifts & Donor Portfolio Management

• Manage a portfolio of major and mid-level donors, focusing on cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship.

• Conduct regular donor visits (in person) to deepen engagement and advance relationships.

• Develop donor-centered strategies that align donor interests with LSI funding priorities.

• Present LSI branded personalized proposals, presentations, and stewardship materials.

• Track calls, visits, and portfolio progress in the CRM.

• Annual Fund, Congregational & Planned Giving Support

• Support annual fund growth through targeted outreach and donor segmentation.

• Strengthen relationships with congregations, synods, and faith leaders.

• Promote planned giving opportunities through conversations, materials, and stewardship touchpoints.

• Participate in special appeals, giving days, and endowment-building initiatives.

• Strategic Collaboration & Organizational Partnership

• Partner with the CDO, and program leaders on donor engagement strategies.

• Serve as an ambassador for LSI at community events, congregational gatherings, and public forums.

• Collaborate with colleagues on donor communications, events, and impact storytelling.

• Support cross-functional initiatives that advance LSI's mission and visibility.

• Data Integrity & Reporting

• Ensure accurate and timely entry of donor interactions into the CRM.

• Product reports reflecting portfolio activity, donor trends, and fundraising progress.

• Follow donor confidentiality, ethical fundraising standards, and internal data policies.

• Community Engagement & Public Representation

• Represent LSI positively in the community, strengthening awareness and trust.

• Deliver presentations and updates to congregations, civic groups, and partners.

• Build strong relationships with volunteers and community advocates.

• Personnel and Volunteers

• Assists in directing support staff functions to maximize projects, timeliness and accuracy of data entry, thank you notes, and reports.

• Professional Development

• On-going education to keep current of and implement philanthropy service best practices.

• Rights and Responsibilities

• Complies with confidentiality regulations for donor and prospect information.

• Staff, constituents, and public are treated with dignity and respect.

• Respond with sensitivity to the unique differences of clients and customers and their diverse cultural, socioeconomic, and personal characteristics.

• Team Functioning

• Attends and actively participates in all staff meetings.

• Communicates openly, honestly, and supportively with staff and supervisors.

• Actively supports and follows through on team goals and participates in team building.

• Drug and Tobacco Free Workplace

• Support and maintain a drug and tobacco free workplace.

Required Qualifications

Bachelor's degree and minimum of two years experience in development (professional fundraising experience) or related field such as sales or marketing. Preferred applicants will have a Bachelor's degree and five plus years of development or related field experience, including major gift experience. Demonstrated ability to build relationships with individuals, corporations and congregations to further expand philanthropic support to assure LSI's mission. In addition, the Director of Philanthropy will demonstrate the following competencies:

Key Competencies:

• Technology

Able to use technology that is necessary to perform job responsibilities.

• Utilizes philanthropy database system to record and track donor contacts.

• Directs mailings and acknowledgements for church relations and annual giving activities.

• Creates reports of monthly activity for supervisor and senior leaders, as required.

• Current and Prospective Donor Research

Able to analyze, organize, and prioritize prospect lists using characteristics such as interest, values, giving history, and relationship to the organization to select potential donors and or/congregations for projects.

• Securing the Gift

Prepares donor-centered solicitation materials to influence and facilitate gift decisions. Able to effectively ask for and secure gifts from donor prospects to generate financial support for the organization's purpose.

• Relationship Building

Able to initiate and strengthen relationships with all constituents through a plan designed to increase support of the organization over the long term, able to acknowledge and recognize gifts in ways that are meaningful to donors and appropriate to the mission and values of the organization, inform constituents about the value of giving to promote a culture of philanthropy.

• Results Oriented

Meets fundraising goals and deadlines with accuracy.

• Cultural Competence

Navigates diverse backgrounds with sensitivity and respect.

• Accountability

Able to report to constituencies the sources, uses, and management of donated funds to preserve and enhance confidence in the organization. Complies with all reporting requirements and regulations to demonstrate commitment to accountability. Ensure that the intent of gifts is honored so that public trust is established and preserved.

Other Job-Related Competencies and Requirements

• Maintains a valid driver's license to operate a motor vehicle and meets agency insurance coverage requirements. Secondary classification.

• Must submit, prior to hire, to various background checks to verify there are no convictions of crimes, founded child abuse and elder abuse reports, or unacceptable driving records.

• Maintains confidentiality concerning the work of the agency and projects a caring and professional manner with fellow workers and the public.

• Culturally sensitive; able to recognize individual differences to manage relationships and interactions with others.

• Has the ability to travel overnight and be on the road 50% of the time during the week.

Physical Requirements

This position requires occasional bending/stooping, crouching, and kneeling. Must be able to lift 25 pounds; 20% of time spent standing, 20% of time spent walking and 60% of time spent sitting. Must have average hearing and visual acuity.

The job description given is intended to provide information about the general nature of the job and is not an all-inclusive list of the job duties, skills or abilities.

This position requires a valid driver's license, auto insurance, a good driving record and the ability to pass an extensive background check including checks of the Dependent Adult and Child Abuse registries, Sex Offender registry and a criminal history check.