Senior Major Gifts Officer

Senior Major Gifts Officer

The Senior Major Gifts Officer is primarily responsible for acquiring, cultivating, and soliciting assigned individual donors and prospects with potential to give $5,000+ or more annually, with a heightened focus on individual giving and upgrading donors to $25,000+. This role will establish and manage a growing portfolio of prospects by designing and developing solicitation strategies; identifying gift opportunities that match donors' interests; and personally soliciting gifts and continually stewarding major gift donors.

The SMGO will work to expand Lambda Legal's Liberty Circle ($1,500+) Donor Program and volunteer leadership activities in their assigned area/market. This role will also be responsible for managing relationships, communications, and individual giving plans with leadership donors and managing volunteer leadership committees in their assigned markets.

This position is part of an Individual Philanthropy team that, together, implements a comprehensive development program of identifying, cultivating, soliciting and stewarding annual, major, event, and planned giving donors and prospects. This is a seasoned nonprofit fundraising professional with a track record of building and maintaining mutually beneficial relationships with individual donors.

What you'll do:

• Manage a portfolio of major gift prospects and donors ($5,000+) with a focus on upgrading donors to $25,000+.
• Develop and implement customized cultivation and solicitation strategies for each donor, including personalized outreach and in-person meetings.
• Acknowledge contributions and coordinate annual report recognition for gifts received from donors in assigned portfolio and work with national staff to coordinate input into grant proposals for local foundations and prospective foundation grantors.
• Meet or exceed annual revenue goals for major gifts fundraising and meet key metrics for donor engagement and prospect development in service of these goals.
• Handling administrative management of portfolios in the database (i.e. pulling reports, donor and pledge entry, etc).
• Identify via local networks and Lambda's database major donor prospects and steward and solicit said prospects.

Donor Relationship Building:

• Attend events regularly to engage with donors and prospects.
• Create personalized stewardship plans for major donors, with an eye on their annual giving, event giving, planned giving, and corporate connections.
• Develop deep knowledge of donors' interests, motivations, and giving capacity.
• Serve as primary relationship manager for major donors and volunteer fundraising committees in the assigned markets.
• Support and manage annual solicitation of donors in assigned portfolio by the Chief Executive Officer, Board, National Leadership Council (NLC) members, other key volunteers, and other Lambda Legal staff. This includes identifying and securing major donor prospect meetings for senior staff and organizational leadership.
• Leverage existing networks in support of Lambda Legal's Mission.

Events Fundraising and Coordination:

• Work with Lambda Legal staff, Board, NLC members and other volunteers to execute fundraising and cultivation events in assigned markets and additional ones, as determined, including leading fundraising efforts for major fundraising events in their markets.
• Manage volunteer leadership committees and Leadership Donor fundraising plans, including identifying and securing event sponsorships (individual and firm/corporate), in assigned markets and others, as determined.
• Provide support for regional events by coordinating and gathering necessary items from the office, assembling materials, and preparing attendee name tags to ensure a smooth and professional event experience.
• Work with Lambda Legal staff to track, enter, and analyze event data within Major Gifts purview
• Collaborate in-office with the Regional Director and Office Manager/Regional Program Coordinator to strategize on donor engagement and coordinate logistics for upcoming events, ensuring alignment on donor needs and event execution.
• Additional duties as assigned.

Who you are:

• 5+ years of demonstrated success in a major gift or planned gift fundraising function
• Experience soliciting and closing five and six figure gifts.
• Proven success cultivating and expanding donor relationships, with a track record in portfolio management, analysis, and revenue forecasting.
• Excellent written and interpersonal communications skills, with the ability to influence and engage a wide range of donors and build authentic, long-term relationships.
• Experience engaging racially and gender diverse groups, volunteers, and boards, with knowledge of LGBTQ+ and/or philanthropic communities.
• High emotional intelligence and sound judgment in developing donor strategies and navigating complex internal and external relationships.
• Flexible, adaptive, and collaborative work style; able to contribute to both strategic and tactical fundraising efforts.
• Self-directed and accountable, with the ability to thrive both independently and in highly collaborative team environments.
• Strong organizational, time management, and critical thinking skills, with sharp attention to detail.
• Highly proficiency in Microsoft Office applications and Raiser's Edge (or similar CRM database).
• Deep commitment to Lambda Legal's mission and values, with high energy and passion for advancing equity and justice.

Our Values & DEIB Philosophy

Successful candidates will embrace and champion our Organizational Values and DEIB Philosophy Statement, bringing a commitment to fostering an inclusive, equitable, and supportive workplace. They will thrive in a diverse environment, actively contributing to a culture that respects and uplifts the full spectrum of communities Lambda Legal serves.

Candidates can review our Organizational Values and DEIB Philosophy Statement on our Careers Page.

Why Work at Lambda Legal?

You get to do meaningful, life-changing work at a national level for LGBTQ+ people and everyone living with HIV. Lambda Legal also proudly offers competitive benefits for our team. We understand that our staff's dedication and effort are instrumental in achieving our mission. A highlight of the benefits we offer include:

• Medical benefits that begin on your start date
• Dental, Vision, and Life insurance (effective 30 days from your start date)
• Short & Long-Term Disability plans (effective 30 days from your start date)
• 403(b) Retirement Plan (employer contribution and matching program begins after 90 days of employment)
• Paid Time Off:
  • Paid Vacation (15 Days)
  • Sick Leave (12 Days)
  • Personal Leave (3 Days)
  • Religious Observance Leave (3 Days)
  • Bereavement and Bereavement Anniversary Leave
  • Floating Holiday (1 Day)
• 12 paid holidays and 5 early office closures
• Flexible Spending Account (FSA/DC FSA) and Commuter Benefits
• Health Reimbursement Account
• Annual professional development funds
• $50 monthly mobile phone reimbursement
• Summer Fridays from Memorial Day to Labor Day
• Premium subscription to the Calm App
• Paid sabbatical after 7 years of service at Lambda Legal (4 weeks for non-exempt positions and 8 weeks for exempt positions)

Lambda Legal believes in creating a more equitable playing field for applicants and values the depth of relevant skills built through successful education, work, and life experiences. If your background and skills are a close match for this position, you are strongly encouraged to apply.

Lambda Legal is committed to further building and maintaining a staff that reflects the full range of LGBTQ+, HIV-affected and allied communities, and is an equal opportunity employer. We value a diverse workforce and an inclusive culture. Lambda Legal encourages applications from all qualified individuals without regard to race, color, religion, gender, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, national origin, marital status, citizenship or immigration status, disability, veteran status, record of arrest or conviction, or any other characteristic protected by applicable law. Black people, Indigenous people, people of color, lesbian, gay, bisexual, queer, transgender and gender-diverse people, women, people with abilities in multiple languages, immigrants, people living with disabilities, protected veterans, and formerly incarcerated individuals and individuals living with HIV are all encouraged to apply.