Major Gifts Leader / Philanthropy Manager (Chicago)

About Us:

MPN Research Foundation (MPNRF) is dedicated to funding and advancing original research in pursuit of new treatments, and eventually a cure, for essential thrombocythemia (ET), polycythemia vera (PV), and myelofibrosis (MF), blood cancers that are known collectively as myeloproliferative neoplasms (MPN). Founded in 1999, MPNRF was the first organization in the MPN space and is the only one focused on advancing research. From its unique position at the intersection among three key stakeholders - patients, researchers/clinicians, and the biopharma/biotech industry - MPNRF facilitates a collaborative approach to research that elevates the patient voice in research and drug development, brings disease experts together, and accelerates the industry’s understanding of an extremely complex group of diseases.

Job Overview

MPN Research Foundation is seeking a strategic, relationship-driven Manager/Senior Manager of Philanthropy to join the development team to co-lead individual, family foundation, and planned fundraising efforts. This pivotal role is responsible for growing and managing a portfolio of high-capacity donors, cultivating new major donor relationships, and securing transformative contributions to advance our mission.

The ideal candidate brings a strong track record in major gifts, planned giving, and donor pipeline development, with a particular focus on rare diseases and/or blood cancers. They are equally comfortable operating at a strategic-planning level and executing hands-on development work, including individual donor outreach, forecasting, analytics, and data-driven outreach. Expertise in Salesforce, wealth-screening tools, and fundraising analytics is essential. The ability to communicate research and patient engagement programming, and a strong drive to learn and immerse oneself in disease knowledge for the layman, are essential.

As a key driver of revenue growth and long-term organizational sustainability, the Manager/Senior Manager of Philanthropy will co-lead donor strategy, deepen donor engagement, secure planned giving commitments, and maximize donor potential through thoughtful stewardship and insight driven decision-making. This is an opportunity to join a small, innovative, mission-focused team dedicated to accelerating research and improving the lives of people living with MPN cancers.

Job Duties

Major Donor Growth

• Manage and actively grow a portfolio of high-net-worth donors, ensuring both strong retention and increased annual and lifetime contributions.

• Identify, cultivate, and secure new major donors through strategic research, outreach, and personalized cultivation plans, in partnership with marketing and communication, patient engagement, and research teams.

• Research, respectfully inquire, and infer through behavior, a donor's affinity and connection to myeloid malignancies.

• Partner closely with the leadership team, marketing, operations and Board of Directors to secure high-impact contributions.

Manage Major Donor Forecast, Pipeline & Analytics

• Maintain the comprehensive major-donor forecast and pipeline, ensuring accuracy, strategic clarity, and consistent quarter-over-quarter, year-over-year board-ready reporting.

• Develop data-informed strategies to prioritize prospects, deepen engagement, segment donors by affinity, and forecast revenue.

• Serve as the internal analytics expert, leveraging data to inform outreach strategy, predict donor behavior, and identify growth opportunities.

• Nurture personal relationships with mid-level donors, meeting them where they are in their journey and connection relative to MPNs.

CRM, Wealth Screening & Data Systems Expertise

• Act as the Salesforce expert for the philanthropy function; building dashboards, optimizing workflows, maintaining data hygiene, and ensuring accurate reporting.

• Utilize wealth-screening platforms and prospect-research tools to identify, segment, and evaluate donor capacity and affinity.

• Lead the creation and continuous improvement of systems, processes, and analytic tools to increase fundraising efficiency.

Drive Successful Progression of Key Donors

• Develop individualized cultivation and stewardship plans for top donors and prospects, managing mid-level donors effectively while moving top prospects and higher-level donors to close in partnership with Chief Executive Officer, Chief Scientific Officer, and Board of Directors.

• Coordinate with team members to ensure meaningful, timely, and coordinated donor engagement.

• Advocate for increased philanthropic investment in the organization’s mission, by immersing and effectively communicating organizations past impact and promising future programs, moving donors toward higher levels of impact.

• Develop strategies to convert grassroots and mid-level donors into long-term major donors.

• Track campaign performance and identify opportunities to elevate giving and deepen engagement.

Planned Giving Leadership

• Cultivate and manage relationships with donors interested in legacy and planned giving.

• Work with legal and financial advisors to educate, structure, and secure planned gift commitments.

• Integrate planned giving conversations into broader major donor strategies at all stages of the donor journey.

Donor Insights, Segmentation & Propensity Modeling

• Use donor-management, analytics, and wealth-screening tools to document and track donor profiles, giving histories, and engagement patterns relative to their affinities and interests in healthcare and rare diseases, cancers, and the life sciences.

• Leverage propensity-to-give data to optimize outreach, qualify prospects, and prioritize and segment portfolios.

• Analyze trends to identify opportunities for stewardship, upgrades, and new donor acquisitions.

• Outline & implement processes inclusive of documentation expectations memorialized with the creation of necessary standard operating procedures.

Board of Directors Engagement

• Cultivate philanthropic leadership among Board members, encouraging meaningful participation in giving and fundraising.

• Leverage Board networks to identify, introduce, and cultivate new major donor prospects.

Thought Leadership & Strategic Influence

• Serve as a thought leader on rare disease and/or oncology adjacent philanthropy, guiding staff and Board leadership on trends, strategy, and best practices for medical research organizations, sourcing from all industries and applying fit for purpose to MPN Research Foundation.

• Stay current on advancements in cancer research and related technologies to inform donor messaging and case-for-support development.

Qualifications:

• Experience in rare disease and/or oncology industries highly desired.

• Ability and strong interest in learning about MPNs, medical research and drug development, the disease landscape and global ecosystem required.

• Proven track record in philanthropy and major donor engagement within the non-profit sector or sales acumen in life sciences, healthcare, or the biopharmaceutical industry.

• Bachelor's degree in a related field or equivalent.

• Excellent communication and interpersonal skills, with the ability to engage and inspire stakeholders to meet them where they are and understand their journey with MPNs.

• Technical proficiency in relevant research methodologies and development tools.

• Strong analytical skills and ability to leverage data to inform fundraising strategies.

• Critical thinking and problem-solving abilities, with a focus on driving impact.

• Experience in developing and implementing systems and processes to enhance fundraising efficiency.

• Chicago based preferred, with ability to work from an office occasionally, but not required.

• Ability and interest to travel once a quarter required.

• Ability to work cross-functionally, putting aside personal agendas, in a dynamic, fast-paced, lean startup-like environment.

• Strong organizational skills and ability to prioritize and execute tasks effectively in unstructured or ambiguous situations.

• Passion for the mission and demonstrated commitment to the values of the MPN Research Foundation.

• Driven and committed to making a difference in the lives of those affected by MPNs.

• Familiarity with marketing principles and strategies is a plus.

• Ability to straddle the team environment and individual tasks to achieve common goals.

Reporting Lines:

This individual reports to the Chief Executive Officer at this time. If you are passionate about making a difference at the intersection of rare disease and blood cancers and possess the necessary skills, passion for learning about MPNs, and fundraising or sales qualifications, we invite you to join our dynamic team. Together, we can contribute to the mission to pursue new treatments and cures for myeloid malignancies, to improve the outcomes for people living with MPNs.