Director of Special Events

Director of Special Events

About the American Kidney Fund:

The American Kidney Fund (AKF) is the nation’s leading nonprofit working on behalf of the one in seven Americans living with kidney disease. Our mission is to help people fight kidney disease and live healthier lives, and we fulfill that mission by providing a complete spectrum of programs and services, from prevention through transplant. We are proud to be recognized as one of the top 50 nonprofit employers in the United States by The Nonprofit Times. AKF invests 96 cents of every donated dollar in programs and holds the highest 4-Star rating from Charity Navigator and the Platinum Seal of Transparency from Candid (formerly GuideStar).

About the position:

The Director of Special Events is responsible for the successful execution and fundraising of AKF’s signature events, additional events throughout the year and the peer-to-peer fundraising program. This is a pivotal fundraising role responsible for closing fundraising gifts and significantly growing revenue by building and nurturing strong relationships and creating an engaged fundraising community.

Responsibilities:

• Support committee members and frontline fundraisers and solicit new event sponsors and in-kind donations to achieve contributed revenue goals of at least $300K annually
• Assess the current sponsorship approach and develop and implement an updated strategy to attract new donors, deepen relationships with existing donors, leverage corporate partnerships, and increase revenue.
• Recruit high-level volunteer committees and serve as liaison to event committees, including managing monthly meetings and providing support and guidance in fundraising and sponsorship solicitation
• Coordinate with the Office of Communications and Marketing on all event collateral, branding, website content and other program elements ensuring sponsor benefits are fulfilled in accordance with sponsorship packages
• Develop and implement a strategic communication timeline for each event, including solicitations and follow-up on payments, guest communications, acknowledgements and thank you notes.
• Ensure successful execution of each event. In collaboration with the Special Events Manager, assist in the creation, communication, and execution of event timelines, schedules, budgets, run-of-show, and logistics. Fully participate in event-day execution, serving as the main point of contact for committee members, sponsors, and guests
• Lead peer-to-peer individual and corporate fundraising and social media fundraising campaigns. Identify, recruit and cultivate prospective peer-to-peer and community fundraisers who are motivated or inclined to support the work of AKF through fundraising, and steward them to achieve revenue goals.

Qualifications:

• 6-8 years’ experience and success in prospecting and building event partnerships and fundraising, as well as working with volunteer committees and chairs
• Demonstrated success in fundraising and major corporate and foundation gift solicitation, closing gifts of $25,000 or more
• Excellent attention to detail, with strong communication, organizational and data analysis skills with the ability to prioritize and manage multiple projects simultaneously while meeting deadlines
• Goal-oriented self-starter with an innate sense of urgency, a strong sense of initiative and the ability to work in a collaborative, team environment, while proactively pursuing an individual portfolio, with a high regard for accountability and outcomes.
• Able to anticipate, plan, prioritize and react to changing needs and situations with professionalism, integrity and diplomacy.
• Proficient in MS Office Suite (Excel, Word, Outlook, and PowerPoint) and fundraising database software (Raisers Edge, Convio, or similar) with knowledge of peer-to-peer fundraising platforms such as GoFundMePro
• Ability to work some weekends and evenings and travel domestically, as required
• B.A./B.S. degree and interest or experience in the health and patient-sector environment is a plus

Benefits:

We provide a competitive salary of $105,000-$115,000 annually, paid holidays, vacation, sick and personal days; health, dental and vision coverage; life insurance and disability coverages; and a generous matching 403(b) retirement plan. In addition, we offer an ideal work/life balance including remote work capability with employees working in the office 1-4 days per month and reduced Friday hours, opportunities for annual raises and bonuses based on performance, free underground parking (Metro subsidies are provided for those who do not drive), and a friendly, collaborative, and supportive culture where our team knows how much they are valued.

AKF is an equal opportunity employer.