Director, Major Gifts

Position Summary

HIAS is entering an ambitious new chapter, guided by a strategic vision through 2030. We are seeking a Director, Major Gifts to play a central role in advancing that vision by building deep, meaningful partnerships with philanthropists committed to welcoming and protecting displaced people worldwide.

This is a high-impact role for a frontline fundraiser who thrives on relationship-building, strategic thinking, and closing significant gifts. You will manage and grow a portfolio of donors giving $25,000 annually, while helping expand HIAS’ reach to new audiences and communities.

You won’t be doing this alone—you’ll collaborate closely with a talented team across major gifts, mid-level, digital, and mass fundraising, supported by strong infrastructure, analytics, and leadership engagement.

The salary range for this position is $140,000-$150,000.

Essential Functions

• Builds portfolio of major donor prospects and collaborates in design and production of financial, gift and donor profile reports; works with the mid-level giving team to analyze that pipeline and transfer relationships.
• Develops prospect and donor cultivation and approach strategies, tracks all cultivation/solicitation activity and carries a portfolio of prospects and donors that includes campaign, annual giving and planned giving performance goals.
• Learns and develops the “case for giving”.
• Focuses on engaging prospective donors of high-net worth.
• Considers the appropriate engagement and cultivation strategy for each individual prospective donor.
• Creates an annual plan with benchmarks, to achieve a collective agency goal of $30 million unrestricted goal; leads proactive planning of one-on-one donor engagements, parlor meetings, leveraging visits to engage prospects and deepen donor relationships.
• Leads identification of leadership to assist with strategy and “door-opening” to meet prospects.
• Maintains effective communications with leadership and staff.
• Prepare profiles of prospective donors for leadership when enlisting their help in cultivation and solicitation.
• Administers stewardship activities for major donors by preparing letters of appreciation to donors.
• Analyzes and presents data for measuring results.
• Performs other duties as assigned.
  
  

Qualifications & Requirements

• Undergraduate degree required.
• Senior professional with 8-10 years of direct fundraising responsibility, and knowledge of the Jewish community considered a plus.
• Successful solicitor working directly with volunteers and donors.
• Hands-on implementer of a major gifts management process.
• Sophisticated, outgoing individual able to communicate with believable passion for and sensitivity to the mission.
• Strong manager who is a self-starter, pays attention to details and follows through, who listens and can build a motivated team of volunteers.
• Excellent interpersonal, verbal/presentation, and written communication skills, with the ability to manage several projects simultaneously in a fast-paced environment.
• Comfortable with technology.
• Familiar with planned giving vehicles, and able to work with the national planned giving and endowment team.
• Travel, to include travel to insecure operating environments, may be required.
  
  

External Representation

All employees are expected to represent the organization in alignment with HIAS' mission, vision and values. Some employees of HIAS are expected to speak externally on behalf of the organization with clients, donors, affiliates, partners, etc. as part of their work-related responsibilities. Applicants for these roles acknowledge and accept the inherent risk associated with external representation of HIAS.