Chapel Hill, NC

The Organization

The University of North Carolina has enjoyed a long-standing place among leaders in higher education since it was chartered in 1789 and opened its doors for students in 1795 as the nation’s first public university. Situated in the beautiful college town of Chapel Hill, N.C., Carolina has earned a reputation as one of the best universities in the world. Carolina prides itself on a strong, diverse student body,academic opportunities not found anywhere else, and a value unmatched by any public university in the nation.

Position Overview

Carolina Development is proud of its donor-centered philosophy, pursuing activities that always respect the interests and intentions of the donor as well as the University. The organization’s collaborative nature is a critical component to fulfilling our mission of raising private funds to benefit the university. The university is in the early stages of planning its next comprehensive campaign and is currently recruiting top national talent to join the team.

Carolina Development is seeking applications for the position of Executive Director for Regional Programs. Reporting to the Senior Associate Vice Chancellor for Development, the senior leader will direct the regional team and manage a personal portfolio of leadership prospects. The individual will
bring vision and strong execution to the university leveraging his/her experience working in collaboration with a wide variety of constituencies.

Principal Functions:

• Serve as a regional fundraiser securing leadership and principal gifts by managing a portfolio of approximately 50 prospects.
• Manage the Carolina Development regional team and attain growth in targeted regions through a metric-based management process and ensuring utilization and adoption of the Davie Blackbaud CRM system across the entire team. Actively manage the measurement and performance of the team to achieve individual, team and university-wide goals against key performance targets/indicators; conduct quarterly reviews of achievement and annual reviews of performance to goals. Provide overall supervision and guidance to the regional officers and staff, including discussing donor and prospect strategies, managing the team’s pipeline of opportunities and assuring coordination with regional committees and other volunteers. Work closely with the university’s prospect management team to identify new prospects for the pipeline and create gift strategies for moving new prospects through the development cycle in a timely manner. Provide leadership in the relationship of the regional officers with constituent units across campus, including ensuring familiarity with campus-wide fundraising priorities; and coordination of prospect cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship with other fundraisers. Recruit, hire and train regional team members while building a culture of continuous improvement and providing mentorship and direction.

• Carry out other such responsibilities as may be assigned from time to time by the Senior Associate Vice Chancellor for Development.

Educational Requirements: A bachelor’s degree is required, advanced degree preferred.

Qualifications and Experience Requirements:

The Executive Director will be a polished fundraising executive who values and understands the nature and purpose of public higher education. Leading candidates will have: A minimum of 8-10 years progressively responsible major gifts or sales management experience. Preference will be given to
candidates with development experience in a complex university setting. A high energy individual with a strong work ethic and a history of resolve and successful accomplishment, which includes leading substantive culture change and creating a support structure. The ability to effectively communicate with peers, university leaders, and staff both verbally and in written format is extremely important. Ability to develop trust and strong collaborative working relationships. Experience nurturing and motivating development or sales professionals in order to foster professional growth and exceed organizational goals. Ability to interact effectively in a comprehensive organization such as a research university setting. An employment history highlighted by increasing levels of responsibility and a demonstrated ability to exercise sensitivity and good judgment in dealing with staff and the public. Proven history of setting the strategy for and accomplishing business objectives. Ability to not only provide but actively interpret data, using said information to set strategies, and actively forecast results. Proven ability to cultivate, solicit and close major, leadership and principal gifts or significant large dollar product sales. Excellent software skills and proficiency in MS Office applications and CRM/Fundraising
database software.