REPORTS TO: Chief Executive Officer
BACKGROUND:
Founded in 1974 by Billie Jean King, the Women’s Sports Foundation is a national charitable educational organization dedicated to advancing the lives of girls and women through physical activity. The Women’s Sports Foundation is the only national organization promoting all sports and physical activities for women of all ages and skill levels and is acknowledged by the media as the expert resource on all women’s sports issues. The organizations work is anchored on fact-based research and 35 years of experience in the design and execution of award-winning education and public policy programs. The Women’s Sports Foundation believes that an educated public is the strongest form of advocacy and that research is the key to demonstrating that sports and physical activity lead to healthier, happier and more productive lives. The Women’s Sports Foundation has a rich history of conducting important research and has made a long-term commitment to a series of signature reports addressing such topics as girls’ participation in sports and physical activity, gender equity in intercollegiate sports, the impact of media images of women in sports and pay equity.
GoGirlGo! is a primary programming focus of the Women’s Sports Foundation. GoGirlGo! supports parents and girl-serving organizations who want to join the Foundation in the GoGirlGo! initiative. To date, through GoGirlGo! the Women’s Sports Foundation has reached nearly one million girls, distributed nearly five million dollars in grants and has served more than 14,000 girl serving organizations.
The Women’s Sports Foundation’s vision is of a society in which parents understand the benefits of sports and physical activity participation for both their daughters and their sons and equally encourage them to be active and healthy. Together they hope to create a society in which girls and women of all ages fully experience and enjoy sports and physical activity with no barriers to their participation. The organization’s success depends on people around the world who work with them to help every girl and woman believe that she can be fit, confident and healthy.
SCOPE OF POSITION:
The Chief Development Officer is responsible for increasing the Foundation’s revenue by developing and executing ongoing, multi-year fundraising strategies and growing a base of donors that include, but are not limited to major donors, planned giving, private and corporate foundations, and the general public. Most immediately, focus will be placed on increasing giving from major donors, institutions, family and private foundations and other institutional donors. The CDO will work closely with marketing to raise awareness and relevance of the Foundation and ensure that increased awareness translates into increased giving. This executive will engage all prospective givers in such a way that connection to the Foundation’s purpose is deepened, and the response is not only to give immediately, but to give more across all campaigns and to commit to staying involved and giving for a longer period of time.
RESPONSIBILITIES:
Develop and execute fundraising programs targeted to individual major donors and institutional donors. This will include fundraising for major, planned and special gifts, annual fund, endowment, special campaigns, capital raises and funds for unrestricted and operational purposes.
Develop fundraising strategy and implementation to ensure annual financial targets, endowment, and special project funding goals are met or exceeded; and financial sustainability for the WSF is assured.
• Oversee the Foundation’s grant application strategy and execution, seeking funding from other appropriate foundations and institutions.
• Work closely with the CEO to develop WSF’s case for support by donors and help the CEO prioritize fundraising initiatives.
• Manage, hire, evaluate, develop and mentor a high performance team of donor-centric fundraising professionals who are highly skilled at making personal calls and cultivating and stewarding donor relationships. Provides inspiration to Board and volunteers to encourage a higher level of involvement in fundraising. Identify, cultivate and secure fundraising streams particularly from major donors, foundations, grants, individuals, and events.
• Develop and maintain a database of donors and prospective donors, and a CRM system to ensure consistent outreach and messaging. Explore and develop new initiatives such as donations through social networking, digital opportunities and other “next generation” fundraising vehicles.
• Contribute to the development of and manage projects to increase visibility or the WSF and result in an increase in giving, including but not limited to fundraisers and special donor events.
• Work with Marketing Communications to ensure all communication platforms encourage giving and provide a simple and convenient way for donors to give, methods to track donors, those who request information and attend events.
• Work with Marketing and Communications to develop and manage a responsive and effective donor communications program such as query response, appeal and acknowledgement letters.
• As appropriate, develop and maintain relationships and sharing of resources with other like-minded organizations.
CANDIDATE PROFILE:
The successful candidate is a senior development executive who brings substantial experience from prior non-profit development leadership, and has built sustainable gift giving programs. This executive is presently well connected into a network of major individual and institutional donors, has shown an ability to continually expand the existing network; cultivate, steward and solicit significant gift giving targeted at acquiring major gifts and across an ever-expanding spectrum of donors. The successful executive has the ability to work effectively and collaboratively with senior executives internally, the Board and with potential donor organizations and major individual gift givers. An effective communicator and manager, the CDO works equally effectively inspiring, influencing and managing peers and subordinates. This is a seasoned development executive who thinks strategically, and acts with vigor upon approved strategies. This executive shares a passion for the Women’s Sports Foundation’s purpose, mission and values and act as an Ambassador of the organization at all times.
CRITICAL MEASUREMENT FOR SUCCESS WILL INCLUDE:
Proven track record of significant non-profit fundraising experience from major individual and institutional donors
Deep knowledge of the philanthropy industry, trends, etc.
Knowledge of donor pools, trends in giving and the process of foundation, corporation and individual prospect research, cultivation and solicitation
Basic understanding of tax, finance and legal issues pertaining to non profit organizations
Excellent interpersonal communication skills including the ability to persuade, motivate and negotiate with a diverse array of people, both verbally and in writing
Technology literate; comfortable and proficient using a wide variety of communications and networking tools
Experience creating and executing strategic plans and measuring project success
Please contact:
Karen Kranitz
Executive Assistant to the CEO and Board of Trustees
516-307-3930
KKranitz@WomensSportsFoundation.org