Executive Director of Advancement Operations

Job Description:

The Executive Director of Advancement Operations is responsible for overseeing all aspects of University Advancement data systems, information management, and strategy, including gift accounting and data integrity; reporting processes; online community services; prospect research; and data analytics. The Executive Director collaborates with other members of the University Advancement division to identify opportunities to use data and analysis to further strategic initiatives and achieve departmental goals.

Washington and Lee University actively promotes a dynamic and inclusive environment that allows students and employees of multiple backgrounds, cultures, and perspectives to learn, work, and thrive together. Successful candidates will contribute to that environment and exhibit potential for excellence in their areas of expertise.

Essential and Related Functions:

• Provides supervision and direction for the Advancement Operations team. Leads efforts to support the Advancement division’s needs related to biographical data, gifts, integrations reporting and analytics. Provides team leadership, ongoing feedback and completes the annual performance process.
  
  
• Manages all incoming report and data requests, delegating appropriately and assisting when necessary. Monitors progress on all requests, ensuring completion on time and identification of gaps.
  
  
• Leads, manages and designs the Advancement division's data systems and processes. Partners with other divisions to identify and meet their data, information and reporting needs. Directs data acquisition efforts, including integrations with Colleague, Workday, Slate, AcademicWorks, and other programs.
  
  
• Seeks opportunities to support the University’s broader use of data through partnerships and application of Advancement’s tools and resources including Raiser’s Edge, NetCommunity, and Raising Insight. Manages a comprehensive training program for these tools.
  
  
• Participates in university-wide efforts to better utilize data, including participation in the Data Standards group and the data dictionary effort. Continually enhances data integrity through policy and process documentation and enforcement, assessment and proactive improvement on both.
  
  
• Guides Advancement’s transition to a paperless office through the adoption of scanning technology. Determines and manages a process for the scanning of all archived paper files.
  
  
• Provides reporting services to meet all regularly scheduled and ad hoc data request needs. Ensures timely and accurate reporting for all audits and external surveys, including US News, VSE, AMAtlas and others.
  
  
• Directs prospect research, including screenings and validation. Envisions and manages the use of data collection and modeling tools to reduce the manual research burden while providing a superior product to development colleagues.
  
  
• Implements and maintains a comprehensive data analytics program, including modeling, segmentation and scoring and the recommended application of the results on advancement strategy.
  
  
• Oversees gift entry processes from receipt of the gift to providing tax receipts and to include regular reconciliations and proactive match solicitation. Ensures division-wide compliance with IRS, FASB, PCI, GDPR and FERPA rules and regulations and CASE standards. Partners with the Business Office to ensure accurate reporting of gifts.
  
  
• Directs online community functions, including processing of both transactional gift/event data and profile information, site maintenance and improvements, creation of donation and event registration forms, usability evaluations, and user interface. Monitors and ensures the security of online community data.
  
  
• Serves as liaison to other departments for Raiser’s Edge support and integration (Career and Professional Development, President’s Office, Board of Trustees, Admissions, etc.) and develops beneficial partnerships across campus to facilitate data sharing and accessibility.
  
  
• Prioritizes and manages the department's overall technology needs and requests, and coordinate their implementation with ITS. Monitors use of Advancement’s CRM and participates actively in discussions around product selection and replacement as needed. Serves as the project lead in Advancement-related database conversions and integration projects.
  
  
• Monitors sound practices to ensure the confidentiality of data and its use by staff and volunteers.
  
  
• Serves as a member of Advancement’s Executive Management Team and on the university’s Data Governance Council and Data Standards Committees.
  
  
• Additional related duties as assigned.
  
  

Qualifications : A bachelor’s degree is required and an advanced degree is preferred. Three or more years of management experience is expected. Must have relevant experience, preferably in a higher education or non-profit setting. Knowledge of all aspects of advancement work including annual giving, engagement, donor relations, communications, leadership gifts, prospect management and research, and advancement reporting requirements is highly advantageous. Must possess excellent written and verbal communication skills. Must have significant experience working with relational databases, and experience with Blackbaud products is preferred as is previous experience with leading a database conversion effort. A commitment to excellent job performance and teamwork, and the ability to work effectively under pressure to meet deadlines is essential. Evening, weekend and holiday work is required during specific times in the year.

Application Instructions:

Review of applications will begin on January 3, and continue until position is filled. Resume, cover letter and three professional references are required. Please upload a cover letter and resume during the application process. From your resume, the application system will try to auto-fill your employment history and you may adjust this in the application questionnaire. The online application form requires you provide names and contact information for three professional references.

Current W&L Employees: Apply from your existing Workday account. Refer to this Job Aid for additional guidance.

External Applicants: Application instructions for external applicants are located on the jobs.wlu.edu or here .

Work Schedule: 8:30am - 4:30 pm, M-F

Physical Requirements:

• Fingering: Picking, pinching, typing or otherwise working, primarily with fingers rather than with whole hand or arm as in handling.
  
  
• Grasping: Applying pressure to an object with the fingers and palm.
  
  
• Repetitive motions: Making substantial movements (motions) of the wrists, hands, and/or fingers.
  
  

Working Conditions: The worker is not substantially exposed to adverse environmental conditions.

Types of Work: Sedentary work: Exerting up to 10 pounds of force occasionally and/or a negligible amount of force frequently or constantly to lift, carry, push, pull or otherwise move objects, including the human body. Sedentary work involves sitting most of the time. Jobs are sedentary if walking and standing are required only occasionally and all other sedentary criteria are met.

Benefit Eligible

FLSA:

Exempt

Weekly Hours:

35

Minimum Pay:

$89,663.00

Pay commensurate with experience.