About us:

People Serving People is the largest and most comprehensive emergency shelter for families experiencing homelessness in Minnesota and a dedicated leader in homeless prevention. If you want to help transform communities and see families thrive, then People Serving People is the place for you.

What do we need?

The Major Gift Officer (MGO) will be responsible for implementing one-to-one relational fundraising strategies for a portfolio of 75-125 qualified individual donors. The MGO is responsible for managing and cultivating relationships with existing major gift donors while also identifying and qualifying new prospects. The MGO works to educate supporters to challenge mainstream ways of giving, including disrupting white supremacist practices in fundraising. The MGO must have the ability to navigate successful one-to-one relational fundraising while centering the community served, utilizing community-centric fundraising principles, and staying grounded in PSP’s organizational values: belonging, equity, integrity, possibility, and power.

The MGO works to educate supporters to challenge mainstream ways of giving, including disrupting white supremacist practices in fundraising. This role will help our organization refine and elevate how we cultivate and steward our donor base in funding our work in a values-aligned way. The MGO will work with our development team to achieve overall fundraising goals.

The MGO will report to the Development Director and work closely with another MGO and the Development Operations Specialist. The ideal candidate has excellent communication skills, fundraising, and/or donor organizing, and a desire to move money to emergency homeless services for 1,400 individuals a year.

Responsibilities:

Donor Portfolio Management:

• Build and manage a portfolio of 75-125 donors by qualifying donors, building relationships, making asks, and developing stewardship strategies, including content creation for major donor communications.
• Identify, qualify, cultivate, solicit, and steward donors through one-to-one communications, moving them through the donor lifecycle.
• Deepen donor engagement by sharing meaningfully about PSP programs, goals and values, utilizing volunteer opportunities, policy/advocacy actions, and other forms of engagement.
• Support the growth of the individual giving program, including major gifts and any future campaign strategies.
• Work with leadership to develop annual major gifts plans, research prospective donors and donor networks, and make recommendations on strategies for deepening donor engagement.
• Oversee communications with portfolio donors, including gift acknowledgements, donation requests, and special materials.
• Coordinate with the leadership team on reporting, donation processing, and budget input for major giving projections.
• Work collaboratively with the fundraising team on one-to-many approaches, such as digital and mailed appeals, to create systems and workflows that identify prospective major donors for qualification.
• Foster inclusive fundraising spaces that center our families through community-centric fundraising principles.
• Maintain and update accurate donor information in the Salesforce database.
• Work closely with staff from throughout People Serving People to align messaging and share a compelling case for support.
• Provide portfolio reports, projections, and analysis for the leadership team, board, development committee, and other staff.
• Effectively develop and manage annual donor work plans and goals.

Pay and Benefits:

• Salary of $85,000 - $95,000 annually.
• Monday - Friday, 9:00 a.m. - 5:00 p.m.
• Medical, dental, and vision insurance are available.
• Company-paid life and disability insurance.
• 401(k) with employer contribution at 6 months.
• 40 days of PTO per year.
• Reduced cost parking or metro pass.
• $40 cell phone reimbursement.
• Reduced childcare rates.
• Financial wellness benefit.
• Free lunch every day.
• The chance to make a real difference in the community.

Major Gift Officer Requirements:

• Education Required: 2-3 years of relevant experience, with a minimum of 3 years working with fundraising/ philanthropy.
• Must have reliable transportation, as this role requires regular travel to meet with donors and fundraisers.
• Ability to see the role of fund development as a resource organization/mobilization that can build power with and transfer wealth to communities.
• Commitment to People Serving People’s mission, vision, and values as described above.
• Ability to manage one’s own schedule; highly organized, detail-oriented, and self-motivated.
• Ability to prioritize and triage multiple objectives with deadlines.
• Experience in fundraising and developing systems for an individual donor program and/or experience as a community organizer with an interest in learning and developing skills in individual giving.
• Familiarity with social justice and racial equity values and the ability to apply them in a fundraising context and navigate the inherent tensions.
• Proficiency in spoken and written English.
• Good relationship-building skills, exceptional interpersonal skills, and an ability to work collaboratively, including having challenging conversations, with all levels of Board members, community leaders/members, staff, volunteers, donors, and prospective donors.
• Experience working with people one-on-one and in building leadership and deepening relationships through one-to-one conversations
• High level of computer literacy, including online databases, spreadsheets, and basic design skills. Experience in Salesforce is a helpful additional skill set but not required.
• Proficiency in MS Word, Excel, Google Suite, and Zoom.