Major Gifts Officer

Location US-MA-Dedham
Job ID 2025-2487
Category
Development
Position Type
Regular Full-Time

Overview

Harvard Medical School-affiliated Hebrew SeniorLife is a mission-driven nonprofit founded more than a century ago in the spirit of the Jewish tradition to honor our elders and care for the most vulnerable. Since its founding in Boston’s Dorchester neighborhood, Hebrew SeniorLife has expanded to meet the changing needs and expectations of seniors and their families locally, nationally, and internationally. Today, Hebrew SeniorLife is unique in the breadth of services it offers to seniors of all religions, cultures, races, class backgrounds, sexual orientations, and gender expressions.

 

We work to redefine every aspect of the aging experience with:

  • Vibrant senior communities
  • A full spectrum of personalized, holistic health care services
  • Influential research that advances the quality of life for seniors and informs public decision-making
  • Multidisciplinary teaching programs that help grow the ranks of geriatric care specialists

 

Hebrew SeniorLife is the only senior care organization affiliated with Harvard Medical School and we are home to the only long-term chronic care teaching hospital in the United States. Our patients and residents benefit from the spirit of curiosity this prestigious academic connection brings to our care delivery and programs. Our Harvard affiliation also connects us to four major teaching hospitals in the Boston area and Harvard Medical School’s 18 academic health care centers. Future doctors, researchers, and health care professionals find an enriching learning environment as they learn from and work alongside our skilled professionals.

 

Our employees are our greatest asset. With more than 2,400 employees, Hebrew SeniorLife is among the 75 largest employers in Massachusetts and has been recognized five times by the Boston Globe as a “Top Place to Work.” Our culture is shaped by a set of common principles, which we call our cultural beliefs and define as:

  • Lead the Way I positively impact the lives of seniors, and take pride in helping HSL lead the way in the field of aging
  • Go Beyond I explore new and innovative ways to help achieve and advocate for HSL’s mission
  • Succeed Together I contribute to the achievement of HSL’s mission through collaborative efforts, and recognize the contributions of others
  • Ask What Matters I ask questions to understand what matters most to our diverse community of patients, residents, families, and employees
  • Speak Up I invite and offer respectful feedback and ideas
  • Grow Professionally I own my development, and nurture that of others

 Background

Hebrew SeniorLife's Age of Opportunity campaign, which successfully raised over $125 million from 2017-2023, was a significant milestone. This achievement supports HSL’s ongoing mission to expand and enhance services for seniors and their families.

Responsibilities

Position Summary

Building on the success of the Age of Opportunity campaign, the Major Gifts Officer (MGO) will be an integral member of HSL’s Development team as we enter a quiet phase to plan for the next campaign. By joining 20 other Development professionals and reporting to the Senior Director of Development and Donor Strategy, the MGO manages a portfolio of major gift prospects and donors. The role involves developing and executing strategies to cultivate and secure donations for HSL’s services and programs. This individual will work to build strong, personal relationships with donors, grounded in an understanding of their values and passions, while driving fundraising success.

Required Qualifications

Fundraising

  • Independently manage a portfolio of 75+ individual major gift prospects through all phases of the donor engagement process - identification, qualification, cultivation, solicitation and stewardship – to support the successful completion of the department’s annual fundraising goals
  • Solicit and successfully close individual major gifts of $100,000+ by developing strategic funding requests for individuals based on short, intermediate, and long-term funding goals for all of Hebrew SeniorLife’s services and programs, such as the Wolk Center for Memory Health; Marcus Institute for Aging Research, Teaching and Training opportunities, and Housing including Affordable Housing with Services.
    • Evaluate various gift opportunities and giving vehicles; recommend the most suitable for particular donors
    • Collaborate with prospect management and research team to make data-driven decisions to maximize portfolio outcomes
    • Work closely with writing team to craft major gift proposals
    • Work closely with senior staff to develop appropriate content for major donor meetings and events
    • Contribute to growth of the Planned Giving Program (bequests, CGAs, securities, IRA rollovers and life income gifts, entrance fee gifts) closing of outright, irrevocable and revocable deferred gifts
    • Coordinate stewardship efforts for select donors
    • Collaborate with departmental colleagues in the strategy and execution of curated and high-level events
  • Serve as an effective and enthusiastic Hebrew SeniorLife spokesperson and representative; maintain an active, current body of knowledge of Hebrew SeniorLife and its mission, programs, activities, institutional needs, and fundraising priorities
  • Meet agreed-upon fundraising goals and metrics
  • Coordinate and/or provide input into major elements of projects, programs or systems as needed
  • Travel to Hebrew SeniorLife campuses located throughout the Boston area for events, prospect meetings and internal networking
  • Ensure all donor/prospect activities and communications are entered in Raiser’s edge according to established protocols for effective and accurate tracking of prospect activity and personal metrics

 

Volunteer Management

  • Collaborate with the Major Gifts team to engage volunteer leaders (18-20 board members, 100+ active trustees who serve on 15+ board-level committees), supporting the development of new initiatives and expanding the prospect pipeline

 

Preferred Qualifications

Qualifications

  • Bachelor’s degree, and minimum of five to seven years of experience in fundraising, communications, preferably in a non-profit environment
  • Deep commitment to Hebrew SeniorLife’s mission to honor our elders and care for the most vulnerable and our Cultural Beliefs
  • Proven ability to meet fundraising goals while working collaboratively with a team
  • Strong interpersonal skills and the ability to build meaningful relationships with donors, leadership, and colleagues
  • Demonstrated ability to relate well to and inspire the trust and confidence of donors, their legal and financial advisors as well as the trust and confidence of colleagues
  • Excellent strategic thinking, communication, and organizational skills, both verbal and written.
  • Ability to manage multiple tasks, meet deadlines, and work independently
  • Capacity to evaluate problems accurately and display good, sound, and confidential judgment along with exercising discretion with highly confidential information
  • Proficiency in Microsoft Office Suite and familiarity with Raiser’s Edge

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