Managing Director of Leadership & Annual Giving

Posted:
6/11/2026, 10:28:47 PM

Location(s):
Durham, New Hampshire, United States ⋅ New Hampshire, United States

Experience Level(s):
Expert or higher ⋅ Senior

Field(s):
Sales & Account Management

Workplace Type:
Hybrid

The Managing Director of Leadership and Annual Giving (MDLAG), reporting to the Associate Vice President of Development (AVP), will oversee the leadership giving and annual giving programs/staff. This includes over a dozen total team members with direct supervision of all leadership giving officers, a Director of Annual Giving who supervises all annual giving officers, and the leadership/annual giving officers at KSC and PSU. The MDLAG will set the strategic direction for both teams, ensuring necessary tactics are executed; drive the determination of goals and manage staff to consistently exceed them; and be a visionary and ambitious leader who motivates and supports their team members and growth in these areas. Further, the MDLAG will lead by example via managing a portfolio of prospects that they build and expand relationships with to qualify, cultivate, solicit, and steward. Lastly, the MDLAG will serve as an important member of the Development senior leadership group, partnering with the AVP and peers to drive the department’s vision and goals, and assisting as needed to maximize overall philanthropic outcomes. This will also require partnering with and forging productive relationships with key stakeholders across Advancement and the university. This position is critically important to UNH’s fundraising success as we seek to significantly increase revenue and develop the annual and leadership giving pipelines.
 

Job Duties/Responsibilities

Leadership Giving Program Strategy and Management - 40%

  • Set the overall strategy for the leadership giving program. This entails informing annual operational plans, campaign business plans, and resource planning to achieve both short- and long-term goals.

  • Manage the leadership giving staff. This entails providing mentorship, helping develop/execute plans and guide their activities. Also facilitate a collaborative and ambitious team environment in which information is shared, relationships are strong, and everyone is motivated to exceed expectations.

  • Provide direction to direct reports on consulting with faculty and staff across their unit in order to provide guidance on fundraising efforts they are conducting to ensure they have a coordinated strategy and follow UNH Foundation policies and procedures.

  • Coordinate communications and engagement efforts for the entire leadership giving universe that appeal to, recognize, and steward those prospects/donors, in partnership with the appropriate Development, Advancement, and campus partner colleagues.

  • Encourage strategic and robust prospect qualification at the leadership level and guide leadership giving staff through completing qualification moves from their units’ prospect pools each year to their portfolios and/or to other gift officers’ portfolios.

  • Lead the determination process for fundraising metrics and goals, regularly monitoring leadership giving staffs’ and units’ progress towards goals through reporting; work to ensure these goals are achieved for the entire team.

Annual Giving Program Strategy - 20%

  • Manage the Director of Annual Giving as they oversee the annual giving staff; support the team’s goal of enhancing frontline fundraising potential, annual giving pipeline development, and overall strategic growth in annual giving revenue; facilitate a collaborative and ambitious team environment in which information is shared, relationships are strong, and everyone is motivated to exceed expectations.

  • Establish and reinforce clear expectations for annual giving staff regarding frontline fundraising, portfolio management, and pipeline development as core priorities, and partner with the Director of Annual Giving to regularly assess and track progress.

  • Partner with the Director of Annual Giving to lead the determination process for fundraising metrics and goals, regularly monitoring annual giving staffs’ and units’ progress towards goals through reporting; work to ensure these goals are achieved for the entire team.

  • Liaison to the annual giving team and other stakeholders during The (603) Challenge and other key fundraising appeals and efforts.

  • Encourage active and productive collaboration between the Director of Annual Giving/ the entire annual giving staff, and the Integrated Development Programs team, especially as it pertains to growing annual giving revenue.

Front-Line Fundraising - 30%

  • Manage and actively expand a portfolio capable of making leadership level gifts in the range of

  • $25,000 - $99,999; maintain frequent contact with these individuals to build relationships and increase philanthropic support.

  • Conduct up to 70 visits each year with individuals via phone, virtual applications, and/or in-person; meeting this activity goal will require travel across the state, region, and, on occasion, the U.S.

  • Solicit annual gifts from assigned prospects to achieve both personal and unit-level revenue goals.

  • Facilitate pipeline movement across all laterals (annual, leadership, major and planned giving) and assist the leadership giving team with qualification.

Development Senior Leadership - 10%

  • Collaborate with other Development senior leadership members on goal setting and tracking, team dynamics, and other bigger picture management efforts across the division.

  • Serve as a thought partner to the AVP of Development and other senior members of the Development team as we develop strategies and vision for the team.

  • Support the AVP of Development on operational initiatives and projects that advance the overall work of the Development team, as assigned.

  • Serve as a mentor and leader for Development colleagues across all divisions.

  • Participate in events, programs, meetings, and initiatives that support UNH broadly and/or Advancement, Development, Leadership and Annual Giving. 

Requirements

Minimum Acceptable Education & Experience

  • Minimum of 8 years of fundraising experience (or equivalent experience e.g., sales/marketing)

Knowledge, Skills & Abilities

  • Demonstrated understanding of the relevance of philanthropy and knowledge of the fundraising profession and its theories, practices, standards, and principles

  • Demonstrated understanding of the relevance of back-end fundraising support in the form of gift processing and data management, research and prospect management, and information technology (reports and systems)

  • Advanced experience with annual and leadership giving programs, including but not limited to direct marketing and donor qualification, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship strategies

  • Extensive experience managing professional staff and complex teams

  • Exceptionally strong interpersonal skills and ability to communicate effectively

  • Exceptionally strong organizational skills and ability to provide effective project management

  • Exceptionally strong analytical skills and experience working in a metrics-driven environment

  • Expertise in fundraising databases and technologies (such as Blackbaud CRM, EverTrue, GiveCampus, etc.)

  • Orientation as a team player and demonstrated strength at partnering with peers, management, and leadership and collaborating across the University’s diverse units and departments

  • Demonstrated understanding of the responsibility to maintain sensitive information and appreciation of ethics and compliance

  • Proficiency in Microsoft Office

  • Openness to travel on behalf of UNH for Development purposes (including local, regional, and domestic trips) and ability to work evenings and weekends as needed

  • Commitment to the values of diversity, equity, inclusion, and advancement

Preferred Qualifications

  • Knowledge of the fundraising profession, theories, and standards

  • Knowledge of philanthropy policies, practices, and systems

  • Familiarity with a university setting and fundraising campaigns

  • Proficiency in database technologies and Microsoft Office

  • Experience with portfolio and volunteer engagement

  • Exceptional project management, staff management, and program management skills

  • Master’s degree in relevant area of study

Applicant Instructions: 

Applicants should be prepared to upload the following documents when applying online within the My Experience: Resume/CV section of the application: (Maximum of 5 Documents)

  • Resume/CV

  • Cover Letter

  • Contact Information for 3 Professional References

Applications that are missing any of the required items may not move forward for consideration. Additional uploaded documents not requested in the position announcement will not be reviewed.

About the UNH Foundation (UNHF) and UNH Development: Established in 1989, the UNHF exists to build private philanthropic support for the university with the goal of strengthening programs and supporting students, faculty and staff. The UNH Development team is the fundraising arm of the UNHF, working to advance the mission of the university by inspiring giving among alumni, parents/families, friends, employees, corporations, and foundations. Our donor-centered approach connects stakeholders’ passions and philanthropic goals to funding opportunities at UNH, resulting in meaningful and lasting impacts across the university. The Development team is structured to ensure every level of the donor pyramid is poised for growth and success in the short and long-term, with staff focused on annual giving, leadership giving, major giving, principal and planned giving, and foundation relations. Further, most team members are assigned to fundraise for a specific area of the university, supported by Development leadership and operations staff who work across the various teams. Our team is ambitious about the potential of our fundraising outcomes, embraces diverse perspectives, commits to professional growth, operates with integrity and collaborates in every way possible. Please join us!

Hybrid Workplace Expectation: University Advancement has implemented a hybrid work model, and this is a hybrid position. The expectation is that employees reside within reasonable distance to the Durham, NH campus (under three hours) so they are available to come to campus as often as business needs dictate, which vary depending on the position and assigned areas. The hiring manager will clarify exact expectation of in-person versus remote working time for each specific position

The University of New Hampshire is an R1 Carnegie classification research institution providing comprehensive, high-quality undergraduate and graduate programs of distinction. UNH is located in Durham on a 188-acre campus, 60 miles north of Boston and 8 miles from the Atlantic coast and is convenient to New Hampshire’s lakes and mountains. There is a student enrollment of 13,000 students, with a full-time faculty of over 600, offering 90 undergraduate and more than 70 graduate programs. The University actively promotes a dynamic learning environment in which qualified individuals of differing perspectives, life experiences, and cultural backgrounds pursue academic goals with mutual respect and shared inquiry.

EEO Statement

The University System of New Hampshire is an Equal Opportunity/Equal Access employer. The University System is committed to creating an environment that values and supports diversity and inclusiveness across our campus communities and encourages applications from qualified individuals who will help us achieve this mission. The University System prohibits discrimination on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, disability, genetic information, veteran status, or marital status.

Compensation Pay Range:

$101,970.00 - $197,380.00

The pay range for this position is listed above. Actual offer will be based on skills, qualifications, experience, and internal equity, in addition to relevant business considerations. More information on benefits can be found here: USNH Employee Benefits | Human Resources

Location:

Durham