Director, Presidential and Event Research

At the University of Cincinnati Foundation, we commit ourselves to providing a place where everyone belongs. We care deeply about those in our community, while also taking care to nurture new relationships. We have the courage to dream big, drive excellence and uphold integrity in our work.

Structure

The Director of Presidential and Event Research is an exempt (salaried) position employed by the University of Cincinnati Foundation (UCF) and reports to the Assistant Vice President of Prospect Development.

Focus

The Director is responsible for identifying, researching, and analyzing donors and potential donors, including individuals, foundations, and corporations, with the goal of preparing the leadership of UC, UC Foundation and UC Health for interactions with our constituents, which advance fundraising strategies. Working closely with the president's office, development leadership and across the organization, this position provides pertinent & succinct briefings which aid in the development of meaningful relationships. The work products of this position are highly visible and demand excellence, discretion and precision.

Working closely with the president's office and events teams, this position provides specific leadership and expertise to support events and other briefings for leadership. These briefings provide essential support and guidance to leadership in their interactions with donors and alumni. The Director also serves as a strategic partner to fundraisers and colleagues within prospect development to fully understand the background, interests, and capacity of donors and alumni. This work requires the expertise and ability to quickly find, evaluate, and filter large amounts of information to elevate the most relevant insights.

Specific Duties

Act as lead on the planning and execution for UC, UC Foundation and UC Health Presidential research briefings, ensuring that briefings are accurate, presented clearly and concisely, and are delivered on time.

Serve as part of the prospect development leadership group, helping to identify strategic objectives and goals for the team.

Recruit, lead, motivate and manage prospect research professionals; establish objectives, set performance standards and productivity metrics, and evaluate performance; provide appropriate levels of training, mentoring and professional development. Assign and direct projects and oversee day-to-day operations.

Partner to provide high priority research and complete specialized projects to support principal gift prospect cultivation by leadership.

Assist in development and testing of technology and information tools and reports to support fundraising initiatives.

Project manage research requests and delegate research to other team members, as needed.

Provide formal and informal training on research products and processes for new team members and UCF staff.

Provide support to a variety of special projects requiring research including: leadership travel, UCF BoT nominations, alumni awards, and scholarship recipients.

Partner with data management to ensure constituent data accuracy.

Uphold UCF’s Data Governance policy.

Develop processes and systems to increase the efficiency of the briefing process, including, but not limited to the creation and enhancement of iCATS reporting features to best meet event research needs of leadership.

Collaborate with prospect development colleagues to create and maintain an effective prospect identification strategy, including providing critical support of large-scale wealth screening and modeling projects.

Research, analyze and write comprehensive reports on individuals, corporations and foundations utilizing online databases, internet resources, hard-copy business and biographical directories, government resources, in-house files, local libraries and historical societies, and other repositories of information.

Respond to inquiries and prepare concise written reports to determine philanthropic capability, areas of interest, and university connections/affiliations.

Work in collaboration with colleagues to fulfill deadlines and other projects in a timely and professional manner.

Determine which research profile formats will best suit the needs of the requestor and provide them in a consistent and professional manner.

Proactively initiate special projects across the spectrum of prospect development services.

Help identify new products, methodologies, online databases and software that will enhance the department’s ability to carry out its tasks in a professional and accurate manner.

Update information in the database, as necessary.

Other duties, as assigned.

Requirements

Bachelor’s degree with 5-7 years of experience, or advanced degree with 3-5 years of experience. Prior experience in advancement at a higher education institution is preferred.

Demonstrated knowledge of prospect research principles, practices and the tools of the trade.

Exceptional, quality writing. The ability to compose concise, focused research documents with attention to accuracy and detail that supports the cultivation and solicitation processes.

Strong background analyzing, structuring, manipulating, and interpreting data with the ability to determine relevant and irrelevant data.

High level of integrity that protects all involved when collecting sensitive information about donors & prospects.

Strong experience leveraging information resources. A keen understanding of available resources and the ability to retrieve information.

Ability to connect with people to collect relevant, meaningful information with strong interpersonal, communication and negotiating skills.

Ability to successfully manage multiple priorities, produce quality work and meet strict deadlines.

Work independently and know when to partner.

Working knowledge of online databases, Microsoft Word, Excel and other research tools.

Experience with Blackbaud CRM preferred.

Knowledge of the University of Cincinnati is preferred but not required.

What We Offer

The anticipated starting salary range for the Director, Presidential and Event Research role is $75,000-$90,000 annually. When determining the final offer amount the UC Foundation considers factors such as (but not limited to) scope and responsibilities of the position, candidate’s work experience, education/training, key skills, internal peer equity, external market data, as well as, market and business considerations when making compensation decisions.

At the UC Foundation, we understand the importance of providing both a desirable work environment as well as benefits that provide our employee’s peace of mind and work/life balance. We offer a total rewards package inclusive of performance based bonus, as well as, competitive health and wellness benefits, tuition remission, retirement with employer match, paid parental leave, and paid vacation, sick time and holidays, including calendar year-end closing. To learn more, visit our careers page.

Physical Demands

This position is considered to have sedentary work. Exerting up to 10lbs. of force occasionally and/or negligible amount of force frequently or constantly to lift, carry, push, pull or otherwise move objects. This position requires:

Finger use

Talking

Hearing

Repetitive motion of the wrist, hands, and/or fingers

Work Environment

While performing the duties of this job, this position is not substantially exposed to adverse environmental conditions (such as in typical office or administrative work).

Pre-Hire Requirements

The UC Foundation seeks talented, collaborative and mission-focused individuals to join our advancement team in driving philanthropic support for the University of Cincinnati and UC Health. All offers of full-time employment are contingent upon passing a criminal background check and drug test. Positions requiring a degree are also contingent upon education verification.