Senior Development Officer – Calgary Public Library Foundation

About the Calgary Public Library Foundation (www.libraryfoundation.ca)

We’re a dedicated group of fundraisers who are constantly striving to make the world better. We believe in our heart of hearts that libraries are critical community hubs and Calgary Public Library improves the lives of Calgarians. Our donors are a top priority and we are truly grateful for each and every one who, through philanthropy, make the Library even better by removing barriers, supporting innovation and creating a more resilient community.

We’ve raised more than $70 million in the last decade, breaking records and creating a culture for Library philanthropy in Canada. Our organization has more to do, and we’re looking for a Senior Development Officer to help us continue with and secure new ongoing funding partnerships and sponsorships from corporations, foundations, and other organizations. This is an exciting opportunity for the right candidate to play a part in defining their key role with the Calgary Public Library Foundation.

We’re a collaborative group, more likely to call out to our colleagues and hash out a problem on the fly than send an email. We’re creative problem-solvers who love trying new ideas. We have fun but never forget to challenge each other and the status quo.

About You

You’re a seasoned networking superstar. You love getting out of the office and connecting with the right people and the right organizations to secure support for the Calgary Public Library. You have a curious mind, are a good listener, know how to ask key questions, and build trust with people. You’re comfortable navigating and leading conversations with both individuals and corporations about priority funding needs and asking directly for financial support.

As much as you enjoy getting out and networking, you also excel at settling in and researching potential prospects, cold calling and generating new leads. You are organized, efficient, and are comfortable managing a large pipeline. You are self motivated and enjoy the satisfaction of meeting or exceeding your goals.

You’re an all-around excellent communicator – not just in conversations but in writing too. You understand the importance of communicating according to a donor’s wishes, you know the ins-and-outs of proposals, grant-writing and stewardship reporting processes. You know the difference between what decision-makers want to see when a document comes across their desk, versus an individual donor. You are clear and concise while deciphering complex subject matter and are skilled at demonstrating the ROI the Library has in our community.

What You’ll do

Fundraise:

• Lead, develop and execute the strategy to maintain, grow and build a portfolio of assigned major gift donors and prospects.
• Research and strategize new prospects including corporations, new industries, individuals, and Foundations. Comfortable making cold calls on a weekly basis.
• Develop a proactive annual fundraising plan to move donors and prospects from identification and cultivation towards solicitation and closure in an appropriate and timely fashion, including stretch gifts and multi-year pledges.
• Lead and develop grant applications, ensuring all timelines are met, and secure event sponsorship support.
• Create and maintain a high-quality stewardship plan for donors that ensures stewardship reporting requirements are met to sustain successful long-term partnerships.
• Assist the Board of Directors to identify, cultivate, solicit and steward donations.
• Collaborate with the Director of Development and CEO to develop plans for the cultivation, solicitation and stewardship of prospective donors.
• Detailed tracking of all activities through established procedures within the NXT database and our internal Shared Drive.

Build Relationships:

• Build long-lasting, meaningful and deep relationships with donors successfully moving them through the donor cycle.
• Negotiate and mediate to achieve the best outcome for the Library and the donor.
• Cultivate relationships with our Board of Directors, Calgary Public Library staff, leaders, and friends.
• Ensure ongoing familiarity with Library direction, priorities, economic environment, current trends in philanthropy and innovation in fundraising and leadership.
• Collaborate with Library team members to identify areas, pilots and programs that require and inspire funding support.
• Identify personalized cultivation, solicitation and stewardship tactics with the support of the team.

Support the Team:

• Pitch in and support your colleagues in various scenarios

Our Ideal Candidate

• 5+ years of major gift fundraising experience with proven ability to obtain support at the level of six figures and above.
• Cold calling master, leading to new donors.
• Skilled relationship-builder with an established track record of understanding the vision of donors and prospects and how they can achieve their goals through investment in the Library.
• Clear and concise professional communication skills that can not only secure gifts, but develop and sustain ongoing relationships with donors to ensure they continue to experience the impact of their investment through appropriate stewardship methodology.
• The ability to exercise a high level of discretion in both internal and external interactions; professional, composed and can demonstrate grace under pressure.
• A high level of knowledge about relational database systems and technology applications to enhance business workflow and scalability (we work in Raiser’s Edge NXT).
• Strong organizational abilities, including planning, prioritizing and organizing complex grants and proposal deadlines with minimal direction.

What You’ll Get:

• Salary for this position is dependent on your level of expertise and experience in the field
• A comprehensive benefits package
• Full time position
• 16 personal days
• 20 days of vacation
• 10% RRSP matching

The Interview Process:

• We will review all resumes using blind screening and invite the top candidates to discuss their skills at our first round of interviews.
• Shortlisted candidates will be invited to meet the team. You’ll spend five minutes with each of your potential colleagues and get to learn more about our organization.
• If you’re offered the position, we will have you start as soon as you are able – why wait?

We know every single person brings something different to the table. We encourage you to show your personality and demonstrate your skills in your cover letter.

• Please send your cover letter and resume in a single PDF document to info@libraryfoundation.ca.
• The subject line of the email should read “Senior Development Officer”

This posting will be open until we find the right person for our team, but don’t delay – we hope to start calling potential candidates as early as February 12th.

Commitment to Equity, Diversity and Inclusion

We value diversity and inclusion and welcome diverse expertise and talent to support an innovative and collaborative work environment. We are committed to a respectful and inclusive workplace and welcome applications from all qualified candidates, including people of all gender identities, Indigenous people, persons with disabilities and members of visible minorities. We are happy to provide reasonable accommodations throughout the selection process, if so, please advise when you are contacted for an interview.