Penland School of Craft – Chief Advancement Officer

Who We Are

Penland School of Craft is an international center for craft
education offering residential workshops, residencies, community
education programs, and exhibitions. Located on 420 acres in the NC
Mountains, Penland has 16 teaching studios and 60 historic and
contemporary buildings. We are an equal opportunity employer with a
staff of 50+. Penland operates with a $54 million endowment and an
annual operating budget of $8.4 million. We are located about an
hour northeast of Asheville, NC.

Our Commitment to Equity, Diversity, and
Inclusion

Penland School of Craft welcomes everyone and believes that
equity, inclusion, diversity, and antiracism are essential to our
mission. We want the Penland experience to benefit from varied
ideas, world views, and personal experiences. We stand against all
forms of discrimination and are committed to creating an
environment grounded in our equity values.

Black, Indigenous, Latine, Asian, and other people who
identify as people of color or BIPOC individuals are encouraged to
apply, as are people holding other marginalized identities related
to gender, sexual orientation, ability, and class
background.

Position Summary

The Penland Chief Advancement Officer is a key senior staff
position that drives the achievement of Penland’s ambitious
strategic fundraising goals and ensures that Penland meets or
exceeds its annual giving budget, including budgeted revenues from
the annual fund, scholarships, grants, and the yearly benefit
Auction.

This position will lead the organization’s major and leadership
gifts fundraising, development program management, and Board and
leadership volunteer fundraising coordination.

The chief advancement officer is a member of the executive team
and works closely with members of the board of trustees and other
staff members. This position currently manages our
communications manager in addition to a staff of five full-time
professionals in development & events. Based on the
qualifications of applicants for this position, we may continue
this model or restructure the department. This exempt position
is full-time, year-round, and benefits-eligible.

Primary Responsibilities

Fundraising

• Manage the execution of a successful major gifts program for
  identified capital and endowment priorities that will lead to a
  larger campaign. The Penland for Everyone initiative is currently
  in its initial phase of leadership gifts fundraising, which will
  help determine the scope and timing of the next campaign.
• Manage a major gifts fundraising prospect portfolio that
  includes direct and personal responsibility for raising annual
  gifts of $1,500 to $25,000 and major gifts of $25,000 to $250,000.
  The Chief Development Officer is expected to build, solicit, and
  maintain a personal portfolio of 150 to 200 prospects.
• Work closely with Penland’s Executive Director (ED) to ensure
  the ED can successfully manage a separate leadership gifts
  fundraising prospect portfolio of up to 50 prospects for annual
  gifts of $25,000 and up and major gifts of $250,000 and up.
• Design and manage a proactive prospect identification and
  cultivation program for major gifts, annual gifts, and planned
  gifts that will fund a significant campaign for identified capital
  and endowment priorities. This program will identify prospects from
  Penland’s constituency groups of workshop students, Auction
  participants, and past and current donors, along with additional
  prospects who support the vision and mission of Penland, a leading
  educational institution in the world of craft.
• Build and solicit the pool of qualified planned giving
  prospects for endowment growth, drawing on Penland’s constituency
  groups and those aligned with the mission and vision of Penland
  School of Craft.
• Direct all fundraising activities.
• Direct the cultivation and solicitation of foundations,
  corporations & government prospects. Works with the ED and
  Grants Manager and other department heads to target Penland needs
  with donor interests with research, writing, and management of
  grant requests and reporting.

Advancement Program Management

• Manage the work of the development office staff to ensure they
  meet all annual and long-term goals of the fundraising program,
  which includes the functions of annual giving, major and planned
  gifts, grant writing and management, campaign administrative
  support, database management, and Auction staffing. Development
  office management includes staff hiring, creating and tracking
  identified goals, continuous performance monitoring, and serving as
  primary liaison with Penland staff colleagues.
• Ensure special events, communications, and marketing
  initiatives are focused on the school’s fundraising, annual, and
  strategic goals. Support these teams to meet these goals.
• Serve as a member of the executive team that supports the ED
  and the vision and goals of the school.
• Work closely with the Director of Finance and ED to develop and
  implement the annual budget for all fundraising revenues and
  expenses. Report monthly fundraising results, including progress on
  a written action plan for fundraising, to the ED and Board
  Development Committee. Report quarterly fundraising results and
  progress to the Board of Trustees.
• Ability to participate in school activities to connect with the
  community and cultivate relationships.

Board and Volunteer Fundraising
Coordination

• Be the primary contact with the Board of Trustees to ensure
  Board members meet the Board’s financial goal for annual giving,
  scholarship support, and Auction giving.
• Serve as senior staff member liaison with the Penland
  Development Committee and ensure Committee members have the support
  needed to solicit and steward their individual portfolios of annual
  and major gifts prospects.
• Serve as senior staff member liaison with current and future
  Board committees engaged in fundraising on behalf of Penland School
  of Craft, such as Campaign leadership and Auction leadership
  committees.
• Work closely with the ED and the Committee on Trustees to
  identify, research, and cultivate prospective Board members who can
  play key roles in Penland’s successful achievement of its growth
  and long-term financial stability goals.
• Other duties as assigned.

Qualifications

The successful candidate will:

• Have a demonstrated track record over 5-10 years of personally
  raising gifts of $25,000 to $250,000 and up.
• Have a demonstrated track record of personally managing a major
  gifts portfolio of at least 100-150 prospects annually, which
  includes personal cultivation and solicitation calls that result in
  major gifts to the organization. Face-to-face fundraising visits
  are expected to be the primary method of raising significant gifts
  for the organization.
• Be willing and able to invest at least 75 percent of your time
  on personal major gifts fundraising and 25 percent on other
  management responsibilities.
• 5-10 years of experience as a front-line fundraiser at a
  college, university, museum, or non-profit arts organization.
• Demonstrate strong communication skills, both in speaking and
  writing, as well as planning and organizational management
  skills.
• Familiarity with and willingness to use common office software
  tools and fundraising software such as Blackbaud Raiser’s
  Edge.
• Demonstrate the ability to think creatively and act proactively
  and pragmatically to implement and sustain a high-performance
  fundraising program.
• Preferably have experience managing full-time and part-time
  staff, and working with Board and volunteer leadership.
• Have demonstrated the ability to lead in a collegial
  environment that values trust, creativity, and teamwork.
• Be comfortable with varying work hours, including evening
  activities and traveling, to meet fundraising goals. Must be able
  to drive.
• Be committed to the mission and vision of Penland School of
  Craft.

Physical Demands

This position requires travel and the ability to drive a car.
The employee is expected to walk unaided up and down hills and over
uneven terrain, bend, stoop, reach above their head, use fine and
gross motor skills, and work in close quarters. The employee must
have normal visual acuity at near and far distances with correction
and hear the spoken word with correction. While performing the
duties of this job, the employee is regularly required to sit and
work at a computer. The employee must frequently use hands to
maneuver, handle, or touch objects, tools, or controls and talk
fluently. The employee must be fluent in English. The employee must
occasionally lift and move objects weighing up to 25 pounds.

Benefits

We take care of our staff through a wide range of benefits. For
your wellness, we offer multiple medical plans, vision, dental,
long-term disability, life insurance, retirement, and an EAP
program. Benefits include generous vacation, sick, extended sick,
floating holiday leave programs, access to studios, free classes,
meals during programming, and other discounts. We have other
generous benefits that we can explore more during the interview
process.

Compensation

This is a non-exempt, full-time (40 hours per week), year-round,
benefits-eligible position. The salary range for this position is
$93,000 – $122,000 annually and negotiable based on the skills and
experience an applicant brings to the position.

To Apply

Please upload your cover letter and resume to,
https://boards.greenhouse.io/penlandschoolofcraft/jobs/4002818008