Director of Development

REPORTS TO: American Academy of Optometry Foundation Chief Executive Officer

SUPERVISES: Manager, Programs and Donor Relations

MAIN PURPOSE: The Director of Development works closely with the AAOF Board of Directors

to identify, engage and cultivate significant individual donations, major gifts, and planned gifts. The

Director will primarily solicit individual donors for financial support, as well as work with the AAO

Director of Corporate Relations to prepare proposals to corporate charitable giving divisions for funding

of AAOF programs. Responsible for managing the fundraising efforts of the organization, including but

not limited to, prospecting, donor campaign development and management, relationship cultivation, donor

recognition, annual gifts, grant writing, budget development and management, and special events

management. With Manager, Programs and Donor Relations, coordinates and manages recognition and

stewardship activities designed to increase awareness and support of the AAOF and AAO to build and

strengthen relationships with donors and donor prospects.

Duties and Responsibilities:

AAOF Board of Directors

Work with the Board of Directors to develop a strategic approach for fundraising. Design,

implement, and manage a comprehensive and proactive development plan focused on expanding

and enhancing Foundation relationships and funding.

Work with Board members to identify, engage, cultivate and solicit major gift prospects and donors

by establishing long-term partnerships and strengthening existing relationships with individuals

and corporate donors that result in funding for immediate and long-term goals of the Foundation.

Develop and maintain a fundraising library for use by the Board of Directors including videos, email

templates, and other visual resources. Actively promote use of resource library to achieve

organizational fundraising goals.

Work with the Board of Directors to set expectations, motivate and meet approved goals.

Chief Executive Officer and CFO/Deputy Chief Executive Officer

Work with the CEO for major gift and industry fund raising.

Work with CEO and CFO/Deputy CEO to develop, implement and review strategic goals as

approved.

Work with CEO and CFO/Deputy CEO to develop and manage the annual budget in partnership

with Foundation Secretary/Treasurer and Board of Directors.

Communications

Partner with the marketing department and Manager, Programs and Donor Relations, to develop

and manage a proactive and comprehensive communications plan.

Work with Manager, Programs and Donor Relations to provide content for the website and webbased

newsletters, the annual report, and print communications. Ensure that all digital materials

are kept current.

Develop direct response campaigns and appeals, and strategically deliver segmented communications.

Ensure that all new pledges and fully paid pledges are acknowledged by Foundation

leadership, including Foundation President and CEO.

Philanthropy responsibilities:

Use an entrepreneurial approach to create and maintain a qualified prospect pipeline for the Board of

Directors and CEO.

Conduct research on prospective individuals and corporate foundations.

Responsible for preparing proposals and reports for foundations, major gift donors, and others as

assigned.

Responsible for preparing letters of agreement and terms for pledges and research commitments.

Responsible for development, promotion, and management of a legacy giving program.

Serve as staff liaison to committees and task forces as assigned.

Responsible for oversight of Foundation activities including grants, awards and programs.

Supports efforts of Director, Corporate Relations to secure funds to support all Foundation

programs including Clinical Investigator Certification, Staff Training Fundamentals, Clinical

Podcast Series and others.

Assist in managing the grants application process. This includes writing grants, submitting grant

proposals and letters of request, creating and monitoring grant budgets, outcomes reporting, and

budget reconciliation for fund raising efforts of the Foundation.

Responsible for evaluating the strengths of existing programs and identifying opportunities for

improvement with a goal of elevating development programs to higher performance levels across all

metrics.

-? Responsible for managing and maintaining the CIC database and providing support to the CIC

program in conjunction with the Manager, Programs and Donor Relations.

With the Manager, Programs and Donor Relations, oversee planning and execution of all

Foundation events and activities during the Academy annual meeting including:

AAOF Celebration of Giving (major gift reception)

CIC graduation/industry networking reception

Future Focus on Optometry

VSP scholarship reception

AAOF Awards luncheon

Responsible for organizing and staffing the Foundation booth in the exhibit hall during

the Academy annual meeting.

In partnership with Manager, Programs and Donor Relations, responsible for organizing

and staffing the Sale for Sight during the Academy annual meeting.

Manage and maintain the acknowledgement program, including lifetime giving and

special acknowledgements as necessary.

Work with the Finance department and IT staff to ensure that all contributions, pledges and

pledge payments are accurately entered in the database.

Responsible for preparing regular fundraising reports for the Board of Directors and CEO

including but not limited to campaign updates, new pledges, outstanding pledge commitments

and progress on pledge payments.

With support from Manager, Programs and Donor Relations, develop and maintain annual timeline

of Foundation activities using Asana.

Other duties as required.

Bachelor's degree required; master's degree preferred.

A minimum of five or more years of development experience with an active major gifts

program and CFRE is strongly preferred.

Must have an understanding of the principles of donor marketing and fundraising

cost-effectiveness, including donor targeting and donor giving opportunity

development.

Knowledge of cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship strategies and techniques is a must.

Demonstrated success in developing written communications and materials for a variety of

audiences with the ability to inform and edit according to the audience.

Should possess the analytical skills necessary to assess and evaluate on-going progress of

a development program.

Demonstrated ability in grant and proposal writing is strongly desired.

Demonstrated knowledge of the methods, practices and procedures for prospect management

and of planned giving is required.

Experience leading the development and implementation of annual plans and corresponding

operational and revenue budgets for fundraising.

Must be disciplined, self-motivated, and results-oriented with a positive outlook and a clear

focus on high quality major gift pipeline development and have the ability to set and achieve

work goals.

Proficiency working with association management and fundraising data systems.

Demonstrated ability to plan strategically to carry out the vision, goals, and fundraising

aspirations of the AAO/AAOF.

Highly collaborative in approach with a demonstrated ability to work closely with high-level

decision makers and other top-level volunteers and staff.

Must possess the interpersonal skills necessary for building relationships with external (donors,

prospects, volunteers, vendors) and internal (staff) constituents.

Strong collaborator who will champion a shared credit model for integrated approaches to donor

management.

Excellent verbal and written communication skills.

Must have previous supervisory experience.

Experience in the optometric or ophthalmic community is preferred.