Located in a historic neighborhood in the nation's capital, Georgetown offers rigorous academic programs, a global perspective, exciting ways to take advantage of Washington, D.C., and a commitment to social justice. Our community is a tight knit group of remarkable individuals interested in intellectual inquiry and making a difference in the world.

Requirements

Director, Strategic Initiatives, Special Projects - Office of Advancement - Georgetown University

Job Overview

As a member of the Strategic Initiatives Team - a strategic campaign planning team in the Office of Advancement - the Director, Strategic Initiatives, Special Projects manages a portfolio of cross-campus priorities, and leads efforts to ready these initiatives for donor investment, particularly to advance the efforts of Georgetown’s frontline fundraisers to cultivate and solicit of principal and transformative (P&T) gifts of $5 million and above.

A primary project in the Director’s special projects portfolio is university capital projects. They lead the strategic fundraising planning and partner with colleagues across campus and Advancement in order to meet the university’s fundraising goals for capital projects, which represent roughly $300 million of the university’s current $3 billion campaign goal. Working directly with top university leaders, including the President, Chief Financial Officer, Provost, Vice President of Planning and Facilities Management, Executive Director of Corporate Partnerships, Vice President for Strategy, university Executive Vice Presidents, Deans, and other senior administrators and faculty as well as the senior leaders of the Office of Advancement, the Director convenes ongoing stakeholder discussions with the goal to identify and prioritize new constructions and renovations to be supported by philanthropy and gather the necessary information from campus and external partners to support effective fundraising. The Director will then build the fundraising case for each project, establish inventories of investment opportunities and develop fundraising materials; provide ongoing education and resources to Development colleagues to ensure the readiness of the frontline fundraising team to fundraise for capital projects; and support the Development team in the cultivation and solicitation of potential capital project donors.

On occasion, the Director may be asked to interact directly with donors to address questions related to capital projects or other special projects in the Director’s portfolio. Their special projects portfolio may expand to include other new priority areas as the university continues to develop new institution-wide initiatives that will require or benefit from philanthropy.

The Director’s portfolio also includes leading the development and fundraising strategy for a select number of University Strategic Initiatives, Georgetown’s transformative cross-campus “Big Ideas.” Under the leadership of the Senior Director for Strategic Initiatives, the Director advances these projects, which represent new investment concepts that relate both to societal imperatives and to the philanthropic objectives of the university and its donors, by providing expert consultation on translating approved faculty-generated ambitions and strategic plans into opportunities primed for philanthropic engagement.

The Director’s role includes translating complex institutional planning and ambitions into compelling, impact-oriented cases for a donor audience, aligning university ambition with donor motivations, connecting new concepts with existing university resources and strengths, and defining opportunities for philanthropy to provide the additional resources required to achieve desired outcomes. The outcome of this work will be a clear articulation of the design and value of the proposed initiatives to prospective donors, including plans for executing on philanthropic investment.

Complementing their portfolio of special projects, the Director serves as a subject matter expert on concept and proposal development for Principal and Transformative gift solicitations of $5 million and above. Partnering with members of the Advancement Campaign Management & Donor Experience team - including Campaign Planning, Principal and Donor Engagement, and Prospect Management and Analytics - and the Development Team, the Director executes models for cross-collaborative teams with the purpose of bringing special projects - particularly capital projects - to the donor market to advance specific P&T donor conversations.

As appropriate to their portfolio, the Director works with the Senior Director and Assistant Vice President of Strategic Initiatives to lead campaign planning meetings between Advancement and university leadership, including with the University President, Provost, EVPS, VP for Strategy, Vice Presidents, and Deans. Additionally, they also partner with the Senior Director, Associate Vice President, and colleagues in Advancement Communications to integrate the capital projects and other special projects into the university’s campaign narrative and priorities.

The Director helps to oversee project responsibilities of analysts, senior analysts, and associate directors on the Strategic Initiatives team, ensuring the quality of work outputs from inception to final delivery. Their role requires exceptional conceptual and analytical ability, detailed knowledge of Georgetown’s academic mission and programs and of higher education, outstanding writing skills, creativity and intellectual vitality, extraordinary analytical abilities, strong collaborative skills, and a commitment to the continuing improvement of concepts and projects. Also essential is experience in new program development, the ability to manage complex projects and initiatives, effectiveness and persistence in engaging the support of multiple stakeholders to achieve shared objectives, and a respect for the practicalities of implementation.

Work Interactions

The Director, Strategic Initiatives, Special Projects interacts with internal and external constituents and leaders – including but not limited to the President, Chief Financial Officer, Provost, Vice President of Planning and Facilities Management and their team, Vice President for Strategy, university Executive Vice Presidents, Deans, and faculty.

Within Advancement, they interact closely with the Vice President, Chief Operating Officer, Sr. Associate Vice President, Campaign Management & Donor Experience and their team, and Development; and oversees the work of less experienced Analysts, Senior Analysts, and/or Associate Directors.

Requirements and Qualifications

• BA or BS degree - preference for Master’s degree

• At least 5-7 years of professional experience, ideally in business consulting, project management, new program development and expansion, major gift fundraising, or other higher education administration – including at least 1 year of experience of formal or informal management or supervisory responsibility

• Demonstrable record of conducting nuanced research about various aspects of new projects, including the intellectual, programmatic, organizational, and fiscal dimensions.

• Demonstrable success in strategic planning and execution; marketing; cross-functional team leadership; and communications, or demonstrated experience executing or supporting major gift philanthropy, ideally in a university context.

• Demonstrable experience executing or supporting major gift philanthropy for 7+-figure solicitations, ideally in a university context

• Working knowledge of capital projects and their lifecycle - ideally in a university context

• Working knowledge of the priorities and the culture of a Catholic and Jesuit research university

Work Mode: Hybrid Please note that work mode designations are regularly reviewed in order to meet the evolving needs of the University. Such review may necessitate a change to a position’s mode of work designation. Complete details about Georgetown University’s mode of work designations for staff positions can be found on the Department of Human Resources Mode of Work Designation (https://hr.georgetown.edu/mode-of-work-designation/) .

Georgetown University’s Office of Advancement is committed to a safe, equitable, diverse, and inclusive work environment that honors the diverse backgrounds, experiences, and perspectives of our colleagues and the Georgetown community. Consistent with our Jesuit values, we aim to foster a culture that accepts and cares for each individual, and we believe this is central to achieving our goals in support of Georgetown’s mission. We invite you to learn more about the Office of Advancement, our Jesuit values, and our commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion here (https://advancement.georgetown.edu/careers/) .

Current Georgetown Employees:

If you currently work at Georgetown University, please exit this website and login to GMS ( gms.georgetown.edu ) using your Net ID and password. Then select the Career worklet on your GMS Home dashboard to view Jobs at Georgetown.

Submission Guidelines:

Please note that in order to be considered an applicant for any position at Georgetown University you must submit a resume for each position of interest for which you believe you are qualified. Documents are not kept on file for future positions.

Need Assistance:

If you are a qualified individual with a disability and need a reasonable accommodation for any part of the application and hiring process, please click here (http://ideaa.georgetown.edu/ada) for more information, or contact the Office of Institutional Diversity, Equity, and Affirmative Action (IDEAA) at 202-687-4798 or ideaa@georgetown.edu.

Need some assistance with the application process? Please call 202-687-2500. For more information about the suite of benefits, professional development and community involvement opportunities that make up Georgetown's commitment to its employees, please visit the Georgetown Works website (https://georgetownworks.georgetown.edu/) .

EEO Statement:

Georgetown University is an Equal Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer (https://policymanual.hr.georgetown.edu/https%3A//policymanual.gudrupal.georgetown.edu/201-Equal-Employment-Opportunity-Affirmative-Action) fully dedicated to achieving a diverse faculty and staff. All qualified applicants are encouraged to apply and will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, national origin, age, sex (including pregnancy, gender identity and expression, and sexual orientation) , disability status, protected veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law (http://www.dol.gov/ofccp/regs/compliance/posters/pdf/eeopost.pdf) .

Benefits:

Georgetown University offers a comprehensive and competitive benefit package that includes medical, dental, vision, disability and life insurance, retirement savings, tuition assistance, work-life balance benefits, employee discounts and an array of voluntary insurance options. You can learn more about benefits and eligibility on the Department of Human Resources website (https://benefits.georgetown.edu/staff/enrolling/) .

We’re a leading research university with a heart. Founded in the decade that the U.S. Constitution was signed, we’re the nation’s oldest Catholic and Jesuit university. Today we’re a forward-looking, diverse community devoted to social justice, restless inquiry and respect for each person’s individual needs and talents.

Grounded in our Jesuit, Catholic identity, the Spirit of Georgetown undergirds everything we do. Watch this video (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hq3KF11PSNc) to learn more.

Learn how HR CARES (https://hr.georgetown.edu/hr-cares/) for faculty and staff, nurturing an environment of mutual respect where imaginations flourish and ideas are realized to positively impact the world.

Georgetown University offers a comprehensive and competitive benefit package that includes medical, dental, vision, disability and life insurance, retirement savings, tuition assistance, work-life balance benefits, employee discounts and an array of voluntary insurance options. You can learn more about benefits and eligibility on the Department of Human Resources website (https://benefits.georgetown.edu/staff/enrolling/) .