Assistant Director of Research
Full-time
Annapolis, Maryland

 

General Description:

The United States Naval Academy Foundation (USNAF) Advancement Services team seeks qualified applications for the position of Assistant Director, Research. The Assistant Director, Research, is responsible for proactively identifying prospects; developing relationship-based prospect research, prospect strategic planning and reporting; and drafting, implementing, and managing policies and procedures related to research and prospect management. The Assistant Director will translate a vast array of information and activities related to a dynamic prospect pool into maximized fundraising opportunities for the organization.

The ultimate objective of the Research and Prospect Development unit within USNAF is to advance the development efforts at the Foundation through strategic, thoughtful, comprehensive research and informed analysis of prospects and potential prospects in support of the Foundation’s mission to support the United States Naval Academy and the Brigade of Midshipmen by raising private gift funds. The Assistant Director, Research, will show mastery of all aspects of prospect research and relationship management. S/He employs research and prospect management techniques and strategies that meet the highest standards of confidentiality, quality, accuracy and timeliness in compliance with the Association of Professional Researchers for Advancement (APRA) and in accordance with best practices articulated by the Council on Advancement and Support of Education (CASE). 

This position reports to the Director of Advancement Services.

Major Duties and Responsibilities:

Research:

• Identify and rate potential individual, corporate and foundation donors to the U. S. Naval Academy, the U. S. Naval Academy Alumni Association and the U. S. Naval Academy Foundation through comprehensive research.  This includes, but is not limited to the following proactive research vehicles: informed and strategic data mining, WealthEngine validation, geographic scanning, peer screen reviews, management of search alerts and data scrubs via external platforms and subscriptions.
• Track and manage prospect research request workflow on behalf of the entire Research and Prospect Management team. Coordinate research requests with various team members where appropriate.
• Update constituent records based on research requests, and with information obtained via news, biographical, business, finance, and other related sources. 
• Compose narrative research reports on selected prospects for senior staff, board members, volunteers, and Naval Academy leadership in a timely fashion.
• Compose brief research reports for all USNAF events and others, as requested.
• Create and maintain a robust prospect pool for future assignment in the principal gift, major gift, and annual gift pools.
• Manage the integrity of the Solicit Code system used to assign communications preferences to constituents in the database.
• In consultation with the Director of Advancement Services, conduct annual prospect wealth screenings and develop strategies to identify and qualify new prospects through use of WealthEngine data screens and Target Analytics data mining software.
• Work closely with the Annual Giving, Class Giving, and Planned Giving teams in the development of prospect pools for targeted solicitations.  
• Enter research data into CRM database in clear, concise, organized form. Assist in maintaining the overall integrity of the CRM database. 
• Share responsibility with the Assistant Director, Stewardship, for the maintenance of donor and trip files, both hard copy and electronic.
• Initiate and maintain regular contact with professional colleagues in appropriate fields in order to stay abreast of new trends and resources in research and prospect management. 

Portfolio Management and Optimization:

• Maintain the Foundation’s Prospect Tracking System, including active gift officer assignments, discovery and suspect pools, and other identified constituents, to include the assignment of various model scores and ratings, and capturing all other pertinent financial data.
• Organize and lead regular prospect review sessions with principal gift, major gift, corporate and foundation relations, and planned giving officers.
• Regularly review development officer outreach efforts and statistics on moves management in order to maintain a portfolio of engaged and viable prospects.
• Maintain Top 30 prospect lists for development officers to drive regular review sessions with Foundation leadership. Organize and run follow-up meeting for prospects not discussed in regular review with leadership.
• Optimize discovery prospects for targeted outreach by development officers in accordance with upcoming travel, events, and other cultivation efforts.
• Run regular prospect management metrics for Foundation leadership team, identifying portfolio penetration and other reports, as requested.
• Participate in meetings with Foundation staff to present research findings and discuss resources/information.
• Provide training to development officers and support staff on prospect management components of CRM.

CRM Subject Matter Expert:

• Act as an authority and an available resource to development officers and support staff in utilizing the CRM database to manage major gift portfolios, create and manage prospect plans and opportunities, and record all constituent interactions.
• Proactively identify and share with Director of Advancement Services opportunities for increased efficiency and better practices in regards to constituent data input and prospect and portfolio management processes in the CRM system.

Qualifications:

• BA degree in business administration, liberal arts, or related field.
• 3-5 years of experience in advancement research, prospect management, fundraising and/or market research in a non-profit, higher education or related organization.
• Strong proficiency in Microsoft Outlook, Word, Excel, and Powerpoint.
• 3-5 years experience using online and multi-media resources to research information, such as Lexis Nexis and Wealth Engine. 
• Experience using CRM, donor, or related database software (i.e. Raiser’s Edge).
• Excellent written and communication skills, with attention to detail.
• Strong analytical skills; able to manipulate, analyze and synthesize data and present findings that are clear and actionable to a variety of fundraising professionals.
• Superior interpersonal skills with proven ability to successfully collaborate with varied constituencies in a professional and diplomatic manner.

About Us
The U.S. Naval Academy Foundation helps to advance the Naval Academy and the Naval Academy Alumni Association by providing private resources to achieve and maintain a broad range of mission-enhancing activities that support the nation's premier leadership institution and its graduates. The Foundation's responsibilities in support of the Naval Academy include:

• Developing, promoting, and enhancing the programs and facilities of the Naval Academy and its Alumni;
• Soliciting and providing private gifts and grants in support of the Academy's highest priorities within the Centers of Excellence – Leadership & Character, Academic, Athletic, and Admissions;
• Receiving, managing, distributing and investing private contributions exclusively for the benefit of the Brigade of Midshipmen, the Naval Academy and its alumni; and
• Advancing the admission of highly qualified candidates to the Naval Academy by providing scholarship opportunities to enable aspiring young men and women to attend private preparatory schools.

Our mission is to support the achievement of a "margin of excellence" that allows the Naval Academy to compete with the most prestigious universities in the country for students, faculty and resources.