Assistant Vice President for Athletics Development, Senior Associate Athletics Director

The Rutgers University Foundation (RUF) seeks an entrepreneurial, creative, ambitious, and results-driven leader individual to serve as its next Assistant Vice President for Athletics Development (AVP). The next AVP will be joining the University and the Scarlet Knights at an exciting time in Rutgers’ growth in the BIG10 Conference. With a $2 billion-plus comprehensive University-wide campaign currently in planning phase, the AVP will be expected to take a leadership role not only in overall athletics fundraising, but in working collaboratively with Foundation and University leadership to take athletic revenues and philanthropic support to new heights.

Our next AVP is a senior professional who will lead a major gifts fundraising team while proactively managing a major gift donor/prospect portfolio. The AVP will plan, organize, and direct the fundraising programs established for identifying, cultivating, and soliciting annual, major, and planned gifts for Rutgers University Athletics and the Rutgers University. The ideal candidate will have a track record of personal fundraising success in athletic development, evidenced by five, six and potentially seven-figure gift closures as well as experience in short- and long-term planning for ongoing philanthropic support.

The AVP will report directly to the Vice President of Athletics Development and Deputy Athletics Director. The AVP will receive an appointment as Senior Associate Athletics Director and could expand their sports team administration duties with demonstrated fundraising and relationship building success. The AVP will be responsible for ensuring that goals and objectives are met with strict adherence to NCAA and BIG10 rules and regulations as well as policies and procedures of Rutgers Athletics, the Rutgers University Foundation, Rutgers University, and the governing boards who oversee Rutgers. Travel is expected in this role, as is the commitment to attending weekend sports events and evening donor events as needed.

Essential Functions

• Manage a portfolio of major gift ($25,000+) prospective donors, with independent responsibility to develop and execute strategies leading to successful cultivation and solicitation activities
• Supervise a team of 5+ major gift officers responsible for identifying, cultivating, and soliciting major and planned gifts/donations for Rutgers Athletics
• Work within the RUF prospect management and tracking system, following all protocols for visits and solicitations
• Identify and prioritize funding opportunities with head coaches and senior sport administrators to generate new gifts and commitments
• Establish a resource network in the community to identify and cultivate donor prospects, including working with volunteers, faculty, and development staff to identify ability, and interest areas of major gift prospects
• Foster an environment for successful fundraising in Rutgers Athletics by providing on-going information for athletic leadership and administration regarding fundraising initiatives and by preparing coaches and administrators to participate effectively in cultivation and solicitation activities
• Work on the recruitment, organization, and training of volunteers to raise funds on behalf of Rutgers Athletics
• Other duties as assigned

Skills and Abilities

Consistency

• Deliver successful complex, pan-university initiatives
• Inspire, develop, and lead a team
• Demonstrate a commitment to organizational purpose, values, and priorities
• Influence and inspire colleagues, volunteers, team members, and partners
• Demonstrate a knowledge and sophisticated understanding of inclusion for all stakeholders
• Demonstrate the ability to operate autonomously

Contributions

• Able to deliver on goals and metrics for your fundraising portfolio
• Sustain and elevate working relationships with internal and external partners
• Set the operational goals and vision for the department/project/program
• Builds consensus with partners and team members in your vertical and outside your vertical
• Proactively problem solve and critically think about implications outside your direct portfolio
• Able to identify and/or plan for the implementation of solutions

Competencies

• Demonstrate an ability to create an increasingly more complex operational strategy and work collaboratively with other areas within the organization
• Demonstrate the ability to work on projects across the university
• Develop the actual strategies to fulfill the vision of university leadership
• Quickly gain knowledge and understanding of one's area responsible and the University

Leadership

• Possess knowledge and understanding of the institutional and organizational enterprise and all departments across the organization, not just a specific area of expertise, but a general mastery of many functions
• Demonstrate a commitment to aligning donor intent to University priorities
• Demonstrate an understanding of University values, and expectations to systematically take responsibility for working toward them
• Ability to translate and through communication help others understand complexity
• Possess a high level of self-awareness, emotional intelligence, and political/nuance awareness
• Demonstrate proactive thinking, through a mastery of prioritization and the ability to negotiate
• Ability to be consistent with owning your voice
• Demonstrate critical thinking and ability to challenge accepted concepts
• Exhibit confidence and competence in executing leadership for their teams and areas to advance the organization
• Utilize skillsets and experience in the institution to ask the right questions
• Exemplify a multiplier leadership approach/mentality with a cross-functional mindset
• Demonstrate an organizational awareness and enterprise focus with thoughtfulness on how decisions impact other departments not in their purview
• Demonstrate a coaching style of leadership with staff, leaders, volunteers, coaches, deans, and partners
• Possess the confidence to serve as a partner with university leadership

Education/ Qualifications

Bachelor’s degree and 7-10 years of progressively responsible experience in fundraising as both a manager and frontline gift officer. Preference will be given to candidates with experience in higher education and/or a college athletics environment. Master’s degree preferred.

Mental Demands

Clarity of focus while juggling complex projects or deadlines.

Working Conditions

This position requires little physical effort. Will work evenings, weekends, or odd hours to meet resource-raising commitments. Typical working conditions with an absence of disagreeable elements. This position requires some early mornings and late evenings to accommodate meetings, travel, events, and external constituents’ schedules.

Benefits

• Office-centric hybrid work schedule

• Comprehensive medical

• Comprehensive no cost dental, and no cost vision insurance for employee and dependents

• 403(b) plan with matching employer contribution

• Accrual of three weeks of annual vacation time, in addition to two personal holidays and three administrative leave days each year

• 9 holidays, as well as paid time off between Christmas and New Years Day

• Parental leave

• Significant tuition reductions

• Professional development is highly valued at the Rutgers University Foundation, where employees are encouraged to look across the organization to develop new skills and abilities for professional career progression

• $40 monthly cell phone reimbursement

Equal Employment Opportunity

It is Foundation policy to provide equal employment opportunity to all its employees and applicants for employment regardless of their race, creed, color, national origin, age, ancestry, nationality, marital or domestic partnership or civil union status, sex, pregnancy, gender identity or expression, disability status, liability for military service, protected veteran status, affectional or sexual orientation, atypical cellular or blood trait, genetic information (including the refusal to submit to genetic testing), or any other category protected by law. As an institution, we value diversity of background and opinion, and prohibit discrimination or harassment based on any legally protected class in the areas of hiring, recruitment, promotion, transfer, demotion, training, compensation, pay, fringe benefits, layoff, termination or any other terms and conditions of employment.

COVID-19

Under Presidential Executive Order 14042, Executive Order on Ensuring Adequate COVID Safety Protocols for Federal Contractors, employees must be fully vaccinated prior to beginning employment with the Rutgers University Foundation.

The Foundation will consider requests for exemptions from the executive order’s vaccination requirement for medical or religious reasons. However, if you are not granted an exemption for a medical or religious reason, you must be fully vaccinated against COVID-19.