Department: Advancement & Alumni Relations

Web Announcement:

Assistant Vice President, Corporate & Foundation Relations

George Mason University is seeking an Assistant Vice President, Corporate & Foundation Relations (CFR) for their Advancement & Alumni Relations team. The Assistant Vice President will lead the development of strategic funding opportunities on behalf of the university with major foundations, corporate foundations, and other philanthropic organizations across the U.S. and internationally.

George Mason University is committed to access and excellence and it defines success by the number of opportunities provided to students, alumni, faculty, staff and the community. Today, as Virginia's largest and most diverse public research university, Mason is setting the benchmark for a bold, transformative learning experience through an experiential and global education that serves the needs of students and communities. Located near Washington D.C., one of the most important political, economic and intellectual hubs in the world, the university accepts its responsibility to serve others: to help students succeed, enrich the life of the community, and contribute to solving some of the most complex global problems of our time.

The university has pushed boundaries in fields ranging from music to medicine, and this is only the beginning of what Mason hopes to achieve. The Office of Advancement & Alumni Relations team is an ambitious and experienced team and in 2018 celebrated the completion of the Faster Farther campaign. The campaign was intended to bring in $500 million and, in the end, raised over $690M.

About the Office of Advancement and Alumni Relations:

The Office of Advancement and Alumni Relations division is a comprehensive development and alumni relations enterprise with a staff complement of approximately 125 FTE. Functional units within Advancement include development/fundraising, alumni relations, donor relations and stewardship, advancement communications, special events, gift processing, research, prospect management, gift planning, corporate and foundation relations, information systems and management, and infrastructure services.

The Office of Advancement and Alumni Relations mission is to build strong, lifelong relationships with George Mason University’s alumni and constituents, while matching their philanthropic interests with the university's aspirations and priorities. The division is committed to serving the needs of the university, our alumni, and the greater community by providing access to quality education and lifelong learning. Respect, service, integrity, collaboration, diversity, transparency, and creativity are the values that guide our work and culture.

About the Position:

Reporting to the Vice President for Advancement and Alumni Relations, the Assistant Vice President for Corporate and Foundations will provide service and leadership to the university community by acting as a strategic partner in developing, managing and sustaining relationships with key external partners and will contribute to the implementation of a strategic vision for a highly effective Corporate and Foundation Relations Philanthropy program at George Mason University.

Responsibilities:

• Manage a team of fundraising professionals and maintains a personal portfolio of –50-75prospects with multi-disciplinary interests within a high-performance, metrics-based team environment;
• Identify, cultivate, solicit and steward public/private corporations and regional/national/international foundations for the purpose of securing gifts/grants for George Mason University’s institutional priorities, academic programs and initiatives;
• Establishes long-term relationships within the corporate and foundation sectors;
• Works collaboratively with administration, faculty, development officers, academic and athletic programs, research centers and institutes to enhance relationships with the goal of securing and increasing philanthropic support:
• Maximize the corporate support of key university priorities across all academic units;
• Identify and cultivate prospect leads in industry (and corporate foundations, as appropriate) to support Academic programs and presidential priorities with the goal of securing multiple new six-, seven-figure contributions;
• Provide stewardship to existing corporate partners and secure ongoing renewed support;
• Collaborate closely with advancement and alumni relations colleagues, and the VP of Research to build out multidimensional strategic relationships with corporate sponsors, donors, and prospects to drive overall corporate support;
• Coordinate the University's relationships with businesses, industry leaders, national organizations, and other private entities seeking access to GMU resources and forge research, workforce and philanthropic partnerships;
• Responsible for developing and implementing strategies and budgets for industry support and sponsorship in collaboration with senior members of the development team and program staff;
• Advise senior management team and staff on corporate areas of interest to identify and develop new opportunities for support;
• Respond to queries as the expert on corporate funding priorities;
• Maintain current and accurate internal records of corporate donor relationships and interactions through the donor/prospect database.
• Develop and coordinate and/or assign tasks regarding overall prospect research and proposal development including: tracking of cultivation, stewardship, and solicitation activity for corporate prospects, partners, and supporters;
• Write and submit proposals directly or via staff;
• Participate in regular Development meetings to share updates of activities;
• Collaborate with Development staff, sharing best practices, current challenges, and opportunities and to assist in framing overall development strategy;
• Enters all development activity in the database system in an accurate and timely manner;
• Oversees site visits for corporate and foundation donors/prospects, working closely with development officers, faculty and University partners;
• Arranges and participates in visits with corporations and foundations with University leadership, as needed;
• Develop and coordinate reports as required to industry partners. Utilize donor database for reporting/analysis that measure progress against department goals.
  
  

Required Qualifications

• Master's degree or equivalent education and experience, with a minimum of 10 years' Development / Fundraising experience with a focus in Corporate and Foundation Relations within higher education;
• Demonstrated senior experience in corporate fundraising and sponsorship securing six- and seven-figure gifts, grants, and underwritings with knowledge of corporate giving, including CSR programs, corporate foundations, and corporate outreach programs;
• Three to five years of grant management, institutional fundraising and corporate partnership experience;
• Experience with fundraising database and knowledge of prospecting tools and reports within fundraising systems or other prospective donor relations systems, e.g. Advance, Raiser’s Edge, Sales Force, etc.;
• Proven self-starter capable of making sound, ethical, independent judgments;
• Success working on teams to develop high-level proposals with funding opportunities across disciplines;
• A high degree of integrity, drive, and persuasiveness – a self-starter who leads by example and measures success by results;
• Superior writing, oral communication, presentation, and interpersonal skills.
• Demonstrated results in developing strategic partnerships;
• Proficiency in word processing, spreadsheets, databases, and presentation software.
• Advanced skills in project management and budget;
• Ability to think creatively and to innovate;
• Excellent flexibility and adaptability skills with a strong work ethic and entrepreneurial spirit to accommodate large responsibility and multiple priorities.
  
  

Requests for information, written nominations, confidential inquiries, and all application materials should be directed in confidence, to:

Susan VanGilder, Partner
Kenna Boyd, Senior Associate
GMUAVPCFR@storbecksearch.com

Salary: Commensurate with education and experience.

Location: Fairfax, VA

Mason Ad Statement:

Great Careers Begin at Mason!

George Mason University is an innovative, entrepreneurial institution with national distinction in both academics and research. Mason holds a top U.S. News and World Report “Up and Coming” spot for national universities and is recognized for its global appeal and excellence in higher education.

Mason is currently the largest and most diverse university in Virginia with students and faculty from all 50 states and over 135 countries studying in over 200 degree programs at campuses in Arlington, Fairfax and Prince William, as well as at learning locations across the commonwealth. Rooted in Mason’s diversity is a campus culture that is both rewarding and exciting, work that is meaningful, and opportunities to both collaborate and create.

If you are interested in joining the Mason family take a look at our current opportunities and catch some Mason spirit at jobs.gmu.edu/!

George Mason University, Where Innovation is Tradition.

Special Instructions to Applicants:

For full consideration, applicants must apply at https://jobs.gmu.edu/; complete and submit the online application; and upload a cover letter, resume, and a list of three professional references with contact information.

Equity Statement:

George Mason University is an equal opportunity/affirmative action employer, committed to promoting inclusion and equity in its community. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability or veteran status, or any characteristic protected by law.