Job Details

Director of Development (Lead Advancement Officer)

Position Number: 7163066
Location: Salt Lake City, UT
Position Type: Development and Fund Raising

Director of Development (Lead Advancement Officer)

Job Summary

Under the supervision of the UMFA's Marcia & John Price Executive Director and the Senior Executive Director of Advancement in University Advancement, the Lead Advancement Officer (Director of Development) leads fundraising strategies and activities at the UMFA, particularly in soliciting major gifts. This role involves establishing and nurturing relationships with prospects and donors to support initiatives critical to the UMFA. The Director of Development will identify and manage an appropriately-sized portfolio of predominantly major gift prospects capable of making gifts of $50,000 and greater.

The role will work closely with the UMFA's Executive Director to identify, cultivate, and solicit major gifts utilizing strategic prospect and donor engagement plans, while collaborating with UniversityAdvancement staff and others to align fundraising efforts. By expanding the Museum's donor base and building upon effective engagement pipelines, this position will contribute to the success of UMFA's mission and initiatives. The Director of Development serves as a key member of the Museum's senior management team and manages a fundraising team of three at the UMFA.

The Development Specialist will oversee the following primary functions within the College of Fine Arts: administrative support for the CFA Advancement team and frontline fundraisers, donor relations, and donor recognition/stewardship.

This role offers an exciting opportunity to meaningfully engage a broad community of alumni, parents, faculty, staff, and friends to support the mission and priorities of the College of Fine Arts.

Responsibilities
Major Gift donor identification, cultivation and solicitation:

Plans and implements strategies and goals to increase fundraising effectiveness, overseeing major gifts; local and national corporate and foundation grants and sponsorships; annual giving including an annual fundraising event/gala; planned giving and endowment strategies; and participates in and collaborates with University Advancement in the University's comprehensive campaign.
Oversees strategic, Museum-wide efforts in major donor cultivation and stewardship. Responsible for soliciting major gifts in coordination and partnership with the Executive Director, University Advancement, and the Museum's Board of Directors.
Tracks engagement and solicitation progress in the Unite prospect management database ensuring the capture of updated and accurate information.
Utilizes fundamentally sound fundraising practices to identify, cultivate, solicit, and steward major gift prospects for the UMFA throughout the development cycle.
Establishes and effectively manages relationships with a goal portfolio of ~75 major gift prospects and donors in Unite capable of making gifts from $25,000 - $1M.
Expands the donor base and creates effective engagement pipelines for both new and existing major gift prospects and donors.
Prepares donor briefings, proposals, and follow up communications to support solicitation and stewardship efforts in a timely and professional manner.

Management of Frontline fundraising and engagement staff:

Sets and administers the Development Department's annual budget.
Works in concert with the Executive Director and University Advancement to set and pursue fundraising goals in support of the Museum's operations.
Supervises, motivates, and provides leadership to a team of three development staff at the Museum.
Ensures that predetermined fundraising goals and performance metrics are met.

Advancement Leadership

Collaborates and communicates with fundraising colleagues in University Advancement and across the University.
Serves as a key member of the Museum's senior management team.
Represents the Museum with the Lead Advancement Officer cohort, and to Central Advancement units.

Other duties as assigned:

Complete other duties assigned by the UMFA Executive Director or the Senior Executive Director of Advancement (SEDOA) or designees.

Minimum Qualifications
Minimum Qualifications:

Bachelor's degree in marketing, communication, public relations, art history, education or humanities or a related area.
UCareers: 8 years of directly related work experience in philanthropy; or a master's (or equivalency) + 6 years of directly related work experience in philanthropy. Assumes work equivalency (1 year of higher education can be substituted for 1 year of directly related work experience.
Possess knowledge and familiarity with the visual or performing arts, museums or other cultural organizations in order to work well with Museum staff and our donor community.
Planning, organization, execution, and accountability skills to meet predetermined fundraising performance goals and metrics.
Strong human relations and excellent communication skills.
Ability to work independently and as part of a collaborative team.
High ethical standards, discretion, and confidentiality in working with donor information.

Preferences
Demonstrated success in major gift fundraising ideally for an arts and culture organization

Experience with CRM-style database.
Experience in grant and proposal writing, public speaking, and an understanding of the University of Utah's fundraising practices and policies is also preferred.
Familiarity with Utah's philanthropic community and knowledge of the visual arts, the larger art world, and art museums is a big plus.
Experience with the planning and implementation of large-scale, elegant special events, parties and galas and effectively managing volunteers is a plus.
Demonstrated ability to work well independently and on a team, always showing respect for the diverse constituencies within and outside of the UMFA. Ability to engender trust and establish actionable consensus among these constituencies is a must.
Great organizational skills, a calm head and a great sense of humor are a plus.
Team player with a positive attitude who will immerse themselves within the Utah arts, culture and higher education community and connect prospects and donors to the mission of UMFA and the University.
Demonstrated critical thinking skills, sound reasoning, and great personal and professional integrity.

Special Instructions
Included in your cover letter, a statement about your beliefs regarding the impact of visual arts and museums, each as a public good.

Requisition Number: PRN45049B
Full Time or Part Time? Full Time
Work Schedule Summary: Typically, Monday - Friday, 8:00am - 5:00pm, with appointments, including travel, outside of those hours (as needed). The Director of Developments office is in the UMFAs Marcia and John Price Museum Building. Job duties are predominately performed in person with the ability to occasionally work from home. Due to the nature of donor engagement and Museum events, this role includes occasional evenings and weekends.
Department: 00713 - Advancement Campus
Location: Campus
Pay Rate Range: 70,000 to 115,000
Close Date: 8/14/2026
Open Until Filled:

To apply, visit https://utah.peopleadmin.com/postings/202037