Assistant Director of Foundation Giving

About the role

The Assistant Director of Foundation Giving manages a portfolio of key foundation donors while expanding Houston Grand Opera’s institutional giving program through leveraging key introductions, cultivating new relationships, and collaborating internally to customize powerful major gift opportunities for foundations.

Responsibilities

• Manage a portfolio of foundation donors and prospects (including associated individuals, as appropriate), soliciting new, renewed, and increased support.
• Develop creative and personalized stewardship touchpoints to deepen relationships and report on the impact of their gifts.
• In collaboration with Philanthropy leadership and partners across HGO, design and promote compelling grant opportunities and funding proposals that align foundation priorities with HGO's mission, supporting an aggressive acquisition strategy for new foundation support.
• Collaborate with colleagues across the Philanthropy and Marketing teams to ensure timely, persuasive proposal submissions, impactful reporting, and appropriate, agreed upon recognition.
• Partner with the Institutional Giving Coordinator and Finance to ensure foundation grants are tracked and allocated in accordance with gift agreements and funder restrictions, and that all reporting obligations are met and documented in a timely manner.
• Lead prospect research strategy (in collaboration with the Senior Director, prospect researcher, and HGO leadership) to identify, qualify, and prioritize new foundation prospects, assessing their capacity and alignment with HGO's mission.
• Represent HGO at networking and community events, serving as an ambassador for the organization and cultivating new and existing foundation relationships.
• Lead the development and management of HGO's foundation relationships with Board members and Trustees, engaging them as connectors and champions to strengthen and expand HGO's foundation network.
• Ensure that records for foundation donors and prospects are accurate and up-to-date with all interactions, proposals, and gift activity in Tessitura, ensuring data integrity and supporting accurate pipeline management, revenue tracking, and financial forecasting.
• Host portfolio donors and prospects to HGO events and performances, as appropriate.

Requirements

• Bachelor’s degree with 5 or more years of experience in foundation grants, fundraising, sales, relationship management/customer/client service, or a related field.
• Must have demonstrated ability to implement and manage projects involving multiple departments.
• Requires proven excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Requires some night and weekend work around performances and events.

Qualifications

• We seek a resourceful, proactive, self-starter who can independently solve problems and prioritize key tasks in a fast-paced environment.
• Successful candidates will be natural motivators, who encourage and empower others to meet ambitious goals.
• Must be highly organized with strong attention to detail.

Skills

• Strong project management and organizational skills.
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
• Ability to work independently and collaboratively.
• Knowledge of opera is not necessary, but passion for the arts is a must.

Benefits

We offer robust benefits to full-time employees, including:

• Comprehensive and affordable health benefits.
• Generous paid time off.
• 403b retirement plan with employer match.
• Flexible work schedule.
• Professional development fund and opportunities.
• Discounted parking in the Theater District garage and nearby lots, plus easy access to Metro transportation.
• Free tickets to our mainstage and community productions and events.