Senior Leadership Gifts Officer

About the opportunity

The Senior Leadership Gifts Officer is responsible for managing a portfolio of high-net-worth donors and prospects, focusing on securing and stewarding major and principal gifts. This role drives revenue growth by securing transformational philanthropic support and delivering high-impact donor experiences that reflect the Academy’s mission.

Key responsibilities

• Manage a portfolio of 90–100 donors and prospects, with emphasis on leadership and principal gifts.
• Independently develop and execute tailored cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship strategies for each prospect.
• Consistently secure gifts of $25K+, advancing priorities across biodiversity science, environmental learning, and conservation.
• Maintain disciplined moves management, forecasting, and pipeline reporting in Tessitura.
• Serve as primary relationship manager for select high-profile donors and supporters.
• Deliver bespoke, high-touch experiences—behind-the-scenes tours, lab/collections visits, field and site visits—that deepen affinity and accelerate giving.
• Coordinate with Donor Relations, Events, and Communications to provide personalized, timely stewardship touchpoints and impact reporting.
• Partner with scientists and program leads to align donor interests with mission-critical work; translate complex initiatives into compelling donor offers.
• Collaborate with the Advancement Events team on curated on-site and field-based activations that advance cultivation and stewardship goals.
• Work with Advancement Operations to leverage data, dashboards, and reporting that inform strategy and drive results.
• Qualify and advance high-potential prospects into the major/principal gift pipeline.
• Deepen relationships with well-cultivated new prospects following initial engagement by the LP Coordinator and Leadership & Legacy Giving Officer.
• Identify potential board and volunteer leadership candidates and help steward them toward deeper philanthropic engagement.
• Partner with the Director of LP and the Associate Director on select donor strategies.
• Model donor-centered communication, rigorous planning, and cross-team collaboration; share tools and best practices that elevate team performance.
• Represent LP in internal meetings as needed, contributing to seamless coordination across Advancement and program teams.

Qualifications

• 6+ years of frontline fundraising or equivalent high-level relationship management, with a track record of securing $25K+ gifts.
• Demonstrated success managing a robust major-donor portfolio and closing complex, multi-stakeholder solicitations.
• Exceptional relationship-building and communication skills; poised and effective with high-profile donors and institutional leaders.
• Experience designing and executing bespoke donor engagements (tours, field visits, events) tied to program impact.
• Strong organizational and project-management skills; adept at prioritizing across multiple donors, deadlines, and partners.
• Proficiency with fundraising CRMs and reporting (Tessitura preferred); data-driven approach to strategy and forecasting.
• Collaborative, generous teammate with a coaching mindset; committed to sharing practices that strengthen team culture.
• Deep interest in the Academy’s mission; familiarity with science, climate, conservation, or museum philanthropy is a plus.

Physical environment

To perform this job successfully, an individual must be able to perform each essential job duty satisfactorily. Reasonable accommodations may be made to enable qualified individuals with disabilities to perform essential job functions. While performing the duties of this job, the employee is frequently required to stand, sit, use a computer, and communicate on the phone, in person, and online meetings/calls. Must be able to perform repetitive motions 90% of the time.

Compensation and benefits

The salary range for this position is $80,000.00-$100,000.00. Actual compensation will be commensurate with the final candidate's qualifications and experience, including skills, knowledge, relevant education, certifications and aligned with the internal peer group. We believe in fair and equitable compensation practices and are committed to providing competitive salaries within the industry and market standards. The Academy offers a total compensation package that emphasizes both base salary and comprehensive benefits based on the hours per week worked. Further details regarding compensation and benefits will be discussed during the interview process.

Schedule

Full-Time/Hybrid 3 days onsite, 40 hours per week

How to apply

Interested candidates should submit a resume and application through our Careers Page portal.

Equal Opportunity Employer

The California Academy of Sciences is an equal opportunity employer and does not discriminate against any employee or applicant for employment on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity, national origin, age, disability, veteran status, or any other characteristic protected by law.