POSTED ON June 13, 2022

Development Associate

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Our Vision:

Central Synagogue is a thriving Reform congregation in Midtown Manhattan, serving 2,600 households and the larger Jewish community.  We work towards a world in which Judaism is central to our lives and is a profound and positive force for humanity.  We are constantly evolving as we pursue that goal.  Together, we learn, worship, serve and continually redefine what it means to be Jewish today, both within our community and far beyond our walls.  We do this through our programmatic areas of focus: Worship/Holidays/Music; Pastoral Care/Lifecycles; Adult Engagement; Youth and Family Engagement and Social Justice. Learn more about Central’s vision. Central's Development department plays an integral role in supporting its mission by building relationships with donors and managing the process for gift solicitation, recording, and acknowledgment; and communicating and publicizing the impact of giving.

Job Summary/Objective:

The Development Associate plays a critical role in all aspects of Central Synagogue’s fundraising efforts, including direct mail, fundraising email, event planning and management, and acknowledgement processing. This person also maintains a tracking system for all donor recognition throughout the Synagogue. Additionally, this person supports the Chief Development Officer/Director of Development with calendar management, travel, expense reporting and other administrative tasks.

This individual must be comfortable in a fast-paced environment, able to work independently, and operate with a high attention to detail.  He/she will interface regularly with senior staff, board, committee members, and our congregation, particularly our donors.  Outlined below is a more detailed list of key responsibilities.  Given the nature of synagogue work, a great deal of flexibility and ‘can-do’ attitude are essential as we work to address the needs of a large community.

Reports to:  Chief Development Officer/Director of Development

Department Hours:

• Full-time, non-exempt and eligible for OT
• Monday through Thursday 9:00am-5:30pm, Friday 9:00 – 4:30pm (or equivalent of a 40-hour work week)
• Required to work the Jewish High Holy Days (Erev Rosh HaShanah, Rosh HaShanah, Kol Nidrei and Yom Kippur) and other special events/programs from time to time.
• Given nature of work, availability after hours, on weekends and holidays is sometimes required. 

Key Responsibilities/Essential Functions:
Yom Kippur Appeal Responsibilities:

• Manages all acknowledgement communications, including utilizing Salesforce to streamline process, crafting all acknowledgement letters and emails, and seeks opportunities to improve process and personalize correspondence to major donors
  • This also includes managing acknowledgement communications for planned giving and other donations.
• In collaboration with the Development team, manages the logistics of all annual appeal solicitation mailings, including developing solicitation lists and interfacing with mailing houses to ensure timely and accurate completion of mailings
• Maintains annual Yom Kippur Appeal listing for YKA Book and YKA plaque
• Works with OpenTent to ensure best practices for Salesforce utilization with respect to gift input and report and acknowledgement generation

Planned Giving/Other Donations:

• As appropriate, creates recognition lists for planned giving society and other/non-YKA contributions.
• Tracks planned giving society members

Event Management:

• Manages logistics and messaging for all development events, including donor cultivation dinners, donor trips, special receptions, etc.
• Develops appropriate invitation lists, creates and distributes event invitations, uses Salesforce to track RSVPs
• Writes messages for potential guests and interfaces with attendees as needed

Donor Recognition:

• Manages all aspects of donor recognition plaques and listings.
• Creates and maintains tracking system for donor recognition.
• Oversees design, creation, and installation of all plaques.

Management of Development Committee Activities (To be determined):

• On an as-needed basis, assists in planning Development Committee meetings, sends reminders, and plans logistics.
• On an as-needed basis and at the request of the supervisor, attends Development Committee meetings to take minutes.
• On an as-needed basis and at the request of the supervisor, assists with PowerPoint presentations for committee and board reports.

Administration:

• Assists in managing CDO/Director of Development’s calendar and independently schedules appointments, resolves conflicts and supports them in the achievement of their goals
• Coordinates and schedules internal and external meetings and provides support for occasional travel
• Screens incoming calls and correspondence, including e-mails, and responds independently when possible, including by directing inquiries to other staff as appropriate
• Tracks and submits expense reports, processes reimbursements, invoices, and check requests.

Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s Degree
• 2-4 years of office experience
• Experience with event planning preferred
• Technology:  High level of computer literacy required.  Proficient in Microsoft Office, familiarity with Salesforce preferred, knowledge of Zoom and Microsoft Teams a plus

Core Competencies:

• Impeccable attention to detail and ability to execute
• Keen sense of urgency and results-orientated
• Team player who builds strong, collaborative relationships with a variety of stakeholders
• Excellent interpersonal, verbal, and written communication skills
• Works well independently by exercising discretion and judgement
• Able to research resources, troubleshoot, and solve problems
• High degree of integrity, confidentiality, professionalism, and reliability
• High degree of enthusiasm, flexible attitude, and geared to getting things done quickly and accurately
• Fast learner, takes initiative, anticipates needs, and adapts to situations as they arise
• Professional demeanor and good attitude; no task is too small
• Strong e-mail and phone etiquette

Other Duties:

Please note, the above is intended to describe the general content of and requirements for the performance of this job. It is not construed as an exhaustive statement of duties, responsibilities, or physical requirements. Nothing in this job description restricts management’s rights to assign or reassign duties and responsibilities to this job at any time. 

Benefits:

Salary commensurate with experience, level of education and certification.

Benefits include: paid vacation time in correspondence with school and religious holidays, paid sick and personal days, medical coverage, paid childcare leave, retirement plans, group life insurance and learning/growth opportunities.