Major Gift Officer, Cornell Tech

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Reporting to the Director of Institutional Advancement for Cornell Tech, and under the oversight of the Associate VP for Alumni & Development for Cornell Tech and the Northeast Corridor, the Major Gift Officer (MGO) will play a crucial role in building out Cornell Tech’s base of support during the university’s “To Do the Greatest Good” campaign.

Together, these three individuals—along with an Associate Director for Strategy and External Relations, a Director of Outreach and Alumni Engagement, a Major Gift Associate, and an administrative assistant—are responsible for driving a $500M campaign effort to support the mission, goals, programs, and physical expansion of Cornell Tech. Since inception, Cornell Tech has raised nearly $1B, of which more than $228M already counts toward the current $500M campaign, which will conclude in 2026.

The MGO will be a seasoned development professional with a highly entrepreneurial orientation who seeks to play a key role in building out a base of dedicated philanthropic support for a campus that is scaling up within the context of one of the world’s preeminent research universities.

The MGO has three primary responsibilities, all equally important:

• Designing and running opportunities for authentic major donor engagement and building partnerships with faculty on key campus-wide initiatives such as the Digital Life Initiative and Public Interest Tech.
• Raising gifts at the major and principal gift levels, with an emphasis on working with our already impressive roster of supporters to build on their networks to further expand our base of support
• Serving as a crucial member of the AAD and Cornell Tech teams. This includes routinely staffing academic leaders and donors and liaising frequently with colleagues throughout the institution and with our partners from the Ithaca campus, the Technion, the American Technion Society, and Weill Cornell Medicine.

The MGO will possess superior prospect management and development skills, highly effective interpersonal communication abilities, and a sense of urgency. Additionally, the successful candidate must be profoundly collaborative and have the ability to interact with high-level donors, corporate leaders, academic leaders and faculty, university alumni, and volunteer leadership.

Required Qualifications:

• A Bachelor’s degree is required; an advanced degree and strong academic credentials that will be credible to donors and alumni are preferred.
• A minimum of 7-10 years of experience in progressively responsible development leadership positions, which includes work in all functional areas (a development generalist) and participation in a major capital campaign (planning, implementation, management, and successful conclusion).
• A demonstrated track record of successful frontline fundraising for an institution of higher education, not-for-profit organization, or other environment of similar complexity with multiple stakeholders; previous work experience in higher education and in a hybrid centralized-decentralized fundraising model involving colleges, units, and schools is preferred.
• Hands-on major and principal gift experience, including cultivation through solicitation and stewardship, as well as experience working with planned giving, corporate and foundation relations, and annual fund strategies for grooming the next generation of leadership donors; success in securing gifts from both defined and undefined constituencies.
• Experience with the national, international, and regional tech community with a working knowledge of language and content within the discipline is strongly preferred. Relationships within the New York City technical community will be greatly valued.
• Particular strength in developing strategic and comprehensive fundraising plans, executing against these plans to achieve goals and objectives, developing fundraising strategies and experience working directly with the most senior levels of an organization is very important; ability to effectively strategize and engage various groups and constituents, including the dean, faculty, senior administrators, other major and principal gift officers, university alumni, donors, and major benefactors.
• Ability to develop trust and strong collaborative working relationships; experience nurturing and motivating high-level volunteers and expressing appreciation for their role in building an effective development network.
• Deep experience in high-level New York City philanthropy and an understanding of the style, high level of detail, and impeccable customer service required; knowledge of the players, strategies, and trends in New York City philanthropy and the ability to navigate the city’s philanthropic elite with aplomb.
• Strong computer skills, which should include desktop software, databases, and networked information systems; familiarity with technology and other innovations that can streamline the development process.

Interested applicants should apply directly through our executive search firm:

Lucretia A. Cavan
Cavan Executive Search

New York, New York
Tel. 212-222-9290 Office
lcavan@cavansearch.com

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