Title: Donor Relations Associate 

Reports to: Development Director 

Full time, Non-Exempt 

ORGANIZATION OVERVIEW:  

Since 1987, Seattle Arts & Lectures (SAL) has cultivated transformative experiences through  story and language with readers and writers of all generations. SAL fulfills its mission through  educational, public, and community programming, in person and online. Our public literary  events bring the most talented and thought-provoking writers of our times to local stages. Our  youth programs include Writers in the Schools (WITS) and the Seattle Youth Poet Laureate (YPL)  program. WITS places local, professional writers in classroom residencies to inspire K-12  students to discover the power of their creative voices as they develop lifelong writing skills.  Our YPL program elevates the powerful voices of local youth poets committed to community  engagement, education, and equity in our region. 

SAL plays a unique role in our community by using the literary arts to invest in essential  community conversations that are national in scope but local in scale. We offer thoughtfully  curated experiences through interdependent programs that are intergenerational in nature,  bolstering both emerging and established literary artists and inviting change and new  perspectives in our audience. We believe these activities are essential to continuously and  courageously revitalize equity, justice, and belonging.  

As a predominantly white-led organization, SAL is committed to actively working to dismantle  white supremacy culture and institutional racism. We value a diverse workforce and an  inclusive culture and are committed to inclusion, diversity, equity, and access in all areas of our  work and workplace culture. SAL is an equal opportunity employer. Individuals from all cultures  and communities are warmly encouraged to apply. We believe that having a board of directors,  staff, interns, and volunteers with diverse backgrounds enables us to better meet our mission  and we strongly encourage applications from people of color and other historically  underrepresented and marginalized groups. 

Strong candidates will bring a diverse set of skills, characteristics, and experiences, both  professional and lived. SAL strives to mitigate inherent biases that influence hiring practices by  focusing on a holistic view of potential candidates and understanding that no single candidate  will offer every desired skill and characteristic. The following offers an aspirational view of the  ideal candidate profile and encourage applications from candidates with a wide range of  experiences and backgrounds. 

POSITION OVERVIEW:  

To support SAL’s annual development plan, strategic objectives, and revenue goals, SAL is  looking for a people-centered, mission-driven, goal-motivated, data savvy, reading-and-writing enthusiast to be SAL’s Donor Relations Associate. Reporting to the Development Director, the  Donor Relations Associate will be responsible for coordinating SAL’s multi-faceted efforts to  foster and sustain long-term, meaningful relationships with our many supporters through 

Title: Donor Relations Associate 

Reports to: Development Director 

Full time, Non-Exempt 

thoughtful cultivation of community donors, careful stewardship of all donors’ contributions,  helping to engage donors in SAL’s mission and programs, and inspiring them with all that their  support makes possible. 

RESPONSIBILITIES: 

Donor Stewardship (45%) 

  • With the Development Director and Event & Annual Giving Manager, develop and  implement an annual donor stewardship plan to increase retention of SAL donors. This  includes prompt gift acknowledgement, recognition online and in print, impact reports,  holiday card mailings, invitations to special events, personal calls, etc. 
  • Provide excellent customer service in all interactions with SAL supporters. Correspond  with donors in a thoughtful and timely manner by phone and e-mail, and resolve donor  inquiries and account problems.  
  • Coordinate the creation, distribution, and tracking of all individual and institutional  donor communications, including mailings, social media, emails, and thank you calls. Create blog and social media posts, digital newsletter articles, news releases,  recognition materials, event collateral, website content, donor emails, multimedia  presentations, and other collateral as needed. 
  • Gather and organize quotes, stories, photos, videos, data, and audio to demonstrate  SAL’s impact.  
  • Implement SAL’s individual and institutional donor acknowledgement processes,  including tracking donor benefits fulfillment. 
  • Manage all corporate giving logistics and processes, including tracking secured and  pending funding; drafting and securing signed sponsorship agreements; securing logos;  and tracking sponsor benefit fulfillment, acknowledgement, and payment in  coordination with the SAL development, finance, and program teams. 
  • With SAL’s Development Director and Event & Annual Giving manager, support the  execution of SAL’s two major annual fundraising events – the WITS Back-to-School  Fundraiser and Words Matter Benefit Gala & Auction, including registration, gift  processing, and donor acknowledgement letters. 

Database Management (45%) 

  • Maintain complete, accurate, and up-to-date records of donor contributions, events, and communications. 
  • Create and pull detailed donor lists and fundraising reports to track progress and  performance, and support the analysis of SAL data to inform strategy.  
  • Coordinate workplace giving & matching gift processing, recording, and reporting. Track multi-year pledges, including entering pledges and tracking payments, issuing  payment reminders, and mailing prompt acknowledgement letters and donor impact  reports.

Title: Donor Relations Associate 

Reports to: Development Director 

Full time, Non-Exempt 

  • Work with SAL’s finance team to ensure timely invoicing and payments of sponsorships  and pledges, accurate recording of all gifts, and monthly reconciliation with SAL’s  accounting system. 
  • Perform annual fiscal year rollover and set-up processes for development in SAL’s CRM  database. 

Other (10%) 

  • Participate in creating SAL’s annual development budget and fund development plan. In collaboration with the SAL team, recruit and manage development volunteers. Participate in and support SAL development events, public programs, and WITS  

programming by attending and helping to staff events, participating in on-site school  visits, and supporting all collaborative organizational projects and efforts. 

Inclusion, Diversity, Equity & Access 

  • The Donor Relations Associate actively participates in SAL’s ongoing efforts to further an  organizational culture that supports and reinforces our inclusion, diversity, equity &  access goals. Our 2020-24 Strategic Plan and SAL’s Equity Accountability Report are  available on the SAL website under “About”. This commitment and understanding  should be demonstrated throughout the performance of the Donor Relations  Associate’s job responsibilities and staff activities. 

DESIRED QUALIFICATIONS: 

  • A passion for SAL’s mission and programs. 
  • A commitment to racial equity and social justice. 
  • Minimum two years of experience and a successful track record in non-profit  development work. 
  • Aptitude and experience working with CRM databases, particularly PatronManager or  another Salesforce-based system. 
  • Strong attention to detail with excellent follow-through 
  • Demonstrated ability to manage multiple projects with competing deadlines. Excellent written and oral communication skills.  
  • Exceptional interpersonal/relationship-building skills and a commitment to protecting  confidential information. 
  • Ability to work independently and as a member of a dynamic, creative, highly  collaborative team in a fast-paced, open-office environment.  
  • Flexible and curious with a sense of humor and calm under pressure. Working knowledge of Microsoft Office Suite required. 
  • Experience with social media marketing, MailChimp, Adobe Suite, and comfort with Mac  OS a plus.

Title: Donor Relations Associate 

Reports to: Development Director 

Full time, Non-Exempt 

ADDITIONAL CONSIDERATIONS:  

  • Evening/weekend hours required (typically 3 to 5 times per month, September to June). Openness to a dog-friendly work space. 
  • We anticipate that by fall, SAL will have adopted a hybrid work model including both  time in the office and the opportunity for remote work. SAL policies on this will continue  to evolve as informed by public health guidelines. 

COMPENSATION & BENEFITS: 

This is a 40 hours/week full-time non-exempt position. Salary range is $43,000-48,000 per year  (commensurate with experience and qualifications) with a robust benefits package, including: generous paid time off, including 20 vacation days/year starting your second year (15  days in year one) as well as sick, personal, and holidays. 

  • 100% of medical, vision, and dental insurance, long-term disability, and group life  insurance covered, including an Employee Assistance Program. 
  • 403(b) retirement plan pre-tax distribution with a 3% gross salary match funded by SAL;  flex time as appropriate. 
  • hybrid/remote schedule as appropriate with a laptop and support for some home office  equipment. 
  • support and budget for professional development and growth.  

HIRING PROCESS & TIMELINE:  

  • We will begin scheduling phone interviews the week of August 16. 
  • We will begin 45-min zoom or in-person interviews for the week of August 23.  Finalists will be invited to a second-round, two-hour interview (comprised of several  shorter interviews with different teams), and we will make an offer shortly thereafter. Ideally, the selected candidate will start bid by mid-September. 

TO APPLY: 

  • Send a resume and cover letter that tells us why this position is a good fit. Submit applications electronically in one PDF document to [email protected]. The  email subject line should be “Donor Relations Associate,” and please include your last  name in the file name of your attachment. 
  • Open until filled. For best consideration, please submit no later than August 15, 2021. 

Contact Information for inquiries related to this position (email preferred): Liz Keenan 

Hiring Coordinator 

[email protected] 

206.621.2230 x22

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