Suffolk University is pleased to announce a career opportunity as the Alumni Relations and Annual Giving Officer! Suffolk University is one of the area’s leading universities and the only one situated in the center of Boston. Founded in 1906, the University is comprised of three esteemed schools—the College of Arts and Sciences, Suffolk University Law School, and the Sawyer Business School. Suffolk’s 86,000 alumni are professionally successful and civically engaged, and they reside in Massachusetts, across the United States, and in over 150 countries. Suffolk is beginning an exciting new era and building a comprehensive Advancement program to support the University and its plans for the future under the direction of the Senior Vice President, Advancement.

The Office of Advancement has achieved significant fundraising success in the past five years and has surpassed several fundraising records and alumni engagement goals. Reporting directly to the Director, Advancement Engagement and Advancement leadership, the Alumni Relations and Annual Giving Officer supports the Advancement Engagement team and assists in developing, marketing, implementing, and evaluating events, outreach, and programs designed to engage Suffolk’s alumni across their entire life cycle and build a culture of philanthropy across the University community.

Suffolk University’s Advancement Engagement programs are critical to advancing the University’s mission. Our Alumni Relations programs serve to engage and inform our current and future alumni, involve them as volunteers in meaningful ways, strengthen their pride in and attachment to Suffolk while building a culture of philanthropy. The Annual Giving program develops and implements comprehensive fundraising strategies for the engagement, acquisition, stewardship, retention and upgrading of donations from alumni, family, friends, corporations and foundations. In addition to generating flexible revenue they identify major and planned giving prospects, help maintain address and data integrity and convey important institutional messages.

Under the direction of the Director of Advancement Engagement, the Alumni Relations and Annual Giving Officer will work collaboratively with the full Advancement team in supporting the University’s Advancement efforts. The Officer will support programs, events and services to engage Suffolk’s 86,000 alumni and help achieve established engagement and giving goals. The Officer will provide excellent customer service to alumni, donors, faculty, staff, senior leadership and friends of Suffolk, draft alumni and annual giving communications, assist in event/program planning and promotion and support Suffolk’s alumni volunteer affinity groups including the Suffolk University Black Alumni Network (SUBAN), the Women in Leadership Alumnae Network (WIL) and the Suffolk PRIDE Alumni Network.

Primary/Principal Responsibilities:

• Assist in the planning, implementation and promotion of Advancement engagement and alumni relations in-person and online events.
• Work with Advancement Engagement and Alumni Relations colleagues to support alumni volunteer affinity group committees including the Suffolk University Black Alumni Network, the Women in Leadership Alumnae Network and the Suffolk PRIDE Alumni Network.
• Develop print and digital communications including drafting alumni event invitations, updating alumni and annual giving webpages and managing content on alumni social media
• Provide excellent customer service to faculty, staff, alumni, donors, prospects, students and other constituents via phone, email and in person.
• Work collaboratively with the colleagues in the Office of Advancement and campus partners in supporting the University’s Advancements efforts.
• Track alumni activities and volunteer participation through accurate data entry/coding in Suffolk’s Advancement database.
• Assist in data integrity efforts to ensure accurate and complete alumni database records.
• Manage AVP and Advancement Engagement colleague’s expenses and coordinate travel arrangements for the team as needed.
• Manage special projects as assigned (i.e. events, new initiatives, benchmarking, etc.) and assume additional responsibilities in support of Advancement efforts as needed.

Requirements/Qualifications:

• Bachelor’s degree and 1-2 years of experience in a professional office setting
• Excellent customer service skills
• Proven ability to work independently and as part of a team
• Excellent written and oral communication skills
• Ability to handle multiple tasks with strong attention to detail and the ability to meet deadlines in a timely manner
• Sense of urgency and enthusiastic commitment to Suffolk University’s Advancement priorities
• Demonstrated experience working with diverse populations and a strong commitment to help developing and implementing the University’s Diversity, Equity and Inclusion policies and goals.
• Highly professional and ethical standards for handling confidential information.
• Proficiency with Microsoft Word, Excel and PowerPoint
• Willingness and ability to learn technical skills including website management, email software and database platforms
• Strong interest in the field of alumni relations and annual giving
• Availability for evening and weekend work