Development Officer (Mid-Level)

Description

OUR CORE PURPOSE:

As an expression of God’s love in Southwest Florida, we are growing to ensure that no one experiencing hunger, homelessness or addiction is alone or without a pathway for their journey from crisis to contributor. Together with our partners and participants, we cultivate communities where people are progressively seen, accepted, challenged, and supported.

GENERAL SUMMARY

The Development Officer (Mid-Level) personally identifies, cultivates, solicits, and stewards a managed portfolio of donors giving between $500 and $2,499.99 annually, moving them from a one-to-many direct response experience toward individualized, relationship-based philanthropy. Working in collaboration with the Director of Individual Gifts, the DOML builds authentic donor relationships at scale—using Artificial Intelligence, phone, email, and personal written communication to increase retention, grow revenue per donor, and qualify donors for transition into the major gifts pipeline.

ESSENTIAL TASKS

• Manages a qualified portfolio of 500–750 mid-level donors giving $500–$2,499.99 cumulative annually, with individualized touchpoint plans and revenue goals for each assigned relationship.
• Identifies, cultivates, solicits, and stewards portfolio donors using Artificial Intelligence, personal phone calls, handwritten notes, email, and impact communications—targeting 8–12 meaningful contacts per donor per year.
• Qualifies new mid-level prospects surfaced from direct mail upgrades, recurring donor files, lapsed major donors, and event attendees; documents a written qualification note for each new prospect within 30 days of assignment.
• Achieves a portfolio donor retention rate of 70% or higher year-over-year and tracks year-over-year revenue from the same donors, not only bottom-line totals.
• Maintains complete and timely records in Virtuous CRM, logging all donor contacts, proposals, and stewardship activity; follows established procedures for tracking, qualifying, and reporting gifts in accordance with Development protocols.
• Collaborates with the Director of Individual Gifts and Development team to graduate qualified donors into major gift portfolios; participates in review meetings and maintains warm relationships during donor transitions.
• Coordinates with direct mail and digital fundraising channels to ensure mid-level portfolio donors receive a coherent, high-touch experience that complements—rather than duplicates—mass communications.
• Surfaces planned-giving conversations where appropriate.
• Conducts research to identify prospects and creates strategies to match prospects’ interests to the priorities of St. Matthew’s House..
• Participates in programs and activities designed to increase the visibility of St. Matthew’s House to internal and external constituencies, including donor cultivation events and program site visits.
• Keeps senior Development staff and volunteers informed of the status of key mid-level prospects and portfolio performance; supports preparation of portfolio reports for leadership and board committees.
• May train and support volunteers performing related development work; may participate in volunteer recruitment as appropriate.

Requirements

QUALIFICATIONS

• Bachelor’s degree preferred; at least three (2) years of related fundraising or donor relations experience required.
• Demonstrated ability in identifying, cultivating, soliciting, and stewarding individual donors; experience in a portfolio-based or relationship fundraising environment strongly preferred.
• Demonstrated ability in planning and implementing long- and short-range development initiatives in conjunction with organizational strategic planning processes.
• Proficiency with a fundraising CRM (Virtuous, Raiser’s Edge, Salesforce NPSP, or equivalent); demonstrated ability to make data-driven decisions using giving history, retention metrics, and portfolio analytics.
• Exceptional interpersonal skills and the ability to interact effectively with leadership, prospects, donors, and/or volunteers across a wide range of roles and backgrounds.
• Ability to conduct research, gather data, analyze information, and prepare effective, accurate, and timely reports and other documents to support development objectives.
• Highly developed verbal and written communication skills; ability to craft compelling donor correspondence, solicitations, proposals, and impact narratives and to present effectively to small and large groups.
• Strong organizational skills and the ability to manage a portfolio of 500+ donor relationships simultaneously using AI assisted touchpoint planning, CRM documentation, and calendar management.
• Ability to exercise good judgment, demonstrate an understanding of ethics related to development activities, and use discretion in interactions with donors, prospects, volunteers, and others; must maintain confidentiality of donor information.
• Ability to foster effective working relationships within a team environment and to work collaboratively across St. Matthew’s House.
• Community relations skills and the ability to communicate and work effectively within a diverse community consistent with St. Matthew’s House’s mission to serve those experiencing hunger, homelessness, and addiction.
• Demonstrated passion for and alignment with the mission, vision, and Core Values of St. Matthew’s House: Helpful, Healing, Excellence, and God-Honoring.
• Flexibility in work hours; this position requires some evening and weekend availability for donor cultivation events and organizational activities.
• Ability to travel locally within Collier, Lee, and adjacent counties for donor visits, program site tours, and events; estimated local travel 20–30%.
• Relatively little physical effort is required; however, must be able to move about the facility, sit for an extended period, and possess the manual dexterity required to operate a computer and other business equipment.
• Must have a valid FL driver’s license and meet the standards of St. Matthew’s House approved driver criteria. This role is required to maintain primary auto insurance minimum liability limits of $100,000/$300,000 bodily injury, $100,000 property damage or $300,000 combined single limit. Must be an approved St. Matthew’s House driver.

PERFORMANCE EXPECTATIONS

Success in this role will be evaluated against the following indicators, established annually in partnership with the Director of Individual Gifts:

• Portfolio revenue goal met or exceeded (set at hire based on assigned portfolio baseline)
• Donor retention rate: =70% of portfolio value year-over-year
• Meaningful donor contacts: 8–12 per assigned relationship per year (includes automated touches).
• Donor upgrades: 10% of portfolio increases gift by =20% within 12 months
• Major gift pipeline qualifications: 15–25 donors graduated to major gifts per year
• CRM documentation: 100% of contacts logged within 72 hours.
• Portfolio coverage: active touchpoint plan on file for 50% of assigned donors within 90 days of hire.