Back Impact Philanthropy Specialist

This position will be hybrid requiring a few days per week in the Washington DC office. Existing work authorization is required at the time of application submission. WRI is unable to sponsor any visa work sponsorship for this position.

About the Program:

Now is the time to move from commitments to action on climate change—WRI is at the forefront of this urgent transition. WRI has the knowledge, convening power and tools to drive change and its Individual Philanthropy Sector builds relationships with Individuals and Family Foundations to help the Institute deliver results and bring about a more equitable and sustainable world. The Individual Philanthropy Sector is part of WRI’s broader Global Development Program, which coordinates all fundraising for WRI. In this capacity, the Individual Philanthropy Team is part of a growing and evolving Individual Philanthropy programs organized around principal gifts ($500,000+), major gifts ($10,000+), mid-level gifts ($1,000-$9,999), and annual fund gifts (

Job Highlight:

Reporting to the Senior Manager for Operations & Strategy, Individual Philanthropy, you will directly support the Director of the Principal Gifts as they engage with Individuals, Family Foundations and Family Offices who currently make or have the capacity to make six-figure and transformational gifts. You will ensure the Director of Principal Gifts can seamlessly execute donor, prospect and campaign engagement strategies to achieve ambitious fundraising goals. Your daily work will include administrative and operational tasks, including assisting with global travel, scheduling, logistics and reporting. You will support the preparation of materials used for site visits, meetings, and events. You will ensure the Director is working in coordination with their counterparts across the Global Development department, the Executive Office, and WRI’s diaspora to facilitate high-level donor and prospect engagement. You will be supported by the Individual Philanthropy and Development Operations and teams.

What will you do:

Development Administration & Operations (40%):

• Provide day-to-day administrative support to the Director of Principal Gifts, including email support, scheduling internal and external meetings
• Assist with complex logistics and scheduling of campaign cabinet meetings, donor/prospect meetings, site visits and special events
• Arrange Directors’ travel including researching and booking flights, trains, rental cars, accommodations and reservations, and building trip itineraries
• Support compliance with expense reporting, ensuring the Individual Philanthropy Coordinator has receipts and required documentation to prepare expense reports for the Director
• Support the management and maintenance of Constituent CRM records with activities, call reports, meeting notes, event attendance, and/or gift notes, including scanning and attaching all relevant documents to the constituent record
• Provide CRM support, creating and pulling together materials for monthly pipeline reviews, answering basic reporting questions, and locating information about donors
• Contribute to project management in Asana

  Donor Cultivation & Stewardship (35%):

  • Provide a high-level of stewardship as a point of contact for high-net-worth individuals (HNWIs), Family Foundation, Family Office teams and their networks, ensuring a polished and sophisticated engagement experience
  • Support the Director in their engagement with individuals, their teams and networks, ensuring seamless execution of qualification and engagement strategies; including coordinating with the Executive Office, Communications and Leadership teams to identify opportunities to align donor and prospect interests and activities
  • Assist Director with donor and prospect meetings, including with preparation of meeting strategy and briefing documents, agendas, taking and transcribing meeting notes, intake on call reports and follow-up activities, videoconferencing and in-person venue needs
  • Ensure the timely and tailored acknowledgement of gifts by maintaining acknowledgement workflows in coordination with the Executive Office and Gift Administration team
  • Assist Director with donor reporting requirements, including admin support around timelines, execution, gathering supporting collateral, arranging internal calls across network for inputs and updates
  • Support the Director and other Principal Gift program team members with travel logistics to donor trips, including securing passport and travel information from participants, working with field teams to confirm travel logistics such as airport transfers, and hotels recommendations

    Campaign Engagement & Operations (15% time):

    📚 𝗗𝗶𝘀𝗰𝗼𝘃𝗲𝗿 𝗛𝗼𝘄 𝘁𝗼 𝗚𝗲𝘁 𝗮 𝗝𝗼𝗯 𝗶𝗻 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗨𝗡 𝗶𝗻 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟯! 🌍🤝 𝗥𝗲𝗮𝗱 𝗼𝘂𝗿 𝗡𝗘𝗪 𝗥𝗲𝗰𝗿𝘂𝗶𝘁𝗺𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗚𝘂𝗶𝗱𝗲 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗵𝗲 𝗨𝗡 𝟮𝟬𝟮𝟯 𝘄𝗶𝘁𝗵 𝘁𝗲𝘀𝘁 𝘀𝗮𝗺𝗽𝗹𝗲𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗨𝗡𝗛𝗖𝗥, 𝗪𝗙𝗣, 𝗨𝗡𝗜𝗖𝗘𝗙, 𝗨𝗡𝗗𝗦𝗦, 𝗨𝗡𝗙𝗣𝗔, 𝗜𝗢𝗠 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗼𝘁𝗵𝗲𝗿𝘀! 🌐

    ⚠️ 𝐂𝐡𝐚𝐧𝐠𝐞 𝐘𝐨𝐮𝐫 𝐋𝐢𝐟𝐞 𝐍𝐨𝐰: 𝐏𝐨𝐰𝐞𝐫𝐟𝐮𝐥 𝐓𝐞𝐜𝐡𝐧𝐢𝐪𝐮𝐞𝐬 𝐡𝐨𝐰 𝐭𝐨 𝐠𝐞𝐭 𝐚 𝐣𝐨𝐛 𝐢𝐧 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐔𝐧𝐢𝐭𝐞𝐝 𝐍𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬 𝐍𝐎𝐖!

    • Ensure the development and distribution of agendas and supporting materials for campaign committee meetings, including coordinating, preparing, and distributing meeting materials, facilitating internal communications and review processes, and support the Director and others in meeting preparation
    • Support engagement strategy project management, including updating project trackers with new and realized opportunities
    • Support the Senior Communications Manager with campaign document management
    • Assist the Senior Manager of Development Operations and the Senior Manager for Operations and Strategy, Individual Philanthropy to maintain accurate tracking and reporting against annual and campaign goals via the CRM

      Communications & Events (10%):

      • Provide campaign and principal event-specific support, including coordinating logistics, building, and tracking complex invitation lists, preparing the invitation, taking RSVPs, preparing event materials, and, if needed, staffing the event
      • Support the development of in-person and virtual events and engagement opportunities

        What will you need:

        • Education: You have a completed Bachelor’s degree
        • Experience: You have a minimum of 3 years of full time work experience
        • Experience coordinating multiple projects through a project life cycle
        • Experience or knowledge of managing high-level relationships requiring a high degree of discretion
        • Experience with and knowledge of Microsoft Office 365, Asana, and with a CRM database
        • Experience working independently and proactively
        • Experience managing multiple projects and priorities
        • Experience with project management or executive-level support
        • Experience working in development fundraising preferred, but not required.
        • Languages: You have written and verbal proficiency in English
        • Requirements: Existing work authorization is required where this position. WRI is unable to authorize visa work authorization

          Potential Salary: Salary range is between 69,000 and 73,000 USD. Salary is commensurate with experience and other compensable factors.

          How to Apply: Please submit a resume with cover letter by the date of 8 February 2024. You must apply through the WRI Careers portal to be considered.

          What we offer:

          • Access to the WRI global network with the opportunity to exchange with and learn from passionate colleagues working at the cutting edge of their fields across Asia, Africa, Europe, Latin America and the US
          • The chance to have an impact and to develop your career within a mission driven organization with access to varied learning and training opportunities.
          • A workplace that strives to put diversity and inclusion at the heart of our work
          • The opportunity to join and get involved in different working groups and affinity groups to shape the future of WRI
          • Commitment to hybrid working model with flexible working hours.
          • Generous leave days that increase with tenure

            About Us:

            Founded in 1982, World Resources Institute (WRI) is an independent, nonprofit global research organization that turns big ideas into action at the nexus of environment, economic opportunity, and human well-being. We are working to address seven critical challenges that the world must overcome this decade to secure a sustainable future for people and the planet: climate change, energy, food, forests, water, sustainable cities, and the ocean. WRI has a global staff of over 1,800 people with work spanning 60 countries. We have offices in Africa, Brazil, China, Europe, India, Indonesia, Mexico, Colombia and the United States, as well as a growing presence in other countries and regions.