The Salvation Army, an international movement, is an evangelical part of the universal Christian Church. Its message is based on the Bible. Its ministry is motivated by love for God. Its mission is to preach the Gospel of Jesus Christ and to meet human needs in His name without discrimination.
William Booth and his wife Catherine founded The Salvation Army in 1865 to serve London’s worst poverty-stricken districts. Today, nearly 30 million Americans receive assistance from The Salvation Army each year through a range of social services: providing food for the hungry, relief for disaster victims, assistance for the disabled, outreach to the elderly and ill, clothing and shelter to the homeless, and opportunities for underprivileged children. Eighty-two cents of every dollar the Army spends is used to support these services in 5,000 communities nationwide, and as a branch of the Christian Church, the ultimate goal of all programs is the spiritual regeneration of all people.
Located in Hoffman Estates, IL (35 miles northwest of Chicago), the USA Central Territory is one of four national territories and serves as the administrative head of 10 Divisions and 257 corps (program service sites) throughout the central United States. The Salvation Army is a nonprofit, tax-exempt charitable organization under Section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code.
“The Salvation Army is by far the most effective organization in the U.S. No one even comes close to it with respect to clarity of mission, ability to innovate, measurable results, dedication, and putting money to maximum use.” – The late Dr. Peter Drucker, renowned management expert.
The Opportunity: Territorial Director of Planned Giving
The Salvation Army is committed to the continued success of its planned giving program, as well as its growth in order to support the ever-expanding mission and ministry needs in fulfilling the mission. The Territorial Director of Planned Giving (the Director) is a recently reshaped role following the retirement of a 32-year veteran of the planned giving industry. Planned Giving is a major component of the philanthropic future of the organization, and the Army desires to revitalize and enhance the overall program with the installation of new ideas, tried and true methodology, and current best practices. To this end, The Salvation Army seeks a visionary leader with a track record of building strong culture across units (i.e., Divisions) that leads to dynamic partnerships and impact for the Planned Giving program.
The new Director will seek to coordinate a more inter-divisional approach to planned giving strategies to achieve sustained growth in the net planned giving income. Within the 10 Divisions, there are 35 planned giving professionals who generate well over $100 million annually in legacy gifts. The Central Territory desires to provide additional guidance and leadership to each of its Divisions in identifying, cultivating, and maximizing planned gifts, as well as building, training and growing its team. While the planned giving program is already robust, leadership anticipates additional opportunities for growth both in volume and gift level. The new Director will develop a strategic plan to ensure substantial growth of the program over the next 5-10 years.
The long-term outcome will be a more focused initiative in each Division that has consistent training, leadership and outcomes to transform donor investment in advancement of the Army’s mission. Collaborating with key stakeholders, including officer and volunteer leadership, development professionals, and consultants, the Territorial Director of Planned Giving will serve as a visionary pioneer, offering tools and best practices to encourage a robust and highly effective Planned Giving program and team across 11 states. The Territorial Director of Planned Giving will report to J. Douglas McDaniel, Executive Director of Development for The Salvation Army Central Territory.
The Salvation Army seeks a dynamic individual with proven executive level experience managing a highly effective, decentralized planned giving team across a wide geographic area. Because of the decentralized structure, the successful candidate will require ability to establish rapport, inspire cross-divisional collaboration, and influence through his/her own professional experience. As a resource to the Planned Giving team, the successful candidate will have past direct donor interaction experience resulting in the closing of planned gifts (all kinds and sizes), along with strong technical knowledge of planned giving. The next Director will be responsible for coordinating between Territorial and Divisional planned giving leadership, major gift leaders, and third party vendors, striving for collaborative solutions to encourage Planned Giving growth. The next leader will be savvy, bring appetite and maturity, and the gravitas to be at the forefront of creating and implementing significant change for the future.
Performance Objectives
Leadership
- Work closely with the Territorial Executive Director of Development and all relevant stakeholders to implement annual operational plans and ensure production goals are met. Ensure program growth year after year, achieving targeted growth metrics specified within the plan.
- Serve in a liaison and oversight capacity between territorial headquarters and the divisional planned giving staff.
- Serve, by example, as a leader who continually learns and grows, staying abreast of industry trends and elements of the development process that integrate various development disciplines.
- Work closely with divisional planned giving staff to provide guidance and leadership in industry best practices.
- Develop and maintain respectful, positive, collaborative and impactful relationships with Officers, donors, and other colleagues, partners and stakeholders.
- Develop and maintain planned giving program accountability and reporting structure within Divisions, as well as develop standard territory-wide reporting mechanisms and metrics.
Management
- Build an infrastructure, including a regional support structure, to support the overall program, which includes participation in recruitment and selection of divisional planned giving staff.
- Develop and conduct ongoing professional staff trainings, including training and orientation modules, as well as maintain own professional knowledge in planned giving, asset transfer, and estate and financial planning laws and regulations.
- Develop prescribed Divisional planned giving program accountability and reporting structure, with standard, Territory-wide reporting mechanisms and metrics.
- Design and develop a long-term strategic plan to ensure planned giving program growth.
- Review programs, practices, policies and staff, frequently to provide ongoing professional support for Planned Giving program success and growth, in partnership with the Executive Director of Development and Divisional Directors of Development.
- Review with Divisional leadership realistic goals and expectations based on personnel abilities and the Divisional experiences and stage of development.
- Collaborate with Territorial donor data management staff to ensure robust and effective use of Territory-wide database when developed.
- Facilitate territorial and divisional advertising and marketing efforts including production of quarterly newsletters, planned giving websites, and target mail packages.
- Monitor and evaluate program progress and revenue production.
Internal Consultation
- Foster consistent interaction and communication with Divisional Development and Planned Giving Directors.
- Provide mentorship and consultation to actively promote the strategic growth and development of the Planned Giving team.
- Work with and support Divisional supervisors for consistent implementation of best practices and effective management of externally-facing giving officers.
- Maintain positive relationships with territorial finance, legal and investment staff to ensure smooth movement of documents and information related to gift processing, completed gifts, and donor needs.
- Work cooperatively with all development functions to promote positive integration of efforts within the disciplines.
Related Performance Areas
- Serve as key participant on leadership team(s) for any future Territorial capital / endowment campaigns or projects.
- With existing Territorial personnel, provide support and consultation to Divisional leadership to support successful capital and endowment campaigns.
- Develop a resource repository of case for support expressions, data, and materials, program and expense information, donor and client stories and testimonials, photos, proposal and templates, and other resources helpful to planned giving personnel.
The Qualified Candidate
The Salvation Army seeks a dynamic, goal-oriented leader with 10 or more years of experience in planned giving with a track record of success and demonstrated expertise in leading a team of PG professionals. Preference is given to those who have served in a faith-based organization and/or a matrixed structure.
It is imperative that the person who assumes the role fully embrace, support and reflect well on The Salvation Army’s mission and values through one’s professional responsibilities and behavior. The Territorial Director of Planned Giving will be strategic and organized, with a willingness to listen and learn. S/he must be a strong communicator and be able to partner successfully with both internal and external Army stakeholders including Officers, colleagues and vendors. Strong leadership skills are a must.
Specific Requirements Include:
- Passion for The Salvation Army’s mission coupled with a strong commitment to know and understand the Army’s history, mission and structure, as well as its services, policies and procedures.
- A minimum of 10 years of progressive experience in planned giving, with documented ability to manage staff and lead teams; proven success in building productive work teams with a focus on mentoring and staff development.
- A track record of success in securing a wide range of planned gifts (various forms) at the six and seven figure level or above from donors in face-to-face settings, demonstrating a knowledge and ability to identify and develop potential donors and teach that process to others.
- Strong technical knowledge of planned giving process and the instruments used.
- Proven ability to build strong relationships with a variety of volunteers, public leadership, partner organizations, and professional advisors.
- Ability to audit, monitor, and evaluate and promote efficiency and effectiveness of ongoing projects and budgets.
- Highly effective interpersonal, conversational and presentation skills, demonstrating emotional intelligence and situational awareness in tandem with excellent writing abilities.
- Strong analytic and strategic-thinking skills, with demonstrated ability to create, implement, and monitor complex plans and translate those plans into goals and concrete strategies with an inherent ability to influence and build trust, unifying diverse groups and leaders.
- Demonstrated ability to set, achieve or exceed goals and meet deadlines with a natural capability of handling and controlling multiple projects and people. Ability to analyze data and forecast future market trends and develop 3-5 year plans.
- Bachelor’s Degree, preferably in Economics, Business, Marketing or Communications. Advanced degree in Law, CFRE or other fundraising or planned giving certifications are preferred.
- Career track record that shows stability with an organization and capacity to develop and strengthen relationships, culminating in overall success.
- Willingness to travel up to 30% of the time within the Territory, some overnight travel required. A valid driver’s license is required.
This position offers a competitive benefits package. The position will have access to a fleet vehicle for travel out to the Divisions. The finalist for this role will be required to submit to a full background and reference check.
The Salvation Army is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Minority / Female / Disabled / Veterans. In compliance with the ADA Amendments Act, if you have a disability and would like to request an accommodation in order to apply for this position, please call 847-294-2166.
To Apply
Candidates can apply by clicking the APPLY NOW button below
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This search is being managed by Heather Eddy, President and CEO of Kistner Eddy Executive Services (KEES). No applications will be accepted via email. Questions may be addressed to Sue Bultman at
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