ABOUT CITY HARVEST City Harvest is New York's first and largest food rescue organization, helping to feed millions of New Yorkers who struggle to put meals on their tables. During our 40 years serving New Yorkers in need, we have rescued more than one billion pounds of fresh, nutritious food and delivered it free of charge to hundreds of food pantries, soup kitchens, community partners, and our own Mobile Markets across the five boroughs. This year, we will rescue and distribute more than 77 million pounds of nutritious food to our neighbors in need. City Harvest works alongside our community partners to boost community capacity, expand nutrition education, and strengthen local food systems. Since our founding in 1982, City Harvest has always been there to feed our city one day, one meal, one New Yorker at a time.
JOB OVERVIEW City Harvest seeks a Major Gifts Officer with 5-10 years of fundraising experience to work on a dynamic fundraising team. The Major Gifts Officer is a motivated, strategic, and experienced fundraiser with a demonstrated success identifying soliciting, cultivating, and closing individual five and six-figure gifts.
This is an exciting chance to join a high-performing, vibrant team at a pivotal moment in City Harvest's history. The Major Gifts team is a collaborative, results-oriented, and passionate group, and this role will significantly contribute to the team's goals of raising funds to fuel City Harvest's vital work.
The Major Gifts Officer will focus on a portfolio of donors with the capacity to give at least $50,000 annually, and is responsible for building relationships to educate, inspire, and steward these City Harvest donors. This person will collaborate across the External Relations team (including Special Events, Business Partnerships, Marketing and Communications, Institutional Partnerships, and Volunteer Programs) to cultivate and engage prospects and supporters.
Reporting to the Director of Major Gifts and partnering closely with other gift officers on the Major Gifts team, this role will be critical to developing a portfolio that will contribute to our long-term growth. Frontline fundraising or equivalent experience required and a strong commitment to the mission of the City Harvest is essential.
To complete your application, please submit your
resume and a cover letter detailing your qualifications and interest in the role.
RESPONSIBILITIES - Manage a portfolio of 125-150 individual donors with the capacity to make at least a $50,000 gift. Engage key long-term, new, and prospective donors to generate a substantial portion of the department's annual revenue goal of $14M+.
- Create, execute and track strategy for all donors in assigned donor portfolio. Translate short and long-term strategies into targeted goals and actions to drive donor satisfaction and result in year-over-year renewals, with a focus on upgrading existing supporters and converting prospects into major donors.
- Develop and refine strategies for engaging donors through Executive Team members.
- In collaboration with other colleagues on the Major Gifts team, develop cultivation, appeal, and stewardship strategy for major donors. Bring new, creative ideas to the table for donor engagement.
- Working with the Special Events and Individual Giving team, manage cultivation events for new and existing donors.
- Collaborate closely with other members of the External Relations team and throughout the organization to ensure we are utilizing City Harvest resources as effectively as possible to cultivate, steward and solicit support.
- Become a City Harvest "expert" and excel in telling our story. Act as a spokesperson for the organization as needed to bring in funding, new partners, etc. Work closely with various parts of the organization to organize site visits and bring our work to life for donors and prospective supporters.
- Related projects as assigned.
REQUIREMENTS - At least five years of fundraising (or equivalent) experience.
- At least three years of personally soliciting five-figure individual gifts, consistently meeting or exceeding revenue targets. Experience working in a major gift environment that frequently utilizes special events is a plus.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills.
- Proven ability to successfully develop strong relationships with donors with the presence and personal style to represent the organization to multiple constituents.
- Must be able to operate effectively as part of a team and independently. Enjoys collaboration and works well on cross-functional teams.
- The ideal candidate is able to provide outstanding customer service to internal and external stakeholders.
- Analytical approach to fundraising, especially the ability to prioritize donors and identify prospects. Must be comfortable and able to work effectively with numbers, budgets, and data.
- Strategic mindset with an ability to think and focus on both the near- and long-term.
- Strong attention to detail.
- Effective problem-solving skills.
- The ideal individual adapts to changes in a fast-paced work environment and deals easily with unexpected events. Comfortable with managing multiple projects and deadlines.
- Sense of humor and curiosity to learn.
- Fluency in working with databases, preferably Raisers Edge.
- Available evenings and weekends for donor visits and events as needed.
- Available to work onsite at least 3 days per weeks.
WHY CHOOSE CITY HARVEST? There are many fantastic reasons to choose a career with City Harvest. In addition to fighting food insecurity in New York, City Harvest offers the following Benefits and Rewards:
- Competitive market salaries
- Generous time off
- Full benefits (medical, dental, vision) with employer contributions towards premiums
- Employer-provided life insurance
- 403(b) retirement savings plan with employer-matching
- Professional development opportunities
- Free Mental Health Services with Better Help
- Commuter Benefits
- Discounted staff perks (e.g., movie tickets, gym memberships, cellular plans)
At City Harvest, we enjoy working in a team-based environment and value the benefits of a diversified workplace. City Harvest is an Equal Opportunity Employer.