Senior Donor Relations Officer

You: The champion who turns belief in liberty into the resources to defend it. Every case PLF wins starts with someone who chose to fund the fight. You'll be that person's trusted partner. You'll get to know what drives our donors, show them the real impact of their giving, and invite them to make bold investments in freedom.

Them: Bureaucrats, city councils, mayors, governors, and federal agencies stripping Americans of their rights every day. There’s a lot of government overreach out there, and it’s backed by seemingly endless resources. But fortunately, like all lumbering giants, abusive government is most vulnerable when countered by individuals who act strategically and nimbly, take calculated risks, have each other’s backs, and are confident in and passionate for the cause—the very sort of swashbucklers we employ in spades here at PLF.

Us: We fight back. Pacific Legal Foundation is the nation’s first and most successful public interest law firm dedicated to vindicating individual liberty. PLF has an unmatched record in the United States Supreme Court, with 18 victories out of 21 litigated at the Court—including three victories last term. We also have nearly two hundred active cases across the nation.

We are a next-generation public interest law firm. That means we aren’t interested in doing the same thing as everyone else. We aspire to be the best player in a constantly changing game.

The Senior Donor Relations Officer is responsible for developing and managing a portfolio of high-capacity current and prospective major gift donors, with responsibility for the identification, qualification, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship of significant philanthropic relationships supporting Pacific Legal Foundation’s mission and strategic priorities.

The Senior Donor Relations Officer will develop and execute sophisticated donor strategies, build meaningful long-term relationships with donors and prospects, and secure significant new, renewed, and increased philanthropic commitments.

The successful candidate will be an accomplished frontline fundraiser with exceptional relationship-building and communication skills, strong fundraising judgment, and a demonstrated record of closing significant major gifts. The position requires a highly organized, persistent, disciplined, and self-directed professional who can operate with substantial independence while collaborating effectively with PLF leadership, attorneys, and Development colleagues.

Getting down to brass tacks, your specific job duties likely will include:

• Managing a portfolio of approximately 100 high-capacity major gift donors and prospects and achieve established fundraising, engagement, and solicitation goals.
• Developing and executing individualized strategies for donor qualification, cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship.
• Personally soliciting and securing significant new, renewed, and increased gifts, including six-figure and seven-figure commitments.
• Building trusted, long-term donor relationships by understanding donors’ interests, motivations, and philanthropic priorities and serving as their primary PLF relationship manager.
• Creating meaningful donor engagement and stewardship opportunities that demonstrate the impact of philanthropy and connect donors to PLF’s litigation, policy, and strategic priorities.
• Strategically engaging PLF executives, attorneys, trustees, and other organizational leaders in donor cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship.
• Identifying and advancing new major gift prospects and recognize opportunities for multi-year, planned, blended, campaign, and other complex gifts in collaboration with Development colleagues.
• Maintaining a disciplined portfolio and moves management, including donor strategies, next steps, solicitation plans, revenue projections, contact reports, and accurate CRM records.
• Contributing to Development team strategy and serve as a resource to colleagues on complex donor relationships and major gift opportunities.

• 8+ years of professional fundraising experience, including substantial frontline major gift experience.
• A demonstrated record of personally cultivating, soliciting, and closing significant major gifts, preferably including six and seven figure commitments.
• Exceptional interpersonal, listening, verbal, and written communication skills, with the ability to build trusted relationships and communicate complex ideas clearly and compellingly.
• Strong strategic judgment, initiative, organization, and personal accountability, with the ability to operate independently in a results-oriented environment.
• Proficiency with fundraising CRM systems and disciplined portfolio and moves management practices.
• A willingness to travel up to 50% throughout the United States, with a heavy focus throughout California, to meet with donors and prospects.
• A sincere appreciation for PLF’s mission

Preferred experience. Previous experience with a pro-liberty organization, legal advocacy organization, public policy organization, or similar mission-driven institution is a plus. Experience with Salesforce or a comparable fundraising CRM is also preferred.

Pacific Legal Foundation identifies and litigates important legal issues to set landmark precedents that will benefit Americans nationwide. Using strategic and principled litigation, communications, and research, we battle for freedom in the nation’s courts and the court of public opinion.

As a national nonprofit organization, PLF has brick-and-mortar offices in Sacramento, California and Arlington, Virginia, although approximately half of the staff work from home offices across the country. You may work from any of our offices or request to work remotely, although strong preference will be given to California-based candidates.

This is a full-time, permanent position. PLF is committed to recruiting and retaining the highest-quality talent available nationwide, and we offer a total compensation package that includes a competitive salary, medical and dental insurance, and employer-paid retirement savings. We take work-life balance seriously through our generous paid leave and flextime policies. To learn more about the starting salary range and benefits options, please apply.

Qualified candidates should submit the following application materials:

• Résumé
• Cover letter detailing the candidate’s sincere interest in Pacific Legal Foundation, its mission, and the Senior Donor Relations Officer position