Job Summary

Reporting to the Major and Institutional Giving Manager, the Philanthropy Officer, Individual and Institutional Giving supports the organization's fundraising goals by building and strengthening relationships with mid-level donors, emerging major gift prospects, foundation partners, and planned giving supporters.

The Philanthropy Officer plays a vital role on the Philanthropy team, helping to raise food, funds, and awareness for The Food Bank of Waterloo Region. This role collaborates closely with colleagues in Marketing and Communications, Donor Relations, Sponsorship, and Partnerships to build strong relationships and advance organizational priorities.

Duties and Responsibilities

The Philanthropy Officer manages a portfolio of mid-level and emerging major donors, develops a pipeline of future major donors, and supports foundation funding, donor stewardship, and planned giving initiatives.

Mid-Level and Emerging Major Donor Management

• Manage a portfolio of mid-level donors and emerging major gift prospects.
• Develop and implement cultivation, solicitation, stewardship, and retention strategies.
• Build and maintain donor relationships through meetings, tours, events, and other engagement opportunities.
• Identify and qualify donors with the potential to increase their support and transition to major giving.
• Prepare donor correspondence, proposals, impact reports, and other stewardship materials.
• Support donor renewals, upgrades, and ongoing engagement.
• Maintain accurate donor records, contact reports, and fundraising plans in Raiser's Edge.
• Monitor portfolio performance and recommend strategies to increase donor engagement and giving.

Major Gift Fundraising Support

• Conduct donor and prospect research to support qualification and cultivation efforts.
• Prepare briefing materials, proposals, presentations, and impact reports.
• Support major donor cultivation activities, including meetings, follow-up, and stewardship communications.
• Track pipeline activity and identify opportunities to advance donor relationships and giving.

Foundation, Institutional Funding, and Planned Giving Support

• Research funding opportunities and support the development of grant applications, proposals, and reports.
• Coordinate proposal development and information gathering with internal stakeholders.
• Monitor funding deadlines, reporting requirements, and deliverables.
• Support stewardship and relationship management activities for foundation and institutional partners.
• Identify planned giving opportunities within donor portfolios and support related communications and stewardship efforts.
• Maintain accurate records of grant activity, planned gifts, and prospect pipelines.

Donor Experience and Fundraising Collaboration

• Coordinate donor recognition, appreciation, and engagement activities.
• Support donor appreciation and fundraising events.
• Collaborate with Marketing and Communications to share donor impact stories and fundraising initiatives.
• Contribute donor insights and opportunities to fundraising planning and strategy discussions.
• Build collaborative relationships across the organization and support special projects that advance fundraising goals.

Perform other duties as required.

Specific examples may vary from year to year as priorities of The Food Bank change.

Minimum Qualifications and Experience

• 3+ years of fundraising, major or mid-level donor engagement, philanthropy, or business development experience.
• Experience managing donor, client, customer, and stakeholder relationships.
• Demonstrated success cultivating relationships and achieving revenue or meeting fundraising goals.
• Experience preparing donor communications, proposals, grant applications, presentations, and reports.
• Experience using Raiser's Edge or a comparable CRM.
• Strong organizational and project management skills.
• Post secondary education or equivalent experience.

• Experience in the nonprofit sector.
• CFRE designation or fundraising certification is considered an asset.
• Knowledge of legacy giving principles is an asset.

What Success Looks Like

The successful candidate will:

• Build and steward a high-performing mid-level donor portfolio.

• Identify and transition qualified mid-level donors into the major gifts pipeline.

• Deliver exceptional stewardship experiences that improve retention and donor satisfaction.

• Increase the number of qualified major gift and legacy giving prospects.

• Contribute to successful grant applications, reporting, and stewardship activities.

• Provide meaningful support to the Manager's strategic fundraising initiatives and help strengthen the overall philanthropy program.

Location and Hours

The Food Bank of Waterloo Region is located at 50 Alpine Court in Kitchener, Ontario.

This position is primarily on-site. Employees may be eligible for a hybrid work schedule upon successful completion of the probationary period.

Hours of work are generally 8:30 am and 4:30 pm, Monday-Friday. Additionally, to meet the objectives of The Food Bank and commitments to our volunteers, members, and community, some irregular hours may be required. This would include no more than two evenings a week and/or two weekends a month.

Compensation

The expected starting salary for this role is $78,358 per annum.

The maximum compensation for this role is $95,210 per annum, which may be achieved through progression, performance, and tenure.

Reporting Structure and Working Relationships

The Philanthropy Officer, Individual & Institutional Giving reports to the Major and Institutional Giving Manager.

This role is an integral part of our Fund-Raising team.

A significant amount of time in this role is spent working with members of the public and other members of The Food Bank.

Required Work Capacities (Skills and Abilities)

Physical demands:

• 70% standing or walking on concrete surfaces (indoor and outdoor).
• 30% desk or computer work including meetings.
• Some bending and/or twisting of back and neck.
• Some lifting, carrying, pushing, pulling from/to floor and from/to/above shoulder.
• Some sustained or awkward positioning.
• Sustained activities requiring far and near vision, computer screens, speaking and hearing.
• Physical environment: indoors, shared office space with some exposure to warehouse (some exposure to cold/heat, dust and dirt, noise, and fumes).
• Some local travel within Waterloo region (i.e., to internal or external events, potential donor events) is required.

Social, emotional, and cognitive demands:

• Superior attention to detail and accuracy.
• Effective organizational and time management skills with the ability to work efficiently and manage multiple projects, deadlines, and priorities.
• Strong project management skills with the ability to move projects forward, set goals and priorities, and create and implement action plans.
• Exceptional communication skills and political acuity with the ability to communicate clearly and tactfully with a diverse group of internal and external stakeholders.
• Highly developed interpersonal, collaboration, and relationship-building skills with the ability to cultivate and maintain strong relationships with internal and external stakeholders.
• Sound judgement and problem-solving skills with the ability to make decisions and resolve conflict effectively.
• Creativity with the ability to develop innovative solutions to resolve issues.
• Adaptability, analytical thinking, and initiative.
• Teamwork.
• Working closely with colleagues, management, and current and prospective sponsors and donors.

What benefits does The Food Bank offer?

Some benefits and perks provided by The Food Bank of Waterloo Region include*:

• Competitive salaries/wages! We're a proud certified Living Wage Employer (Ontario Living Wage Network). We believe that all employees should be paid an hourly wage that allows them to meet their basic needs (such as food, shelter, and clothing) while also participating in community life.
• Dental, drug, and supplemental healthcare coverage for individuals, couples, or family.
• A mental health and wellbeing focus with short-term counselling and resources provided by our Employee Assistance Program (EAP) and up to $1000 per year in counselling services.
• Vision care coverage.
• An RRSP matching program.
• A Healthcare Spending Account and Lifestyle Spending Account to expand on coverage available to employees.
• A Bring Your Own Device allowance to cover work-related cell phone use ($ depending on role).
• Professional dues and association fee coverage.
• A generous time off package, including paid vacation, sick and family responsibility days, floating days, and a birthday holiday off.
• Hybrid work environment (where applicable).
• Closing early on Fridays in the summer.

*some benefits may depend on employment status, such as full-time permanent employment.

No phone calls please. Only candidates selected for an interview will be contacted.

This posting is to fill an existing vacancy.

At The Food Bank of Waterloo Region, we use AI-enabled tools to assess applications; however, all recruitment decisions are reviewed by a human.