Temporary, full-time position (07/14/2025 to 07/16/2027)

Guelph, ON

Are you a seasoned fundraising professional with a passion for agriculture, sustainability, and building meaningful donor relationships? Do you want to make a direct impact on the future of food, the environment, and rural communities?

The University of Guelph is hiring an Associate Director of Development to join the Ontario Agricultural College (OAC) – a global leader in agricultural and environmental innovation. In this pivotal role, you’ll drive major and principal gift fundraising efforts in support of the OAC’s top priorities, helping to advance a sustainable future for communities in Canada and beyond.

Reporting to the Director of OAC Advancement, you’ll lead a high-performing development team and manage a portfolio of donors and prospects with the capacity to make transformational contributions. You’ll collaborate closely with faculty, senior leadership, and internal advancement partners to cultivate relationships, prepare compelling donor materials, and secure impactful gifts that shape the future of the College.

If you’re a strategic leader with a proven track record in major gift fundraising and a strong belief in the power of philanthropy to create change, we’d love to hear from you.

 Your key responsibilities will include:

• Identifying, cultivating, soliciting, and stewarding major and principal-level donors and prospects through the fundraising cycle.
• Maintaining a robust pipeline of 60-80 major and principal-level donors.
• Preparing briefing materials to support Senior Administration (President, VPs, AVPs, Deans, Directors) fundraising activity.
• Collaborating with the Director, Major Gift Advancement and other internal partners to identify university priorities that will resonate with donors e.g., faculty support, and capital projects.
• Creating and presenting materials to advance fundraising solicitations and negotiating the closure of major and principal-level gifts, including the creation of gift agreements and other supporting documentation.
• Managing a team of two development staff members, which may include recruitment and training.
• Undertake complex planned giving discussions with donors, friends, and alumni to promote planned giving to achieve OAC’s fundraising priorities and create a legacy for donors on campus.
• Participate in the stewardship of alumni, friends, and corporations, and work closely with the Stewardship Engagement Manager – includes taking personal leadership on gift announcements/communications and supporting partners to implement gifts.
• Contribute to strategic planning for OAC and other University initiatives along with fellow members of the Major Gift Advancement team.
• Help develop and implement a long-term fundraising strategy for OAC aligned with the overall AA&D multi-year and annual strategic plans, and work with other members of the team to implement the various projects and initiatives reflected in the strategic plan.

We believe that fundraising is a team sport and building strong internal relationships is key to success. The Associate Director will work collaboratively with both the Alumni Affairs and Development team members as well as the OAC Senior Leadership team members.

Requirements 

• 6 years of experience in university or other public sector fundraising experience, with a proven track record of success securing principal and major gifts from a variety of stakeholders.
• Completion of an undergraduate degree.
• CFRE is preferred but not mandatory.
• Experience leading and managing team members, volunteers, and working with senior staff.
• Advanced knowledge of the business community and related issues and challenges.
• Ability to engage in senior leadership in a variety of sectors at a strategic level.
• Superior strategic planning, people management, and administrative skills to lead an advancement team, ensuring fundraisers and other team members have both individual and group success.
• Superior interpersonal communications skills, including effective relationship building and experience working with individuals in senior or high-profile positions.
• Leadership and motivation skills, with proven ability to lead groups towards completion of long-term goals in dynamic environments.
• Experience with all aspects of the advancement environment, from alumni engagement, high-volume annual giving approaches to personal principal and major giving, to planned and legacy giving.
• Ability to think and act quickly and effectively under pressure, exercising tact, diplomacy, discretion, and good judgment.
• Experience with public relations, communications, and alumni relations programs.
• Successful experience managing personnel with diverse job requirements, both unionized and professional.
• Experience managing the personnel and resource requirements of competing projects and transitions between projects.
• Experience implementing complex processes and overlapping cycles of activity.

NOTE: The University has adopted a policy relative to flexible work arrangements. This appointment is regularly performed on campus but is eligible for a flexible work arrangement under the terms of this policy.

The University of Guelph (www.uoguelph.ca) is one of Canada’s leading research-intensive comprehensive institutions, with a record of outstanding scholarship in the arts, humanities, social sciences, life sciences, physical and engineering sciences, agriculture, and veterinary sciences. This is your chance to join us in our endeavor to improve life. 

To view a detailed posting for the role of Associate Director Development, please go to our website at https://careers.uoguelph.ca/.

At the University of Guelph, fostering a culture of inclusion is an institutional imperative. The University invites and encourages applications from all qualified individuals, including from groups that are traditionally underrepresented in employment, who may contribute to further diversification of our Institution.