This senior-level fundraising position engages with professional estate planning and wealth advisors, as well as current and potential individual donors, to support charitable gift planning, and with staff members, to provide technical assistance.
Success in the Sr. Charitable Estate Planning Advisor role requires mastery of the American Heart Association's mission, gift options, and latest initiatives and programs to inspire and engage donors and professional advisors on the many opportunities to financially support the Association, alongside technical expertise to facilitate giving to the Association using a variety of gift vehicles.
This individual encourages participation, builds strategic relationships, and consults with members of the American Heart Association’s growing Professional Advisor Network, which includes estate planning attorneys, financial planners, and other planning professionals involved in advising potential and active donors to the Association. The Senior Advisor cultivates and stewards current and prospective donors, both virtually and in-person, traveling as needed for visits and making presentations to donors and small groups to support building future interest in planned giving to the American Heart Association.
In addition, the Senior Advisor serves as a subject matter expert on charitable estate giving opportunities, increasing awareness among volunteers and staff, and working with regional and national staff to coordinate charitable estate gift planning program activities with other organizational efforts.
Responsibilities related to Professional Advisors:
- Develops and implements a strategic action plan to identify, qualify, and build high-engagement relationships with professional advisors, developing the Association's Professional Advisor Network.
- Leverages many marketing and communications resources, events, and tools available, including special events, direct mail, newsletters, websites, email communications, social media messages, etc., with the purpose of generating quality interaction with professionals and their clients.
- Provides consultation as needed for technical solicitations and creation of formal proposals involving estate planning advisors and other projects as requested.
- Responsible for writing one technical article a month on a technical topic that will be featured in both internal and external publications.
- Responsible for recruiting speakers and topics for internal webinars (donor and advisor facing) and serving as host for these presentations.
- Work closely and collaborate with the broader MA team and markets to develop blended gift proposals and asks and increase noncash assets.
- Responsible for attending conferences – both nationally and regionally to promote PAN and build relationships and partnerships.
Responsibilities related to Donors & Prospective Donors:
- Responsible for donor cultivation and stewardship, including but not limited to personal visits, calls, written correspondence, and presentations.
- Responsible for generating new leads and following up on all leads received from individuals in the assigned territory, requesting charitable estate planning information from the Association.
- Supplies charitable estate planning illustrations using Crescendo Interactive software.
- Supplies information and reviews estate plans with prospective donors to potentially obtain a gift commitment for the Association. Recommends specific estate gift planning actions in support of donor goals.
Key Competencies and Experience Requirements
- Superb interpersonal skills and ability to build productive, beneficial relationships with a broad range of constituencies, excellent interpersonal skills, tact, and diplomacy.
- Excellent written and verbal communication skills, including the ability to effectively communicate Association priorities to professional advisors, donors, and prospects, make presentations, and represent the Association positively and professionally.
- Ability to handle multiple tasks, to assess and order priorities, and to track details in a fast-paced environment.
- Prioritize and balance priorities with professional advisors, donors, and prospects.
- Ability to meet priority reporting and deadlines on multiple projects.
- Ability to develop materials, including advisor- and donor-facing presentations, documents, and correspondence; as well as public-facing white papers and articles, in a timely and professional manner.
- Ability to document plans, progress, and results in the Association’s Salesforce Customer Relationship Management system in an accurate and timely manner.
