Major Gifts Director
Arlington Heights, IL
Full Time
Mid Level
Major Gifts Director
Reports to: Executive Director
Compensation: $50,000 - $65,000
Metropolis Performing Arts Centre is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit arts organization located in the heart of Arlington Heights, Illinois. It houses a 329-seat professional theater and a school of performing arts offering drama, dance, and music lessons to artists of all ages. Metropolis’ mission is to create an artistic home for performers, students, and audience members by making the arts accessible in our community.
SUMMARY OF POSITION:
Metropolis Performing Arts Centre is seeking a strategic and relationship-driven Major Gifts Director to lead and expand our major donor program during an important period of organizational growth. Reporting to the Executive Director, this role will focus on cultivating, soliciting, and stewarding major donors while working collaboratively with the Development team to support overall fundraising strategy and long-term sustainability. This is an opportunity for an experienced fundraiser to take ownership of philanthropic work and contribute meaningfully to the stability of the organization. This is primarily an in-person role to support relationship-building with donors, artists, students, and community members, with the possibility of one remote workday per week.
KEY RESPONSIBILITIES:
- Manage and grow a portfolio of major donors and prospects
- Identify, cultivate, solicit, and steward individual gifts at the $5,000+ level
- Develop and execute individualized donor engagement strategies
- Partner with the Executive Director and Artistic Director on high-level donor cultivation and solicitation
- Track and report progress toward major gift revenue goals
- Maintain accurate records and activity tracking within the CRM
- Collaborate with the Development team to align major gift efforts with annual fundraising priorities
- Support donor development across all giving levels
- Participate in development planning discussions and revenue forecasting
- Contribute to donor communications and stewardship strategies
- Present updates to leadership and relevant board committees as needed
- Play an active role in advancing major fundraising initiatives, including capital campaigns and large-scale efforts, through strategic donor engagement and relationship-building
- In partnership with leadership and board members, build and actively manage a portfolio of 40 - 60 major gift prospects.
- Secure at least 3 new or increased $5,000+ gifts within the first 6 months.
- Secure 7 - 10 new $5,000+ gifts within the first 12 months, with intentional cultivation of leadership-level gifts above $10,000.
- Strengthen donor retention and increase average gift size through thoughtful, personalized stewardship.
- Develop clear cultivation plans for top prospects and collaborate with leadership and board members on strategic outreach.
- Create and oversee a volunteer committee to support events
QUALIFICATIONS:
- Minimum 3 - 7 years of nonprofit fundraising experience with demonstrated success securing major gifts
- Minimum Bachelor’s Degree preferred
- Proven ability to build and sustain strong donor relationships
- Experience developing and executing cultivation strategies
- Strong written and verbal communication skills
- Ability to work collaboratively within a team environment
- Familiarity with CRM systems and data-informed decision-making
- Proficiency in Microsoft Office and Google Suite
- Experience partnering with executive leadership in donor strategy
- Comfort participating in board reporting
- Background or strong interest in the arts, theater, or cultural nonprofit work
GROWTH OPPORTUNITY:
This role is more than meeting fundraising goals, it’s about helping sustain a creative home for our community. As an arts organization with an award-winning school and programming that serves all people, we believe deeply in the power of storytelling. We are seeking a fundraiser who sees donors as partners in that mission, someone who values authentic relationships over transactions and approaches philanthropy with care and long-term vision. This position offers the opportunity to grow alongside the organization and to build meaningful connections with supporters who believe in the arts.Metropolis Performing Arts Centre is committed to diversity and inclusion in the workplace, and
provides equal employment opportunities to all employees and applicants for employment and
prohibits discrimination and harassment of any type without regard to race, color, religion, age, sex, national origin, disability status, genetics, protected veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, or any other characteristic protected by federal, state, or local laws. This policy applies to all terms and conditions of employment, including recruiting, hiring, placement, promotion, termination, layoffs, leaves of absence, compensation, and training.
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