Description:
The Prospect Research Officer is an essential member of the Advancement Operations team. The role provides strategic information and informed assessments to prioritize and focus the efforts of Development staff on a discrete pool of individual, corporations, and foundation prospects. By augmenting knowledge of existing and potential future donors, using an increasingly diverse body of resources, the Prospect Research Officer enhances and enables efficiency for the school’s leadership, development, and alumni relations team at Ivey.
Responsibilities:
Research Profiles & Briefs
- Researches and analyzes funding sources (individuals, corporations, and foundations) and their potential to give major philanthropic gifts to Ivey.
- Prepares detailed, in-depth prospect profiles which assess and calculate complex financial information relating to a prospect’s capacity to give, in addition to the tracing of a prospects’ connections to Ivey and Western, philanthropic history, family affiliations, and career path.
- Evaluates and analyzes researched information to make strategic recommendations regarding abilities and desires of major donors within the prospect profile.
- Consults and collaborates with development team on plans and strategies for the identification and cultivation of major donors.
- Supports the Manager to develop and deliver technology and training initiatives to the development team on prospect research techniques and resources, ensuring that prospect information is made more accessible for fundraisers.
Prospect Identification
- Researches and analyzes funding sources (individuals, corporations, and foundations) and their potential.
- Identifies major gift prospects for specific priority projects, geographic or faculty areas through complex constituent list segmentation and electronic database screening.
- Suggest the top prospects for cultivation.
- Conceptualizes and implements proactive prospecting methodologies to support fundraising goals to the Manager.
- Identifies new information resources and practices to support fundraising efforts.
Technology & Training
- Supports the Manager to develop and deliver technology and training initiatives to the development team on prospect research techniques and resources, ensuring that prospect information is made more accessible for fundraisers.
Qualifications:
Education and Experience:
- A university degree, preferably a master’s degree in library & information science.
- Minimum of 2 years’ experience in a research environment, preferably in a university advancement department.