Title: Director/Senior Director of Data & Information Systems

Employee Classification: AP - Administrative Professional 

Pay Grade: GS 0

Division: Advancement

Subdivision: VP Advancement

Department: EMU Foundation and Advancement

Campus Location: Main Campus

General Summary

This newly created position plays a crucial role in supporting the operations of the EMU Foundation’s philanthropic endeavors. This position works closely with the Assistant Vice President for Advancement Services and Strategic Solutions to drive continuous improvement through the strategic use of data and technologies. With a focus on fundraising activities, the Director/Senior Director of Data & Information Systems collaborates with team members and cross-functionally with the Advancement team to champion organization-wide use of the Foundation's philanthropic data and systems.

Principal Duties and Responsibilities

Supervisory relationships:

• Reports to: Assistant Vice President of Advancement Services and Strategic Solutions.
• Direct reports (4): Senior Information Systems Data Specialist, Gift Processing Coordinator, Analyst, Data Services & Information Systems, Gift Processor.

Key Performance Measures/Deliverables:

Execute Data and Insight-Driven Action Plan

• Establish a Data Governance Committee.
• Create a suite of standard reports within Raiser’s Edge and train the team on the use of self-service reporting.
• Identify existing policies and procedures, and revise as appropriate.
• Data Strategy & Systems Administration.
• Develop strategic plans for technology data platforms, analytics and data health efforts, gift processing and biographic data maintenance; implement plans at a tactical level.
• Manage and optimize the Foundation's data systems, including the current Blackbaud Raiser’s Edge CRM platform and related applications.
• Oversee data quality and integrity across all, establishing data hygiene practices including a calendar of data health efforts, conducting data audits, and implementing data governance policies.
• Develop and maintain standard operating procedures (SOPs) for data management.
• Stay up to date on CRM technology trends and evaluate potential solutions for future system needs.

Data Analysis & Reporting

• Provides vision, leadership and oversight to Data Reporting and Analytics, Gift Administration, Data Integrity and Health, and IT to maximize fundraising impact, growth and constituent engagement.
• Create reports and dashboards that provide valuable insights into fundraising performance, donor engagement, and campaign effectiveness.
• Design, program, automate and routinize standard reports while proactively analyzing data trends to identify actionable insights.
• Present data-driven recommendations to the Foundation Leadership Team to inform strategic decision-making.

Process Improvement

• Proactively identify opportunities to improve efficiency within the Foundation's data operations, including formulating recommendations on how data is used.
• Partner with team members to gather requirements, analyze workflows, and identify areas for improvement.
• Conduct research and recommend solutions that leverage data and technology to streamline processes and enhance effectiveness.

Training, Support & Thought Leadership

• Serve as the subject matter expert for the Foundation's philanthropic systems and data.
• Encourage adoption of and proficiency with our systems and data by setting a forward-thinking tone with an innate curiosity for technology solution application, including the use of AI or other advanced technologies.
• Provide ongoing support to staff members and troubleshoot reported issues.

Strategic Execution

• Collaborate with the Assistant Vice President to execute the strategic vision for Advancement data and systems.
• Translate strategies into project plans with actionable tasks and manage the implementation. Execute the 2-Year Strategic Data Plan while clearly defining priorities.
• Work cross-functionally to align processes and systems with Foundation goals/priorities.

Team Supervision

• Supervises Gift Administration, ensuring appropriate policies and procedures for donor, gift and fund record management and appropriate policies and guidelines for gift acceptance and compliance with EMUF guidelines and Council for Advancement and Support of Education (CASE) guidelines.
• Supervises Data Reporting and Analytics, ensuring coordination and optimization of data entry and maintenance projects, maximization of EMUF’s CRM (Raiser’s Edge), and deployment of reporting and analytics.
• Supervises and oversees the growth, maintenance and enhancement of technological proficiency and tools amongst the entire EMUF team, including training and support.
• Serves as a lead member of the Data Governance team.

Minimum Qualifications:

This newly created position will join the EMU Foundation as either a Director or Senior Director, depending on the candidate’s experience and skills. The team seeks a strategically focused, forward thinking data professional with experience supporting the mission of a philanthropic organization. The successful candidate will have a Bachelor’s degree and 5-7 years of experience, or an equivalent combination of education and experience. Prior experience with our software and systems (Blackbaud Raiser’s Edge, GiveCampus, Almabase, NetCommunity, iWave) is desirable.

Specific requirements include:

Key Skills

• Aptitude and appetite for learning new technologies.
• A commitment to integrity and professional ethics in working with confidential donor information as this requires discretion, ethical awareness, and strict compliance with privacy and security practices.
• Passion for and commitment to the University and Foundation's mission and values.
• Familiarity with fundraising and donor engagement best practices is helpful but not required.
• Ability to work independently and collaboratively in a fast-paced team environment and to form effective partnerships with colleagues.

Key Competencies

• Strong analytical and problem-solving abilities, with a focus on data accuracy and actionable insights.
• Excellent communication and teamwork skills, with the ability to effectively convey complex processes and data insights to non-technical stakeholders.
• Strong project management skills, with the ability to manage multiple tasks and projects simultaneously, are highly beneficial.

Education

• Bachelor’s degree in information technology, business analytics, or related fields is required OR the equivalent combination of education and experience.

Experience

• An understanding of relational database structures is required.
• Prior experience working with CRM platforms and integration tools is required; proficiency with Blackbaud Raiser’s Edge or similar CRM is preferred.
• Proficiency with office productivity tools (Office 365 or Google Suite) is essential, with an emphasis on Outlook, SharePoint, Teams, Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.
• Experience with data governance, data quality assessment, and business process improvement is beneficial.
• Experience with data visualization tools (e.g., Tableau, Power BI) and marketing platforms (e.g., MailChimp) is beneficial.

Personal competencies

• Flexible and adaptable; naturally curious.
• Social Intelligence: give grace and assistance to others.
• Serves as a Player-Coach moving between hands-on and strategic work.
• Solution-oriented/Identifies new opportunities.
• Results and goal oriented.
• Excellent communications skills; communicates confidently.

Eastern Michigan University Foundation offers a competitive salary and comprehensive benefits package including health, dental and life insurance; a retirement plan with 4% employer contribution; an outstanding vacation and time off policy; a tuition waiver program and much more. The salary range for this position is $110,000 - $120,000 annually.

This hybrid-position is based in Ypsilanti, Michigan.

Appointment Percentage:

100%