Summary
Description
WHO WE ARE
The Humane League (THL) is a global nonprofit ending the abuse of animals raised for food. THL fosters a high-energy culture of teamwork and mission-driven problem solving, and we have earned recognition as Top Charity from Animal Charity Evaluators for all of their rating periods. Over the past few years, we’ve grown to a staff of 100+ talented individuals dispersed across the country and around the world. At THL, how animals are treated in the food system is at the forefront of our everyday work. As such, many of our staff are vegan by personal choice, and all of our THL-hosted events offer fully vegan menus. We welcome all mission-aligned candidates to apply, no matter where you are in your journey to end the abuse of animals raised for food.
YOUR OPPORTUNITY
As Donor Relations Specialist, you will work closely with the Sr. Associate Director, Donor Relations to plan and execute the stewardship of THL’s donors who give up to $500 annually, including those who are part of our monthly giving program, The Heart Beat. Your role is to nurture these donors and ensure their experiences with THL are nothing short of exceptional. You’ll also assist with prospect research and identify donors who may be primed to advance to gift officers on the Donor Relations team for deeper relationship-building. Our Annual Fund and monthly donors are the backbone of our organization, providing vital operating support on an annual basis. As their liaison, you will work to keep them informed and engaged, which is key to their ongoing involvement with THL.
This role requires excellent communication, project management, problem-solving, and organizational skills, along with a collaborative, curious, and donor-centric mindset. This position reports directly to the Sr. Associate Director, Donor Relations.
This is a full-time, remote position. This position requires domestic and/or international travel, equivalent to 2 or more trips per year. Because THL is a global organization, you may be required to work occasional hours outside of 9am – 5pm, depending on your time zone.
We will be holding a webinar on March 26th at 5:00pm PT/6:00pm MT/7:00pm CT/8:00pm ET for you to find out more about the role and ask any questions you may have. The webinar will be hosted by Jon Camp, Sr. Associate Director of Donor Relations, and Aimee Drugan, Sr. Donor Relations Lead. If you’re interested in attending, please register here. As a webinar, you’ll only be able to see the presenter and not others watching.You can submit any questions you would like answered regarding the role or The Humane League via this form. Please submit any questions by Tuesday, March 25th. The webinar recording will be available to watch on the job posting by Thursday, March 27th, and you will receive a copy of the webinar if you have registered.
This position has a priority application deadline of Friday, April 4th, 2025 at 11:59 pm EDT. Applications received after this date will be reviewed on a rolling basis. If you are experiencing technical issues, please contact careers@thehumaneleague.org prior to the deadline. Please submit applications and all supporting documents in English. All application questions and materials need to be submitted here through the application submission, we do not accept applications through our careers email.
ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS
The Heart Beat Stewardship (40%)
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Plan and execute the donor journey for The Heart Beat, including stewardship touchpoints (emails, promotions, merchandise, brochures, postcards, texts, etc.)
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Collaborate with the Director of Advancement to ensure that stewardship plans are integrated with and/or support annual giving campaigns, themes, and strategies.
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Serve as the staff liaison to Heart Beat donors to provide them with the information and care they need to build their engagement with THL.
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Manage email automations, landing page, and decline and reactivation processes for Heart Beat donors.
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Track Heart Beat retention, membership, upgrades, and lapses over time; share data with the Director of Advancement to inform their solicitation strategy. Identify and prevent failing recurring gifts and track trends.
Annual Fund Stewardship (40%)
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Update printed acknowledgement letters, as needed and on a regular schedule.
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Manage all stewardship-related email automations in THL’s donor database, EveryAction. Coordinate with the Donor Relations, Advancement, and Communications teams regarding strategy and project management.
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Conceive, craft, and execute stewardship touchpoints for Annual Fund donors, including contributing content ideas for events managed by the Events and Engagement Lead.
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Create a thoughtful experience for donors who make third party, memorial, tribute, and peer-to-peer gifts.
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Provide excellent customer service to donors, fielding phone, email, and website inquiries.
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Provide additional stewardship expertise and assistance to the Donor Relations team, including supporting THL’s other giving societies, as needed.
Prospect Research (20%)
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Analyze biographical, financial, and other data obtained from internal or external sources to determine donors’ capacity and inclination to give.
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Proactively recommend mid-level, major gift, and legacy giving prospects to the appropriate colleagues on the Donor Relations team.
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Organize prospect research files and create and improve prospect research SOPs.
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Collaborate with the Development Operations Manager, as needed; for example, to recommend bulk wealth screenings.
In addition to the above essential job duties, other duties may be assigned as business needs arise. These may include non-essential, marginal job duties.
REQUIRED SKILLS
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Experience: 1+ year of direct experience in fundraising, customer success, account management, or grassroots organizing. 1+ year of experience with relational databases.
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Organization and Project Management: Experience in project management, with the ability to establish timelines and drive project execution. Ability to work on multiple projects simultaneously, prioritize and manage time effectively, and adjust expectations as new developments occur. Engages with internal processes, participates in process execution and documentation, identifies areas for improvement, and contributes to routine system maintenance.
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Data Analysis: Ability to perform basic data analysis, manage data entry, and generate reports, leveraging relational databases and spreadsheets.
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Strategic Thinking and Problem Solving: Ability to solve problems, apply solutions, and suggest process improvements, with a solid understanding of how tasks contribute to team and organizational goals. Assists in gathering data and preparing reports that support strategic planning efforts.
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Decision Making: Ability to make sound decisions with guidance from the Sr. Associate Director, Donor Relations. Applies established procedures and practices, gathers and analyzes relevant information to support decision-making, and actively seeks feedback. Ability to maintain the highest degree of confidentiality regarding all aspects of work.
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Initiative, Proactivity, and Adaptability: Solid capacity to take initiative, work independently, and follow through to execute on project ideas. Consistently seeks out additional responsibilities and ways to improve processes and increase efficiency. Adjusts to changes and adapts to new team dynamics as needed.
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Verbal and Written Communication: Communicates clearly and effectively with colleagues and donors, in both verbal and written formats. Ability to write in a persuasive and donor-centric manner. Provides stakeholders with concise and relevant updates on tasks and projects.
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Teamwork and Collaboration: Collaborates successfully with team members by completing assigned tasks, participating in group discussions, and responsively assisting colleagues. Contributes to a positive team culture, supporting the creation of an environment where diverse ideas are valued. Participates in training sessions and assists in delivering training materials. Demonstrated ability to explain job tasks clearly and help others grasp fundamental concepts.
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Interpersonal Skills: Excellent interpersonal skills, with a high level of emotional intelligence, empathy, and diplomacy. Ability to build rapport with donors and colleagues, developing and maintaining positive relationships.
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Global Perspective: Approaches fundraising with a comprehensive understanding of the global nature of the organization’s programs, ensuring that global aspects of the work are supported effectively.
Hiring Timeline
Once your application has been reviewed, you will be notified via email with further details on the status of your application. If a candidate is moved forward, the interview process will be as follows:
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Work Simulation Exercise (completed remotely)
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Interview (via video call)
Each stage is expected to last a week or two on average. For full details of our full-time position recruitment process please review this document (this will vary for temporary roles, please see the above bullet points for this role's specific stages).
Compensation and Benefits
The annual compensation range for this role is $63,166 – $75,448 USD. At The Humane League, we believe in maintaining a fair and nondiscriminatory work environment for all employees. As part of this commitment, we have implemented a job architecture framework, which levels all of our roles according to size and complexity, as well as a compensation step system, which allows us to account for an individual's total years of related experience when determining their compensation. In addition, we have adopted a no negotiation policy for salaries. To determine a job's level, we carefully consider a variety of factors, including a job's size and complexity, required experience, knowledge, and/or skills, internal comparability, and market data. To determine final compensation, experience will be measured by considering prior work in jobs or activities that are related to the role at THL. Candidates whose experience places them at step 5 or above of their job level within our compensation structure will be awarded a senior designation. These practices are aligned with our organizational values and help us ensure we maintain clear, consistent, and transparent HR processes.
Employees enjoy full medical coverage, optional dental and vision packages, paid sick leave, a 401(k) retirement plan with matching, pet care & Rx discount plans, working from home, up to 16 weeks of paid parental leave for eligible employees, wellness benefits, paid holidays, flexible vacation time, professional development, and the supportive environment at The Humane League!
Equal Employment Opportunity
THL is an equal opportunity employer. THL does not discriminate on the basis of any legally protected classifications, including but not limited to race, color, age, national origin, ethnicity, religious creed or belief, physical or mental disability, marital or familial status, legally protected medical condition, genetic information, military or veteran status, gender, sexual orientation, citizenship status, or any other status or classification protected by applicable federal, state, or local law. THL is committed to the importance of non-discriminatory practices within the nonprofit sector, as well as all workplace environments, and strongly encourages all interested candidates to apply.
Reasonable Accommodations
The Humane League is committed to fully supporting all qualified individuals. As part of this commitment, THL provides reasonable accommodations for persons with disabilities in accordance with applicable federal, state, and local laws throughout the hiring process and employment if hired. If a reasonable accommodation is needed, please contact the People team at accommodations@thehumaneleague.org to initiate the interactive process. THL complies with the Americans with Disabilities Act, the Pregnant Workers Fairness Act, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, and all other applicable state and local laws.
AI Policy
Original work and thought are essential in the hiring process and allow us to evaluate you based on your own skills and competency. Therefore, the use of artificial intelligence (ChatGPT, Gemini, Rytr, Google Assistant, etc) to generate responses is strictly prohibited. By submitting this application you agree to comply with our AI Policy. Violations of this policy in any part of the recruitment process will result in being dismissed from consideration. If you need a reasonable accommodation to this policy, please see above for more information.
