Engagement Manager

July 2022 | Full Time | Minneapolis or other US locations as appropriate

Responsible to:  Chief Executive Officer (CEO)

Organization Description

For 30 years, Questscope has walked with communities and young people ravaged by war and poverty.

Our vision is To Put the Last, First – developing the capacities of marginalized individuals to make good decisions and take positive actions for better future outcomes. Our mission is to engage with decision makers inside power systems to amplify game-changing possibilities for these individuals.

• Example in education – OOSCY[1] youth got official certificates through alternative learning pathways that changed education and employment options. For formal technical/vocational training for youth to leverage skills into entrepreneurship and income.

• Example in youth empowerment – Volunteer mentors for incarcerated youth provided life-changing personal relationship attention to neglected and abused youth, and ended institutional exploitation of incarcerated youth by their presence in the system.

• Example in mental well-being of refugees – Barefoot Psychology© is an approach the brings about healing from trauma designed for implementation by refugee lay-persons, which greatly extends healing potential to tens of thousands of people traumatized by forced displacement.

Questscope programs center around 3 core pillars of Trauma Recovery, Economic Inclusion and Empowerment.

Four values underpin what we do:

• we listen with skill and intent (highly participatory models of engagement),

• we seek new meaning through evidence (holding ourselves accountable for our promises),

• we don’t suppose that we know (co-creating solutions together), and

• people are more than what is visible of them (nurturing intentional relationships).

To learn more visit www.questscope.org.

The Role

The Engagement Manager is responsible to increase revenue and grow the friending and funding base of Questscope, with a particular focus on faith-based and private fundraising.

The Engagement Manager will be a remarkably creative individual responsible to the CEO and collaborating with the Communications Manager, Jordan & Syria Country Directors, Jordan Program Development Manager, and Chief Vision Officer to design, articulate and implement strategic actions to drive philanthropic resource growth, including:

• Sustaining and expanding current donations;
• Attracting/acquiring new donors;
• Improving traditional methods and approaches;
• Introducing/improving the use of technology in non-traditional approaches; 
• Developing institutional strength (reputation, resources, and relationships) to sustain funding for the mandate and distinctive approaches of Questscope. 

We have exceptional products and services to promote and we seek a well-connected, highly energetic, emotionally insightful, and intellectually courageous person to drive growth. This leader will discover and co-create with customers and excel at the intersection between programmatic excellence and fiscal viability.  With exceptional relationship building skills, this leader will bridge customers to clients.

Core Responsibilities:

Engagement

• Re-orient donor relationships to bring benefit to both customers (donors who pay for us to provide services) and clients (people served by programs on the field).
• Maintain high profiles in US Church partnerships by securing thought-leadership opportunities for CEO, CVO, building out tech-savvy web presence – likely with church partnership assistance, speaking/ arranging events for periodic visits to the ME and at least 15 church gatherings a year.
• Find new donors and friends for Questscope. 

-          Identify and cultivate new philanthropic revenue streams that have the potential to accelerate organizational growth and innovation; especially with globally minded, multicultural churches, mosques, and internationally minded corporations and foundations. 

-          Lead identification, solicitation, design, and implementation for new and diverse funding sources. 

-          Forge closer relationships with new generations of philanthropists, especially among supporting regions (hubs), both geographically and digitally, to grow current organizational support.

• Steward, maintain and report on all philanthropic sources. 

-          Cultivate and maintain relationships with major donors by responding to their inquiries, keeping them apprised of recent events with the organization and showing them the progress their donations have made possible. 

-          Develop and maintain key long-term relationships with donors, prospects and friends. 

-          Maintain/improve donor database with detailed call reports and automated reports on gift history, ticklers to remind stewardship steps and reminders on project or focus interests for donors on potential projects on regional, thematic, or cost descriptors. 

• Introduce donors to the amazing people at Questscope – build community that promotes deep connection, networked problem-solving, and personal meaning. 

-          Facilitate connections through events, trips, meetings, and other opportunities. 

-          Improve the ability of clients on the ground to tell their stories directly – with good collaboration with partners, volunteers with expertise.

• Manage the fundraising budget for the most benefit for the least cost.
• Establish Donor Engagement Process language across Questscope to understand donor discovery, identification, qualification, cultivation, negotiation, solicitation and stewardship.  
• Maintain/improve donor database with detailed call reports and automated reports on gift history, ticklers to remind stewardship steps and reminders on project or focus interests for donors on potential projects on regional, thematic, or cost descriptors. 
• Ensure relevant tracking of outcomes to understand impact and make strategic decisions.

Major Gifts

• Assist the CEO to build & maintain a portfolio of (100+) Major Gift Prospects, individuals who have the ability to make a charitable gift of up to $25,000 or more over a five-year period.
• Work with the Board to plan and successfully execute high-level solicitations from major donors. 
• Create a planned giving/legacy program.  Identify and secure support from planned giving prospects. 
• Grow and maintain Donor Advised Fund Participation and Exposure across top donor regions, both geographical and digitally. 

Telling our Story

Partner with the communications manager to position and tell our story, create assets and materials that are compelling for each unique audience:

• Craft and shape Questscope stories to share with the outside world in close cooperation with Questscope communications staff for the development of all external communications. 
• Emphasize storytelling by clients themselves.

• Continually express gratitude and appreciation to all Questscope donors and friends.  
• Collaborate on a marketing strategy to build brand-awareness through a creative, cost-effective plan to increase Questscope brand warmth with new prospects, organizations and influencers domestically in the USA and internationally. 

• Proactively engage with Communications Manager to ensure that: 1) funding needs are adequately projected and potential funding streams identified, 2) internal and external communication is relevant and timely, and 3) monitoring and evaluation enhances future donor cultivation. 

Any other duties as assigned by the CEO

Key Qualifications

To succeed in this role, you must have expertise and experience in the following:

Communicator. Shares the mission and vision of the organization clearly and articulately.

Fundraising: Skillfully and diligently performs at a high caliber for cultivating and acquiring major gifts.

Prospecting: Effectively finds new networks with potential for major gifts above the $1,000 level annually to share Questscope’s mission and vision.

Relationship management: Responsible for the ongoing experience of each person you cultivate and onboard to Alight. We strive for deeply engaged donors that continue on as donors for a long time.

Other competences:

• Working with and appreciating diverse religious orientations and traditions
• 5-7 years of experience and proven track record of fundraising success for nonprofits
• Co-creating for innovative fundraising with diverse donor groups
• Nurturing current customer relationships and identifying new customers and uncover untapped resources.  Finding individuals and organizations who want what we provide
• Proven success in prospect research and grant writing.
• Experience cultivating and securing corporate sponsors
• You come with a network of strong and effective relationships in the private sector
• Computer systems understanding, Microsoft office suite and Raisers Edge mastery. Personal experience with shaping fundraising systems and data, and enabling geographically dispersed constituents to coordinate fundraising activities; experience leveraging fundraising databases and support systems for donor segmentation, research and volunteer management. 
• An experienced fundraiser with exemplified ability to close gifts. Motivated by targets. A resume that highlights experience and success
• Experienced networker with extensive relationships. 
• Willingness & ability to travel domestically and internationally, up to 10% time.

Your personality is:

• Energetic and purpose driven
• Optimistic, positive and forward thinking
• Ambitious in service to the needs of others
• Inquisitive and curious.  A natural student of cultural anthropology
• Sociable and engaging
• Humble and motivated to help others realize their potential
• Highly collaborative. Adept at involving and creating space for

Preferred Experiences

• Work in fundraising for/in minority cultures in US and internationally, especially Arabic environments
• Work with people from diverse religious traditions
• NGO Experience with international agencies is a plus (e.g. UN, USAID, DFID, EU, World Bank, etc.)
• Proficiency in Arabic is a plus

Education

• Minimum BA/BS in anthropology, psychology, sociology, international relations, or related fields.

What we offer - Benefits

• Learning & Development: Access thousands of free online learning courses to take at your own pace and tailor to your professional goals.
• Health, dental, and MedEvac Insurance: We strive to offer the best-in-class healthcare plans to our staff each year.  We cover 100% of the cost for your health premium and 75% of the cost for coverage for your spouse/dependents.
• Retirement: We contribute 6% of your salary regardless of your contribution amount, after one year of service.
• Generous Leave Time: Between vacation days, personal leave days, and holidays, you have ample opportunity to take time off when you need it.

you can apply directly here: apply now!