Partner Relations Specialist {Full-Time}

The Partner Relations Specialist works to build genuine, individual donor relationships with PJM donors by phone, email, note, and occasional face to face time. The PRS’s primary objectives are to cultivate authentic relationships, built on a graceful understanding of donors’ interests, passions and values, and grow the work of the Kingdom of God at PJM through financial partnership. The PRS reports directly to the Partner Relations Manager as part of the PJM Development Team.

This position is extremely relational, both between the PRS and PJM and the PRS and donors. The PRS is discerning and sensitive to people, ministerial in heart, and yet honest, direct, and persevering. The bulk of the PRS’s time will be spent interacting meaningfully one-on-one with people on the phone. The rest of the time will be spent researching, preparing for, and following up on those calls, logging all interaction in the donor database (Blackbaud’s Raiser’s Edge), participating in events, meetings, and collaborating with the Manager, Development Director, and Team.

Relationship Management, Solicitation, and Job-Related Expectations:

  • Cultivates genuine, effective, warm relationships with each donor that seeks to know and care for them personally. This includes:

    • Developing a praying relationship with assigned donors based on the authority of God’s Word.

    • Gracefully adapting communication styles to relate to different expressions of the Christian community.

    • Perseverance and diligence to repeatedly reach out with positivity, gratitude, and grace to discern each donor’s level of comfort with a relationship with PJM through the PRS.

    • Actively collaborating with team members to develop creative and new means of relationship building for the purpose of increased ministry.

    • Attending and promoting special donor events.

  • Provides donors with clear pictures of the mission/vision of PJM and how their gifts are used to further it. This includes:

    • Serving and caring for donors by being transparent and accountable to them in the stewardship of finances and ministry results.

    • Comfortably ask and warmly present opportunities for donors to partner financially at a higher level.

    • The discernment, listening skills, and understanding to know when a donor will move from the PRS’s portfolio to a Major Gift Officer’s portfolio.

    • Informing donors of current ministry news and prayer needs.

    • Developing strategies of solicitation/gift management that are specific and sensitive to each donor.

  • Manages donor portfolio (caseload) of 400 donors in a planned, consistent, timely manner. This includes:

    • Contacting, thanking, updating, surveying, inviting gifts from, and following up with assigned donors as a means of personal contact and connection to PJM. The provided portfolio will include: New and renewed donors, Current donors, Lapsed donors, Prospects.

    • Daily collects, records and reports data obtained from phone calls and donor contact into database.

  • Fosters a work environment of mutual trust, grace, positivity, and teamwork. This includes:

    • Arriving to work, meetings, and events in a timely fashion, ready and prepared.

    • Joining staff times of prayer and devotional/Bible study.

  • Performs other duties as assigned by the Director of Development.

Experience, Knowledge, Skills, Abilities

  • As a Christian, having a personal relationship with Jesus Christ, must agree to PJM’s Statement of Faith and conduct him/herself in a Christ-like manner.

  • Thorough understanding of PJM’s core values, mission and vision statements, as well as its organizational structure, management, and the daily operation of each ministry.

  • Excellent interpersonal skills and spiritual maturity, including:

    • Ability to pray on the phone, encourage with scripture and talk comfortably about spiritual matters.

    • Positive, cheerful attitude and ability to react appropriately and graciously to coworkers and donors.

    • Ability to establish and maintain an effective, respectful working environment within PJM and with external partners by guiding, supporting, and encouraging teamwork.

    • Facilitation skills to grasp and work within the ministries of PJM and with a diverse community.

    • Patience with a wide variety of people as well as patience with a broad variance of work load.

    • Highly motivated, with effective communication, and negotiation skills coupled with the ability to quickly establish credibility.

    • Ability to successfully engage and inspire others to respond with positive actions coupled with the ability to prevent and diffuse unpleasant situations.

  • Excellent skills in verbal & written communication, use of technology, teamwork, organization, and time management, including:

    • Ability to collaboratively plan, coordinate, and implement relationship-building and fundraising activities in order to effectively develop relationships.

    • High computer literacy with a strong understanding of Microsoft Word, Excel, Outlook, and Power Point, and highly proficient with database manipulation.

    • Self-motivated, detail oriented and able to analyze and prioritize multiple, overlapping tasks.

    • Ability to work enthusiastically in a constantly changing environment, generate enthusiasm and competence in others and utilize proper time management and motivational techniques.

    • Ability to lead by example with empathy for others in a productive and efficient work environment.

    • Ability to work as both leader and follower on cross-functional teams, following up on the completion of tasks, and using the performance review process as a mechanism to achieve goals.

    • Ability and willingness to listen and understand, provide solutions, and reconsider positions. Handle the giving and receiving of instruction and criticism with professional ethics, tact, and courtesy as well as the flexibility to seek and incorporate input of others into a solid plan of action.

    • Willingness to take on responsibilities as assigned

The PRS’s time can be expected to be spent in approximately the following ways:

  • Making an average of at least 25-50 donor contacts daily, getting to know, sharing in prayer, updating, following up, communicating via email, writing personal notes, inviting gifts, and logging all donor communication daily in database (Blackbaud’s Raiser’s Edge)

  • Planning, Strategizing, and Reporting at weekly meetings with Development Team members and DoD

  • Occasional fundraising and donor thanking events

General Experience Needed:

  • 1-2 years in fundraising, sales, non-profit engagement, or public relations

Physical Requirements:

  • Ability to spend hours listening to and engaging people in meaningful conversation

  • Ability to spend hours using a computer and making phone calls

  • Driving to meetings and events, participation in occasional event set up, production, and tear-down, which may include occasional night or weekend work

Salary commensurate with experience.