Assistant Vice President, Engagement Marketing and Communications en Rutgers University Foundation

Reporting to the Vice President, Central Engagement, the Assistant Vice President, Engagement, Marketing and Communications (AVP) provides strategic leadership, vision, and management for a comprehensive marketing and communications program that advances the goals of Rutgers Foundation. The AVP oversees strategies that strengthen alumni, donor, and stakeholder relationships and support philanthropic priorities. The AVP works closely with university marketing and communications to ensure there is alignment between the work of the Foundation and the broader university. The AVP partners with The Foundation’s Executive Leadership team, as well as serves on the Foundation’s senior management team.

Essential Functions

• Develop and implement a multi-channel marketing and communications strategy that advances the goals of the Foundation and aligns with the university’s priorities.
• Develop and execute strategies that drive and enhance constituent engagement and elevates the overall Rutgers brand to alumni, parents, friends, and supporters of Rutgers University.
• Oversee the planning and execution of integrated campaigns that drive alumni and donor participation, engagement, and giving.
• Lead a centralized Engagement Marketing and Communications team responsible for print, digital, web, video, social media, and event communications.
• Partner with University Communications and Marketing to align efforts and leverage institutional resources.
• Provide strategy and counsel on the overall external communications strategy to the Foundation President and executive leadership team.
• Use data-driven insights to evaluate engagement impact and inform future strategies.
• Lead, mentor, and inspire a team of marketing and communications professionals.
• Establish clear goals, accountability measures, and professional development opportunities.
• Manage budgets and resources to maximize impact and efficiency.

Leadership Attributes

This role requires a broad understanding of the institution and its various departments, demonstrating not only expertise in a specific area but a mastery of multiple functions. The incumbent will align donor intent with university priorities and embrace the University's values, taking responsibility for advancing these goals. They will communicate complex ideas effectively, possessing high emotional intelligence and political awareness. Proactive in their approach, they will excel at prioritization and negotiation, while providing constructive feedback to shape the organization's future. They will demonstrate critical thinking, challenge accepted norms, and consistently own their voice. Confident in leading their teams, they will leverage their experience to ask insightful questions and foster a cross-functional, multiplier leadership approach. The incumbent will maintain an enterprise-wide focus, ensuring that decisions consider the broader organizational impact. They will adopt a coaching leadership style, working closely with staff, volunteers, leaders, and University partners, while confidently serving as a strategic partner to university leadership.

Competency Aptitudes

Leadership

• Manage a team effectively and execute comprehensive department/project/program strategy
• Serve as a member of the organization's management team
• Present and represent projects to university leadership
• Demonstrate ability to successfully manage and lead a team (and/or staff volunteers) in a way that maximizes potential of each team member
• Ability to lead, assess, reimagine, new initiatives

Autonomy

• Manage teams who are responsible for delivering resources and revenue from a major gift donor/prospect portfolio at or above an established level and meet a personal fundraising goal
• Bring new best practices and innovation to the organization
• Manage a team, volunteers, relationships or projects with minimal oversight
• Set goals and manage budgets and meet deadlines for themselves and the team
• Drives area forward to achieve goals within their job purview

Complexity

• Demonstrate specialized knowledge, experience, skill set
• Effectively collaborate with your supervisors and University partners across the enterprise
• Able to create, deploy and execute increasingly complex projects
• Set direction and approach in partnership with assigned RU leader's vision
• Able to adapt to changing situations and partner or leadership changes

Strategy

• Create, lead and execute University-wide fundraising related initiatives
• Develop strategy with input of cross-functional teams to negotiate and influence solutions
• Demonstrate an ability to set priorities and determine strategy for multiple units/departments, including staffing and budgets
• Design the employee experience for a department/program

Education and/or Experience

Bachelor's degree and/or 10+ years of professional Marketing and Communications experience in fundraising, alumni relations, non-profit organizations, event planning, higher education, or related fields.

Working Conditions

This position requires clarity of focus while juggling complex projects or deadlines with little physical effort. Will work evenings, weekends, or odd hours to meet resource-raising commitments. Typical working conditions with an absence of disagreeable elements. This position requires some early mornings and late evenings to accommodate meetings, travel, events, and external constituents’ schedules.

Workplace Arrangements

This is classified as an office-centric hybrid position. Colleagues working under an office-centric hybrid arrangement have a primary workstation in a university or foundation location and are in the office between one and five days a week. The frequency with which they are present in the office depends on their role, function, and the interdependency of other functions.

Compensation and Benefits
The position is budgeted at a starting salary of $130,000/year. Final offers are based on various factors such as the candidate’s qualifications, skills, competencies, and other job-related reasons for the role. In addition to salary, Rutgers University Foundation offers:

• Office-centric hybrid work schedule
• Comprehensive medical
• Comprehensive no cost dental, and no cost vision insurance for employee and dependents
• 403(b) plan with matching employer contribution
• Accrual of three weeks of annual vacation time, in addition to five wellness days and fifteen sick days per year
• Nine holidays, as well as four floating holidays
• Significant tuition reductions
• Professional development is highly valued at the Rutgers University Foundation, where employees are encouraged to look across the organization to develop new skills and abilities for professional career progression.
• $40 monthly cell phone reimbursement

Equal Employment Opportunity

It is Foundation policy to provide equal employment opportunity to all its employees and applicants. The Foundation prohibits discrimination against any employee or applicant for employment because of race, color, religion, creed, age, sex, national origin, ancestry, marital status, familial status, disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, veteran status, genetic information, and any other characteristics protected by applicable state, federal and/or local laws. Equal employment opportunity applies to hiring, placement, transfer, promotion, demotion, recruitment, advertising or solicitation for employment, treatment during employment, rates of pay or other forms of compensation, selection for training, layoff, or termination.