Senior Associate Director Of Gift Operations - University Advancement
Quick Summary
GIFT OPERATIONS Organize, prioritize, assign, and audit workflow in Gift Operations.
Bachelor's degree Certifications/Professional Licenses:No specific certification/professional license is required for this position.
Responsibilities
~3 min readGIFT OPERATIONS
- →Organize, prioritize, assign, and audit workflow in Gift Operations.
- →Engage in all Gift Operations functions including the accurate and timely processing of gifts and commitments in the University Advancement CRM, ARCH; ensure transactions are processed in accordance with documented donor intent and in compliance with relevant IRS, CASE, university, and departmental guidelines.
- →Manage daily gift entry audits and approval of gift batches for bank deposits and reporting to WashU Gift, Endowment & Investment (GEI) Accounting
- →Manage the complex function of processing gift and commitment voids and adjustments in CRM.
- →Partner with the Gift Operations Analyst as the escalation point to address UA and university partner questions and concerns.
- →Monitor UA staff requests and inquiries received via Salesforce Cases in CRM, assign ownership to team members and ensure successful and timely completion.
- →Review, analyze and process legal documents and gift agreements to ensure university processing and audit standards are met while maintaining donor integrity, confidentiality, and security.
- →Key contact with WashU partners and UA staff on Gifts-in-Kind process, documentation, and value determination to ensure adherence to IRS guidelines.
QUALITY & PROCESS IMPROVEMENT
- →Develop and maintain quality controls and lead continuous improvement efforts related to donation processing in the CRM to ensure adherence with donor intent, university and department policies and industry best practices; address inconsistencies and errors with staff to improve outcomes.
- →Develop, monitor, and maintain key metrics dashboards to evaluate team effectiveness across the department.
- →Lead continuous improvement efforts plus leverage best practices and staff talents to increase efficiencies; identify opportunities and develop improved operational processes to gain greater efficiency.
- →Maintain appropriate separation of duties per the university’s Guide to Internal Controls.
- →Ensure team members use Cases to report and track ARCH database concerns, issues, and suggestions.
- →Participate in ARCH discussions and planning sessions to address functionality issues and future phases while being an advocate for Gift Operations/Advancement Operations/Advancement Services.
- →Assess Gift Operations policies and procedures; update as needed.
FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT & COMPLIANCE
- →Collaborate with Gift Operations Analyst and Gift, Endowment & Investment Accounting (GEI) on compliance, controls and implementation of procedures related to processing gifts, gift reporting, daily balancing, and reconciliation.
- →Partner with WashU Treasury on banking relationships, credit card merchant processors, and PCI compliance.
- →Ensure departmental processes are documented, updated at regular intervals, and are being adhered to.
STAKEHOLDER & TEAM MANAGEMENT
- →Execute priorities established in conjunction with Advancement Services and University Advancement leadership.
- →Implement established policies and procedures.
- →Build strong relationships and collaborate with WashU and UA stakeholders to understand business needs, provide insightful leadership, and ensure teams align with UA goals and objectives.
- →Advocate for Gift Operations.
- →Partner with ARCH Third Party Systems to create and build relationships with external vendors and serve as a key contact to donation form developers, payment processors, lockbox services, data providers, etc.
- →Direct day-to-day operations and create an environment of accountability.
- →Recruit, onboard, supervise and mentor full-time department staff.
- →Identify and monitor progress toward clear individual and team goals while providing clear direction and encouraging individual thinking and innovation.
Perform other duties as assigned.
Job Location/Working Conditions
- Normal office environment
- Ability to travel to various on- and off-campus locations
- Occasional evening or weekend hours may be needed
Physical Effort
- Typically working at desk or table
- Repetitive wrist, hand or finger movement
- Occasional lifting (25 lbs or less)
Equipment
- Office equipment
Requirements
~1 min read- Strong data management experience, knowledge of CASE and IRS guidelines on processing gifts and commitments, and experience managing gift processing functions with outstanding attention to detail and accuracy.
- Demonstrated experience with nonprofit CRM platforms and fundraising technologies.
- Leadership and team management experience in a higher-education or nonprofit environment, especially in a gift operations capacity.
- Experience with Affinaquest.
- Experience automating manual systems in a CRM.
- Experience with data migration efforts and data quality efforts.
This position is located in St. Louis, MO and the targeted hiring range for this position is $78,000 - $88,000. Relocation assistance can be provided to candidates located outside of the Greater St. Louis region.
About the Role
~1 min readFor frequently asked questions about the application process, please refer to our External Applicant FAQ.
If you are unable to use our online application system and would like an accommodation, please email CandidateQuestions@wustl.edu or call the dedicated accommodation inquiry number at 314-935-1149 and leave a voicemail with the nature of your request.
All qualified individuals must be able to perform the essential functions of the position satisfactorily and, if requested, reasonable accommodations will be made to enable employees with disabilities to perform the essential functions of their job, absent undue hardship.What We Offer
~1 min readPersonal
Location & Eligibility
About this job
- Who can apply
- United States
- Posted
- 20 days ago
Listing Details
- Posted
- September 26, 2026
- First seen
- October 11, 2026
- Last seen
- October 16, 2026
Posting Health
- Days active
- 4
- Repost count
- 0
- Trust Level
- 19%
- Scored at
- October 16, 2026
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