Sr Associate, Principal Gifts
Wildlife Conservation Society, New York, NY, United States
Job Description
Position:
Senior Associate, Principal Gifts
Reports to:
Associate Vice President, Principal Giving
Location:
Bronx Zoo - Hybrid
Department:
Development
Position Type:
Full-Time
About Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS):
WCS saves wildlife and wild places worldwide. We are the only organization that combines on-the-ground field conservation programs in more than 55 countries with the world’s largest network of urban wildlife parks, based in New York City.
WCS’s five wildlife parks, led by our flagship Bronx Zoo, have educated and inspired over 425 million visitors since 1899. Each year, WCS welcomes about 3.5 million visitors to the Bronx Zoo, Central Park Zoo, Prospect Park Zoo, Queens Zoo, and New York Aquarium—opening people’s eyes to the wonders of the natural world, while setting the gold standard for animal care and well‑being.
WCS has a long track record of achieving innovative, impactful results at scale. Our scientists, veterinarians, and conservation experts have helped recover bison, tigers, gorillas, whales, coral reefs, and more. In the past century, we have helped governments create more than 430 protected areas around the world on land and sea, and we currently work with national governments and local communities to manage and monitor several hundred protected areas.
Job Summary As Senior Associate, Principal Gifts, you will be an integral member of the Development team at WCS, providing critical support to frontline fundraisers in their efforts to identify, cultivate, solicit, and steward existing donors and prospects for gifts to WCS.
This position reports to the Associate Vice President, Principal Giving and supports frontline fundraisers based in New York and the West Coast. The position requires outstanding organizational skills, attention to detail, a strong service ethic, a commitment to managing confidential information with professionalism and precision, and the ability to manage multiple priorities in a large, complex, fast‑paced, mission‑based organization.
Proactive, solutions‑oriented, and eager to grow within a high‑performing, dynamic development team? We’d love to meet you.
Major Responsibilities
Support the Associate Vice President, Principal Giving and one to two additional frontline fundraisers in managing their portfolios. This includes data entry, preparing status reports, tracking the status of all opportunities, flagging upcoming actions, and coordinating moves management.
Provide administrative support for the Principal Gift program, including scheduling team meetings, preparing meeting materials, taking notes, and tracking action items. This also includes tracking and reporting related to all Principal Gifts as a cross‑function of the Development department spanning multiple business units and relationship manager portfolios.
Track and monitor Principal Gift donor deliverables produced by the Donor Communications team—proposals, reports, and updates—data entry, monthly reporting, status tracking, action flagging for the relationship manager, and ensuring all deliverables are executed on time.
Draft, edit, and proofread written materials including briefings and correspondence, including letters from the CEO, CDO, AVP of Principal Gifts, and senior leadership, as necessary.
Prepare accurate and timely acknowledgment letters for all major and principal gifts. In collaboration with the Operations team, ensure accurate gift processing and data entry. Prepare additional stewardship and thank‑you materials as needed.
Provide administrative support, including managing the Associate Vice President’s and frontline fundraisers’ calendars, scheduling meetings, drafting agendas, preparing expense reports, and other administrative responsibilities as required.
Coordinate large mailings, email updates, and bespoke communications for donors and prospects. This includes preparing and reviewing detailed lists to ensure donor‑centric communications.
Act as liaison interfacing with donors and staff at in‑person events, virtual meetings, on phone calls, and in email correspondence. This position will interact with key supporters and senior leadership to support logistics, administrative needs, and donor requests.
Be accountable for keeping current on database procedures, participating in Salesforce training, and following best practices in data integrity and donor privacy.
Assist and support fundraising events, donor meetings, and zoo tours. This includes preparing briefings and requesting donor research, and coordinating comprehensive follow‑up strategies for donors post‑event.
Perform other tasks as requested, and provide support for other Development activities.
Job Qualifications
2–3 years of experience in an office environment.
Previous experience supporting a fundraising team preferred.
Bachelor’s Degree required.
Self‑motivated with excellent writing and communication skills, relationship building, and project management.
Ability to meet deadlines, anticipate needs, plan ahead, work under pressure, prioritize, and handle multiple, complex projects.
Demonstrated ability to apply reasoning skills to evaluate issues and identify potential solutions as well as analytical abilities to weigh alternative solutions against objectives.
Excellent oral and written communication skills, with the ability to present material in a concise and professional manner.
Willingness and interest in learning new systems and improving processes.
A team player, willing to collaborate and support all members of the Development department.
Equal Employment Opportunity Disclaimer WCS is an equal opportunity employer and complies with all employment and labor laws that prohibit discrimination in hiring. We ensure that candidates from all backgrounds are fairly and consistently considered during the recruitment process. The organization provides equal employment opportunities for all qualified candidates and does not discriminate on the basis of gender, race/ethnicity, religion, color, national origin, sex, age, disability, marital status, sexual orientation, citizenship status, caste, genetic information, or other protected characteristics.
Salary Range $58,000 – $65,000
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Senior Associate, Principal Gifts
Reports to:
Associate Vice President, Principal Giving
Location:
Bronx Zoo - Hybrid
Department:
Development
Position Type:
Full-Time
About Wildlife Conservation Society (WCS):
WCS saves wildlife and wild places worldwide. We are the only organization that combines on-the-ground field conservation programs in more than 55 countries with the world’s largest network of urban wildlife parks, based in New York City.
WCS’s five wildlife parks, led by our flagship Bronx Zoo, have educated and inspired over 425 million visitors since 1899. Each year, WCS welcomes about 3.5 million visitors to the Bronx Zoo, Central Park Zoo, Prospect Park Zoo, Queens Zoo, and New York Aquarium—opening people’s eyes to the wonders of the natural world, while setting the gold standard for animal care and well‑being.
WCS has a long track record of achieving innovative, impactful results at scale. Our scientists, veterinarians, and conservation experts have helped recover bison, tigers, gorillas, whales, coral reefs, and more. In the past century, we have helped governments create more than 430 protected areas around the world on land and sea, and we currently work with national governments and local communities to manage and monitor several hundred protected areas.
Job Summary As Senior Associate, Principal Gifts, you will be an integral member of the Development team at WCS, providing critical support to frontline fundraisers in their efforts to identify, cultivate, solicit, and steward existing donors and prospects for gifts to WCS.
This position reports to the Associate Vice President, Principal Giving and supports frontline fundraisers based in New York and the West Coast. The position requires outstanding organizational skills, attention to detail, a strong service ethic, a commitment to managing confidential information with professionalism and precision, and the ability to manage multiple priorities in a large, complex, fast‑paced, mission‑based organization.
Proactive, solutions‑oriented, and eager to grow within a high‑performing, dynamic development team? We’d love to meet you.
Major Responsibilities
Support the Associate Vice President, Principal Giving and one to two additional frontline fundraisers in managing their portfolios. This includes data entry, preparing status reports, tracking the status of all opportunities, flagging upcoming actions, and coordinating moves management.
Provide administrative support for the Principal Gift program, including scheduling team meetings, preparing meeting materials, taking notes, and tracking action items. This also includes tracking and reporting related to all Principal Gifts as a cross‑function of the Development department spanning multiple business units and relationship manager portfolios.
Track and monitor Principal Gift donor deliverables produced by the Donor Communications team—proposals, reports, and updates—data entry, monthly reporting, status tracking, action flagging for the relationship manager, and ensuring all deliverables are executed on time.
Draft, edit, and proofread written materials including briefings and correspondence, including letters from the CEO, CDO, AVP of Principal Gifts, and senior leadership, as necessary.
Prepare accurate and timely acknowledgment letters for all major and principal gifts. In collaboration with the Operations team, ensure accurate gift processing and data entry. Prepare additional stewardship and thank‑you materials as needed.
Provide administrative support, including managing the Associate Vice President’s and frontline fundraisers’ calendars, scheduling meetings, drafting agendas, preparing expense reports, and other administrative responsibilities as required.
Coordinate large mailings, email updates, and bespoke communications for donors and prospects. This includes preparing and reviewing detailed lists to ensure donor‑centric communications.
Act as liaison interfacing with donors and staff at in‑person events, virtual meetings, on phone calls, and in email correspondence. This position will interact with key supporters and senior leadership to support logistics, administrative needs, and donor requests.
Be accountable for keeping current on database procedures, participating in Salesforce training, and following best practices in data integrity and donor privacy.
Assist and support fundraising events, donor meetings, and zoo tours. This includes preparing briefings and requesting donor research, and coordinating comprehensive follow‑up strategies for donors post‑event.
Perform other tasks as requested, and provide support for other Development activities.
Job Qualifications
2–3 years of experience in an office environment.
Previous experience supporting a fundraising team preferred.
Bachelor’s Degree required.
Self‑motivated with excellent writing and communication skills, relationship building, and project management.
Ability to meet deadlines, anticipate needs, plan ahead, work under pressure, prioritize, and handle multiple, complex projects.
Demonstrated ability to apply reasoning skills to evaluate issues and identify potential solutions as well as analytical abilities to weigh alternative solutions against objectives.
Excellent oral and written communication skills, with the ability to present material in a concise and professional manner.
Willingness and interest in learning new systems and improving processes.
A team player, willing to collaborate and support all members of the Development department.
Equal Employment Opportunity Disclaimer WCS is an equal opportunity employer and complies with all employment and labor laws that prohibit discrimination in hiring. We ensure that candidates from all backgrounds are fairly and consistently considered during the recruitment process. The organization provides equal employment opportunities for all qualified candidates and does not discriminate on the basis of gender, race/ethnicity, religion, color, national origin, sex, age, disability, marital status, sexual orientation, citizenship status, caste, genetic information, or other protected characteristics.
Salary Range $58,000 – $65,000
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