Executive Director of Campaign & Stakeholder Engagement

Executive Director of Campaign & Stakeholder Engagement
University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign

Hybrid work options may be available for this position, with the ability to be on-site as needed per the University’s Workplace Flexibility policy.

The Office of the Vice Chancellor for Institutional Advancement (OVCIA) at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign seeks an Executive Director of Campaign & Stakeholder Engagement to play a central role in advancing the university’s next comprehensive campaign. This position will lead the coordination and execution of campaign strategy – aligning volunteer leadership, stakeholder engagement, and cross-functional efforts to accelerate philanthropic growth and campaign momentum across the institution.

The ideal candidate brings a strategic mindset, strong organizational and project management skills, and the ability to lead through influence in a complex, decentralized environment. This individual will demonstrate sound judgment, intellectual curiosity, and a collaborative approach, along with experience managing large-scale initiatives and engaging senior leaders and volunteers in mission-driven settings.

Organizational Relationships and Job Summary
Reporting to the Vice Chancellor for Advancement, the Executive Director of Campaign & Stakeholder Engagement serves as a central leader for the university’s comprehensive campaign, responsible for driving coordinated strategy and execution across the advancement enterprise. This role partners closely with the Associate Vice Chancellor for Engagement & Participation, Chief of Staff, and senior advancement leaders on campus and the University of Illinois Foundation, as well as university leadership, deans, development officers, and volunteer leaders.

The position leads the strategic planning, governance, and implementation of the campaign—aligning volunteer leadership, stakeholder engagement, communications, and operational infrastructure to accelerate philanthropic growth and campaign momentum. Operating within a highly complex, decentralized environment, this role translates campaign strategy into actionable, context‑specific approaches that drive alignment and execution across OVCIA and unit-based advancement teams.

Serving as a key integrator, the Executive Director ensures that campaign‑related efforts are coordinated, data‑informed, and aligned with enterprise frameworks for engagement, stewardship, communications, and pipeline development. The role leads through collaboration and influence, guiding stakeholders and reinforcing consistency across units without direct ownership of frontline major or principal gift portfolios, enterprise engagement strategy, or central communications functions.

This position requires occasional travel in support of campaign‑related activities, such as campaign cabinet meetings, stakeholder engagement, and events. Travel expectations will vary based on campaign priorities and are not expected to be extensive.

Duties & Responsibilities
Campaign Strategy, Governance, and Operations

Manage the strategic and operational efforts that support a comprehensive campaign plan, including phasing, goals, case for support, timeline, budget, milestones, and success metrics, ensuring alignment with the university’s mission and fundraising priorities.

Partner with AVC-EP and Chief of Staff to build and refine campaign infrastructure, processes, and dashboards to ensure alignment, transparency, and efficiency across teams, including:

Advising on creation of campaign dashboards tracking activity, pipeline health, dollars raised, pledges, and donor retention; delivering regular analytics reporting to drive course corrections.

Building robust donor prospect pipelines for senior OVCIA leadership across alumni, parents, friends, corporations, and foundations in alignment with OVCIA enterprise standards on prospect identification, qualification, and segmentation.

Incorporating engagement and participation indicators—defined by the AVC-EP—as leading signals of donor readiness and campaign momentum.

Serve as a trusted advisor to the Vice Chancellor for Advancement on campaign engagement strategy and execution cadence.

Campaign Volunteer & Stakeholder Leadership

Identify, recruit, brief, and support external Campaign Cabinet members and other campaign‑specific volunteer leaders.

Manage volunteer meeting preparation, follow‑up, prospect review sessions, and ongoing engagement in alignment with AVC-EP owned volunteer governance standards.

Create guidelines and toolkits to advise units on managing their own campaign volunteer leaders.

Campaign Communications, Recognition & Experiences

In collaboration with the AVC-EP:

Develop campaign communications, collateral, recognition, messaging, toolkits, leadership briefings, and talking points in alignment with OVCIA enterprise engagement and branding frameworks.

Translate OVCIA enterprise donor relations and stewardship frameworks to campaign specific activities, ensuring that campaign donors and volunteers experience consistent, meaningful recognition and impact communication throughout the campaign lifecycle, promoting trust, satisfaction, and long‑term affinity.

Lead planning and delivery of campaign milestone events, including public launch and close, leveraging OVCIA enterprise engagement standards.

Provide feedback and insights from campaign activity to inform OVCIA enterprise engagement enhancements.

Coordinate with the OVCIA’s University of Illinois Alumni Association liaison to integrate alumni volunteers into campaign activity where appropriate.

Impact in Your First Year
At Advancement at Illinois, we value our employees and provide resources to help you continually learn and grow. We foster a strong, collaborative community of professionals who are driven by their ability to make a meaningful impact.

Within 3 months, you’ll:

Build an understanding of the university’s campaign vision, priorities, and organizational structure across OVCIA and unit-based advancement teams.

Establish relationships with key partners, including advancement leadership, development officers, volunteer leaders, and campus stakeholders.

Gain familiarity with existing campaign plans, infrastructure dashboards, and reporting processes.

Begin supporting campaign coordination efforts, including briefing preparation, stakeholder engagement, and internal communication.

Within 6 months, you’ll:

Take ownership of key campaign coordination functions, ensuring alignment across strategy, volunteer engagement, and communications.

Support the development and refinement of campaign infrastructure, including dashboards, reporting, and planning processes.

Actively manage and support campaign volunteer leadership engagement, including preparation, follow‑up, and ongoing communication.

Partner across advancement to align campaign priorities with pipeline development, donor engagement, and stewardship efforts.

By the end of the first year, you’ll:

Serve as a trusted advisor to the Vice Chancellor and advancement leadership on campaign execution and engagement strategy.

Drive coordinated campaign activity across units, ensuring alignment, accountability, and measurable progress toward campaign goals.

Lead campaign volunteer engagement efforts, fostering strong relationships and meaningful participation among key stakeholders.

Implement or enhance systems and processes that improve campaign tracking, communication, and cross‑functional coordination.

Minimum Qualifications

Bachelor’s degree (Business, Communications, Marketing, Hospitality, Nonprofit Management, or related field).

Minimum of 10 years professional experience, with at least 7 years of progressively responsible experience in advancement, fundraising operations, campaign management, volunteer engagement, event planning, or related fields, including demonstrated experience in cross‑functional collaboration and senior stakeholder engagement.

Demonstrated success managing complex, cross‑functional initiatives with senior volunteers and stakeholders; track record of planning and achieving short‑ and long‑term goals.

Proven ability to lead through influence in matrixed organizations and fast‑paced environments.

Proven ability to manage budgets, negotiate contracts, and lead in high‑performing environments.

Experience with workflow analysis and process improvement.

Preferred Qualifications

Experience working on a comprehensive or capital campaign within higher education or similar complex nonprofit environments.

Experience engaging and managing senior‑level volunteers, boards, or campaign cabinets.

Experience working in decentralized or matrixed organizations with multiple stakeholders and competing priorities.

Familiarity with advancement operations, including prospect development, donor relations, and campaign reporting.

Experience developing or utilizing campaign dashboards, analytics, or performance tracking tools to inform strategy.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

Ability to translate campaign strategy into actionable plans and coordinated execution across multiple stakeholders and functions.

Ability to lead cross‑functional initiatives and drive alignment without direct authority in complex, decentralized environments.

Exceptional organizational skills with ability to manage multiple priorities, timelines, and deliverables while maintaining attention to detail.

Ability to build and maintain relationships with internal leaders, external volunteers, and a range of stakeholders, fostering trust and collaboration.

Ability to interpret campaign data, monitor progress, and use insights to inform strategy and drive continuous improvement.

Ability to communicate effectively with others, with ability to prepare executive‑level materials and engage senior leaders.

Ability to navigate ambiguity, anticipate challenges, and develop proactive solutions in fast‑paced environments.

Strong organizational, analytical, and project management skills; proficiency with Blackbaud or similar CRM and reporting tools.

Appointment Information
This is a 100% full‑time Academic Professional position, appointed on a 12‑month basis. The expected start date is as soon as possible after the close date. The budgeted salary range for this position is $150,000–$180,000.

The role requires occasional travel.

EEO Statement
The University of Illinois System is an equal‑opportunity employer, including but not limited to disability, veteran status, or other considerations, and complies with all applicable state and federal employment mandates.

Applicants with disabilities are encouraged to apply and may request a reasonable accommodation under the Americans with Disabilities Act (2008) to complete the application and/or interview process.

Please note: This position is not eligible for any type of sponsorship for work authorization.

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