Gift and Donor Operations Specialist

Autism Speaks is seeking a Gift and Donor Operations Specialist to join our IT and Donor Operations team. This role supports the effective administration of charitable gifts and ensures accurate, consistent, and donor-centered operational practices across the organization. The Specialist manages complex gift and pledge processes, donor inquiries, acknowledgments, and reporting, partnering closely with Development and Finance to ensure gifts are accurately recorded and donor intent is honored. This position is home based and can be performed anywhere in the US.

PURPOSE: The Gift and Donor Operations Specialist is a key member of the IT and Donor Operations team, responsible for supporting the effective administration of charitable gifts and ensuring accurate, consistent, and donor-centered operational practices across the organization. With oversight from Director, the position manages and supports complex gift and pledge processes, donor inquiries, acknowledgments, reporting, and cross-functional workflows while partnering closely with Development, Finance, and other internal teams to ensure gifts are accurately recorded, donor intent is honored, and operational issues are resolved efficiently. 

The Specialist serves as a subject matter resource for donor operations processes and maintains a strong working knowledge of the responsibilities and workflows supported by the Senior Coordinator, Donor Operations and CRM Data Coordinator. The position provides coverage for key donor operations functions as needed and works closely with the Director, CRM Strategy & Donor Operations to identify process gaps, strengthen controls, document procedures, and implement improvements that support both the donor experience and fundraising operations.

PRIMARY RESPONSIBILIITIES:

Gift Acceptance and Donor Management

• With oversight from Director,  manage and support complex gift acceptance and processing activities, including pledges, restricted gifts, major gifts, donor-advised fund gifts, and other non-standard contributions. Interact with donor-advised fund administrators, brokers, financial advisors, and other external parties as needed to facilitate and resolve gifts. With direction from Director, manage pledge administration, including payment schedules, pledge reminders, outstanding balances, and follow-up. Partner with Development and Finance colleagues to ensure gifts and pledges are accurately recorded, appropriately coded, and handled in accordance with established organizational processes. 
• Provide support for gift reconciliation and research discrepancies in partnership with Finance. 
• Serve as an escalation point for complex gift-processing and donor-operations questions. 
• Maintain sufficient knowledge of core Donor Operations processes to provide backup coverage for the Senior Coordinator, Donor Operations when needed. 

Donor Acknowledgements and Service

• With oversight from Director, Manage and oversee donor acknowledgment processes, with a focus on accuracy, timeliness, appropriate tax language, and a consistent donor experience. Coordinate customized acknowledgments for major and complex gifts in partnership with fundraising staff and the Director, CRM Strategy & Donor Operations. Monitor and respond to escalated donor inquiries, determining when issues require involvement from fundraising staff, Finance, leadership, or other departments. Serve as a primary point of contact for complex donor inquiries requiring coordination across multiple business units. Identify recurring donor-service issues and recommend process improvements to address root causes. 
• Handle communication with estate attorneys, financial advisors, executors, and other representatives to support the timely and accurate administration of estate gifts.

Cross-Functional Gift and Financial Operations:

• Partner closely with Finance and Development teams to support gift processing, pledge tracking, receivables management, reconciliation, and revenue reporting. 

• Research and resolve discrepancies involving donor records, gifts, pledges, allocations, coding, or related transactions. 

• Support processes for restricted gifts and donor intent, escalating questions requiring additional review. 

• Identify gaps, risks, or inefficiencies in donor and gift-management workflows and partner with the Director to develop sustainable solutions. 

Reporting, Data Quality, and CRM Support 

• Prepare and support donor and gift reporting, including the Board Giving Report and other reports for senior leadership and Development. 

• Review donor and gift information for accuracy and work with the CRM Data Coordinator and other team members to resolve data issues. 

• Maintain a strong working knowledge of the CRM and donor database to research donor history, gift activity, pledges, acknowledgments, and other donor information. 

• Support accurate documentation of donor interactions, gift restrictions, commitments, and related operational information within the CRM. 

• Identify data-quality issues affecting donor operations and partner with the appropriate team member to resolve them. 

Process Improvement and Operational Leadership 

• Develop, document, maintain, and improve Donor Operations procedures, protocols, and workflows. 

• Evaluate recurring operational issues and recommend improvements that increase accuracy, efficiency, consistency, and service. 

• Partner with the Director, CRM Strategy & Donor Operations to implement changes to donor operations processes and practices. 

• Help establish consistent procedures and controls for gift processing, acknowledgments, pledge administration, donor inquiries, and related workflows. 

• Serve as a resource to Development staff regarding donor operations practices and processes. 

• Support training and knowledge sharing related to donor operations procedures. 

• Participate in special projects and initiatives designed to improve fundraising and donor operations. 

(The responsibilities listed above are representative and not all inclusive.  Other duties may be assigned by supervisors. As outlined in your performance goal setting forms, you will be responsible for achieving the goals provided by and agreed upon with your manager.)

POSITION REQUIREMENTS
Education: Bachelor's degree
Experience: 3-5 years of relevant professional experience, preferably within nonprofit fundraising, advancement services, development operations, donor operations, gift administration, or a related environment.  Demonstrated experience with gift processing, donor databases or CRM systems, pledge administration, donor support, or related fundraising operations. Experience collaborating with Finance and fundraising teams preferred. 

Specialized Skills and Knowledge Preferred:

• Strong understanding of donor operations, gift processing, and nonprofit fundraising practices. 
• Strong CRM and donor database knowledge; experience with StratusLIVE or related fundraising CRM platforms preferred. 
• Strong understanding of data quality and the importance of accurate donor and gift records. 
• Excellent analytical and problem-solving skills with the ability to research and resolve complex donor and gift issues. 
• Demonstrated judgment and ability to identify issues requiring escalation. 
• Strong customer-service orientation and ability to communicate professionally with donors and internal stakeholders. 
• Ability to work effectively across Development, Finance, IT, and other functional teams. 
• Ability to document processes and identify opportunities for operational improvement. 
• Excellent written and verbal communication skills. 
• Strong attention to detail and organizational skills. 
• Ability to independently manage multiple priorities and meet deadlines. 
• Proficiency with Microsoft Office, including Excel. 
• Demonstrated ability to appropriately handle confidential donor and organizational information. 

CORE COMPETENCIES:

• Building Collaborative Relationships
• Professional Behavior
• Results Driven
• Customer Orientation
• Flexibility

You are responsible for protecting the confidentiality, integrity and availability of all Autism Speaks data and information to which you have access.

Autism Speaks is proud to be an Equal Opportunity Employer and is committed to fostering a diverse, multicultural, and inclusive workplace. We recruit, evaluate, employ, and promote candidates without regard to race, color, religion, age, gender identity or expression, protected veteran or military status, disability or other legally protected status. Qualified individuals with disabilities are encouraged to apply for job openings. Reasonable accommodations will be provided. All qualified applicants are encouraged to apply.

About Autism Speaks:
At Autism Speaks, our mission is to promote solutions, across the spectrum and throughout the life span, for the needs of people with autism and their families. We do this through advocacy and support; increasing understanding and acceptance of people with autism spectrum disorder; and advancing research into causes and better interventions for autism spectrum disorder and related conditions. Together with our broad and diverse community, we strive every day to achieve our vision of a world where all people with autism can reach their full potential. This mission and vision drive every member of our staff; our employees are inspired, energized and motivated by the impact we can collectively have on behalf of the autism community.

Autism Speaks celebrates every success achieved to create a kinder, more inclusive world for people with autism, and we work collaboratively across departments to find solutions that will do the most good for the most people. 

Just as we strive to enhance lives today and accelerate a spectrum of solutions for tomorrow for people on the spectrum, we also aim to enhance the lives of our dedicated employees, through thick and thin.

Salary & Benefits:
Autism Speaks offers a competitive compensation, benefit and vacation package. We also provide flex work hours, weekly training sessions, tuition reimbursement and summer bonus Fridays in addition to a creative, innovative, collaborative, inclusive, kind and fun work environment.

For consideration, please forward your resume and cover letter.

Autism Speaks is an employer that participates in E-Verify

Salary range is $55k-$60k, depending on candidate’s relevant years of experience and geographic location.