Database Administrator Development & Membership

Description

Database Administrator, Development & Membership

Department: Development

Reports To: Chief Development Officer

Classification: Full-Time, Exempt

Location: Dallas, Texas preferred; hybrid or remote work options may be considered based on candidate experience, qualifications, and organizational needs.   

Position Summary

The Database Administrator, Development & Membership is responsible for the administration, integrity, optimization, and strategic use of Raiser’s Edge and related constituent data supporting the fundraising and membership programs of the Commemorative Air Force (CAF) and the Henry B. Tippie National Aviation Education Center (NAEC).   

Reporting to the Chief Development Officer, the Database Administrator serves as the organization's primary Raiser’s Edge subject matter expert and works collaboratively with the Development and Membership teams to ensure constituent, donor, member, and fundraising information is accurate, consistent, accessible, and structured to support organizational needs.

As CAF continues its transition to Raiser’s Edge NXT, the Database Administrator will play an important role in evaluating and implementing available NXT functionality, supporting staff adoption, and helping the organization take advantage of new capabilities as they become available. The position is expected to maintain current knowledge of the evolving Raiser’s Edge NXT environment and Blackbaud best practices while ensuring continuity and integrity of existing Raiser’s Edge processes.

The position is responsible for database administration, data governance and standards, constituent record management, reporting and analytics, imports and exports, integrations, user support, and data quality. The Database Administrator will help establish a unified constituent data structure that recognizes the multiple ways individuals engage with CAF, including as members, donors, volunteers, event participants, prospects, and other organizational constituents.

The successful candidate will combine strong Raiser’s Edge knowledge with technical, analytical, and problem-solving skills and an understanding of fundraising and membership operations. The individual will be expected to help Development and Membership use data and technology more effectively to strengthen constituent relationships and improve organizational decision-making.

Essential Duties and Responsibilities

Raiser’s Edge Administration & NXT Transition

• Serve as the organization's primary administrator and subject matter expert for Raiser’s Edge.
• Support CAF's continued transition and adoption of Raiser’s Edge NXT.
• Maintain current knowledge of Raiser’s Edge NXT functionality, enhancements, changes, and recommended practices as the platform continues to evolve.
• Evaluate available and newly released NXT capabilities and recommend opportunities to improve Development and Membership processes.
• Identify existing Raiser’s Edge processes that can appropriately transition to NXT functionality as capabilities become available.
• Coordinate testing and implementation of new NXT functionality before broader staff adoption.
• Work with Development and Membership leadership to establish priorities for NXT implementation and adoption.
• Develop appropriate procedures and workflows as functionality transitions between existing Raiser’s Edge tools and NXT.
• Monitor the impact of system changes on existing reports, queries, integrations, imports, exports, and business processes.
• Serve as the primary liaison with Blackbaud and other database-related vendors regarding system functionality and technical support.
• Communicate relevant Raiser’s Edge and NXT changes to users and organizational leadership.
• Provide recommendations regarding system configuration and functionality based on organizational needs and industry best practices.

Data Governance & Integrity

• Maintain the overall integrity, accuracy, consistency, and usability of constituent data.
• Develop and maintain organization-wide database standards, naming conventions, coding structures, and data-entry procedures.
• Establish data governance practices that support Development and Membership while maintaining a unified constituent record.
• Manage constituent codes, attributes, relationships, solicit codes, actions, appeals, campaigns, funds, membership-related coding, and other database structures.
• Establish clear standards for constituents who have multiple relationships with CAF, including members who are also donors, volunteers, event participants, prospects, or other organizational constituents.
• Conduct routine database audits to identify incomplete, inconsistent, duplicate, or inaccurate records.
• Manage duplicate-record prevention, identification, and consolidation.
• Maintain appropriate user access, security roles, and permissions.
• Monitor database functionality and recommend configuration changes that improve usability and data quality.
• Coordinate system updates, testing, configuration changes, and implementation of new functionality.

Membership Data Management & Support

• Partner with Membership staff to develop and maintain the Raiser’s Edge data structure supporting CAF membership programs.
• Maintain accurate membership-related constituent information, classifications, status indicators, dates, affiliations, and other relevant data.
• Develop data standards and workflows for the creation and maintenance of member records.
• Ensure membership data is structured consistently and can be effectively used for reporting, communications, engagement, and analysis.
• Support Membership staff with queries, reports, lists, exports, and constituent segmentation.
• Assist with membership renewal, retention, acquisition, and reactivation reporting.
• Develop reports and dashboards that allow Membership leadership to monitor membership trends and key performance indicators.
• Analyze membership data to identify trends in retention, tenure, engagement, geography, and other relevant measures.
• Support membership communications and campaigns through accurate constituent lists and segmentation.
• Coordinate membership-related imports, exports, and data exchanges.
• Train Membership staff on appropriate use of Raiser’s Edge and available NXT functionality.
• Work with Membership leadership to identify opportunities to improve data collection and use.

Development & Fundraising Data

• Partner with the Manager, Development Operations and Gift Administration to ensure gifts, pledges, recurring gifts, campaigns, funds, appeals, and other fundraising information are accurately maintained.
• Maintain database structures supporting annual giving, leadership giving, major gifts, planned giving, institutional giving, campaigns, events, and other fundraising programs.
• Develop and maintain coding standards that allow Development to accurately evaluate fundraising performance.
• Perform quality-control reviews of gift and constituent data.
• Assist with resolving database discrepancies identified through Development and Finance reconciliation.
• Support year-end fundraising and tax acknowledgment processes.
• Maintain accurate historical fundraising information and appropriate documentation of corrections and adjustments.

Constituent Data & Relationship Management

• Maintain a comprehensive view of constituent relationships across Development and Membership.
• Develop data structures that allow CAF to understand how constituents interact with the organization across multiple programs and activities.
• Ensure donor and membership information is appropriately connected without unnecessary duplication of constituent records.
• Maintain household, organizational, family, professional, Unit, and other relevant constituent relationships.
• Develop standards for tracking constituent interests, engagement, communication preferences, affiliations, and organizational involvement.
• Identify opportunities to improve understanding of members who are donors and donors who are members.
• Support coordinated Development and Membership constituent communications and engagement.
• Protect constituent communication preferences and ensure applicable solicit and contact restrictions are consistently maintained.

Reporting, Analytics & Business Intelligence

• Develop recurring and ad hoc reports for Development, Membership, and organizational leadership.
• Create reports and dashboards measuring fundraising performance, donor behavior, membership trends, retention, acquisition, engagement, and other key performance indicators.
• Evaluate NXT reporting and analytics capabilities and incorporate them into organizational reporting as appropriate.
• Develop reports that allow leadership to evaluate progress toward annual fundraising and membership goals.
• Analyze donor and member data to identify trends, opportunities, and areas requiring attention.
• Provide data and analysis to support strategic planning, budgeting, forecasting, and program evaluation.
• Establish consistent organizational definitions and methodologies for Development and Membership metrics.
• Translate complex data into clear, actionable information for staff and leadership.
• Support reports requested by executive leadership, committees, and the Board.

Donor & Member Segmentation

• Develop constituent segments for fundraising appeals, membership communications, renewals, stewardship, events, and other organizational outreach.
• Partner with Development staff to identify donors for renewal, upgrade, reactivation, leadership giving, major gift qualification, and planned giving opportunities.
• Partner with Membership staff to identify members for renewal, reactivation, engagement, and other targeted outreach.
• Analyze giving and membership patterns to identify constituents with opportunities for deeper organizational engagement.
• Help identify members demonstrating philanthropic potential or increased engagement for appropriate Development follow-up.
• Ensure cross-departmental segmentation strategies respect communication preferences and minimize unnecessary or conflicting communications.

Imports, Exports & System Integrations

• Manage routine and complex data imports and exports involving Raiser’s Edge.
• Establish procedures for validating data before and after imports.
• Coordinate data received from online giving platforms, membership systems, direct mail vendors, event systems, email platforms, wealth screening services, and other third-party sources.
• Monitor integrations and data exchanges between Raiser’s Edge/NXT and other organizational systems.
• Evaluate how changes within the NXT environment may affect existing integrations and data workflows.
• Troubleshoot data-flow issues and coordinate solutions with vendors and internal stakeholders.
• Maintain documentation of imports, exports, integrations, field mapping, and recurring data processes.

Prospect & Portfolio Management Support

• Support Development's moves-management and portfolio-management processes.
• Maintain fundraiser portfolio assignments and prospect-management information.
• Develop reports supporting donor qualification, cultivation, solicitation, stewardship, proposals, and portfolio movement.
• Assist with identifying potential leadership, major, and planned giving prospects using internal data and available screening information.
• Provide data and analysis to help the Chief Development Officer evaluate portfolio performance and fundraising pipeline health.
• Help identify philanthropic potential within the CAF membership base while maintaining appropriate donor confidentiality and data-use standards.

Policies, Procedures & Documentation

• Develop and maintain written procedures for Raiser’s Edge administration and constituent data management.
• Create and maintain an organizational data dictionary defining fields, codes, attributes, and their appropriate uses.
• Document database configuration, coding structures, queries, reports, imports, exports, and integrations.
• Document changes to procedures as functionality transitions into the NXT environment.
• Partner with Development and Membership leadership to establish appropriate data-entry and data-management procedures.
• Develop user guides, training materials, and reference resources.
• Maintain documentation of significant system configuration changes.
• Recommend policies and procedures that strengthen data quality, security, consistency, and usability.

Training & User Support

• Provide Raiser’s Edge training and ongoing support to Development and Membership staff.
• Provide training and guidance as staff transition to and adopt available Raiser’s Edge NXT functionality.
• Train new users on database standards, procedures, and appropriate system use.
• Develop role-specific training and reference materials for Development and Membership users.
• Communicate changes in functionality and procedures as the Raiser’s Edge environment evolves.
• Help staff understand how accurate and timely data entry affects fundraising, membership, constituent service, and organizational decision-making.
• Troubleshoot user issues and coordinate technical assistance when necessary.
• Promote consistent use of Raiser’s Edge as the organization's central system of record for donor and member relationships.

Collaboration

• Work closely with the Manager, Development Operations and Gift Administration on gift processing, reconciliation, and Development workflows.
• Partner with frontline fundraising staff on donor portfolios, prospect development, campaigns, solicitation, and stewardship.
• Partner with Membership leadership and staff to ensure membership data structures support operational and strategic needs.
• Collaborate with Finance to support accurate fundraising and financial reporting.
• Coordinate with Marketing, Education, Events, Units, and other departments when constituent information or data integration is required.
• Facilitate conversations between Development and Membership when data definitions, processes, or priorities intersect.
• Maintain confidentiality and appropriate security of donor, member, prospect, financial, and organizational information.
• Perform other duties and special projects as assigned by the Chief Development Officer.

Performance Expectations

Performance will be evaluated through a combination of data quality, system effectiveness, NXT adoption, reporting, user support, and contribution to Development and Membership objectives, including:

• Accuracy, completeness, and consistency of constituent data.
• Reduction in duplicate and incomplete constituent records.
• Development and adoption of shared Development and Membership data standards.
• Effective implementation and adoption of appropriate Raiser’s Edge NXT functionality.
• Demonstrated knowledge of evolving Raiser’s Edge/NXT capabilities and application of relevant functionality to organizational needs.
• Accuracy and timeliness of fundraising and membership reports.
• Reliability of constituent lists, queries, segments, imports, and exports.
• Effectiveness of database audits and quality-control procedures.
• Quality and usefulness of Development and Membership analytics.
• Development and maintenance of database documentation and the organizational data dictionary.
• Responsiveness to Development and Membership staff needs.
• Successful implementation of database and process improvements.
• Effectiveness of staff training and CRM adoption.

Specific annual goals and performance measures will be established in collaboration with the Chief Development Officer and appropriate organizational leadership.

Requirements

Qualifications

 This is a civilian position and does not require military service (including commissions and enlistment). 

Required

• Bachelor's degree or equivalent combination of education and relevant professional experience.
• Minimum of three to five years of experience in nonprofit database administration, advancement services, membership data management, development operations, fundraising analytics, or a related field.
• Demonstrated professional experience with Blackbaud Raiser’s Edge, including constituent management, queries, reports, imports, exports, and data administration.
• Current working knowledge of Raiser’s Edge NXT functionality and demonstrated ability to remain informed about new and evolving NXT capabilities.
• Ability to evaluate new Raiser’s Edge NXT functionality and determine its appropriate application to organizational processes.
• Strong understanding of relational databases, constituent records, coding structures, data standards, and data management.
• Demonstrated experience creating queries, reports, exports, imports, and constituent segments.
• Strong analytical skills and the ability to interpret fundraising, membership, and constituent data.
• Advanced proficiency with Microsoft Excel and data analysis.
• Exceptional attention to detail and commitment to data accuracy.
• Experience with data quality control and duplicate management.
• Strong organizational, project-management, and problem-solving skills.
• Ability to work effectively with multiple departments and balance competing data needs and priorities.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills.
• Ability to maintain confidentiality and appropriately handle sensitive donor, member, and financial information.

Preferred

• Experience supporting an organization's transition from traditional Raiser’s Edge functionality to Raiser’s Edge NXT.
• Experience implementing or expanding the use of Raiser’s Edge NXT functionality.
• Experience managing data supporting both fundraising and membership programs.
• Experience establishing organizational data governance standards.
• Knowledge of nonprofit fundraising and membership practices.
• Experience supporting annual giving, major gifts, planned giving, prospect management, membership acquisition, and retention.
• Experience with wealth screening, prospect research, or moves management.
• Experience integrating Raiser’s Edge with online giving, email marketing, membership, event, financial, or other organizational systems.
• Experience developing dashboards or using data visualization tools.
• Experience working within a national, chapter-based, membership, museum, education, aviation, military heritage, or other mission-driven organization.

Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

The successful candidate will:

• Have strong working knowledge of Raiser’s Edge and an interest in continually expanding expertise in the evolving Raiser’s Edge NXT environment.
• View Raiser’s Edge and constituent data as strategic organizational resources rather than simply administrative systems.
• Understand that a constituent may have multiple relationships with CAF and ensure the database accurately reflects those relationships.
• Balance the differing operational needs of Development and Membership while maintaining consistent organizational data standards.
• Be highly detail-oriented while understanding the broader organizational objectives the data supports.
• Enjoy working with data and identifying patterns, inconsistencies, and opportunities.
• Translate organizational questions into effective queries, reports, and analysis.
• Proactively identify data-quality and system issues and recommend practical solutions.
• Evaluate new technology and functionality based on organizational value rather than adopting technology simply because it is available.
• Communicate technical and data-related concepts clearly to nontechnical users.
• Be comfortable establishing standards and helping users consistently follow data practices.
• Demonstrate sound judgment, accountability, professionalism, and discretion.
• Be committed to continuous improvement and the missions of the Commemorative Air Force and the Henry B. Tippie National Aviation Education Center.

About the Organizations

The Commemorative Air Force is dedicated to educating, inspiring, and honoring through flight and living history experiences. Through its historic aircraft, members, volunteers, educational programs, and events, the CAF brings the stories of American military aviation to life for current and future generations.

The Henry B. Tippie National Aviation Education Center advances this mission through educational experiences and programs that connect aviation history with opportunities for young people to explore aviation, aerospace, STEM, and related career pathways.