Job Title: Director, Community Fundraising Events

Position Summary:

The Director, Community Fundraising Events will report to the Vice President, Events & Engagement and manage three direct reports. The candidate will be integral in leading a team that oversees a portfolio of run, walk and cycling events along with additional, smaller fundraising salons that take place throughout the year and across the country. This versatile project and people manager will own the strategical oversight of these programs and be a key decision maker in all aspects of future event planning, execution, and evolution. The candidate will work in lockstep with our fundraising teams to enhance the participant experience at events, work closely with marketing to ensure timely promotion and collaborate with sponsorship teams to build robust offerings across programs. A successful candidate will be able to see across events and teams and act as the ultimate dot connector. Events take place around the country and some weekend work and travel will be required.

This role requires an experienced and diplomatic team player with a proven track record of building new initiatives. The role requires juggling multiple priorities while managing an internal team as well as stewarding a range of external partners and vendors. The incumbent must also possess excellent oral/written communication skills and presentation skills, and experience and comfort with complex decision making, and the capability to articulate and motivate the contributions of colleagues across teams. Advanced degrees, such as an MA, MBA, MPA and relevant management or strategy experience are preferred. Prior experience in community fundraising, engagement and outreach is relevant.

The Director, Community Fundraising Events can be in-office, hybrid or remote, however the candidate must be able to travel for events and to MJFF’s Manhattan office when needed. Standard business hours will be 9:00am – 5:00pm except for when events are taking place and require the candidate to work outside of those hours.

Primary Duties and Responsibilities:

• Strategize and produce series of fundraising events designed to engage the Parkinson’s community and fundraise for research, meeting and exceeding expected fundraising goals.
• Provide logistical event expertise, owning all aspects of the lead up, event execution, post event follow-up and reporting.
• Be a key decision-maker across the portfolio of events, making data-driven decisions based on KPIs to ensure optimal ROI and ROE (return on engagement).
• Manage up, down and across teams to ensure timely and strategic marketing efforts, a high level of participant engagement and to ensure MJFF resources are being used efficiently (time, money).
• Collaborate with sponsorship teams to build robust, enhanced sponsorship offerings.
• Responsible for operating within the confines of a complex and lean budget

Qualifications and Skills:

• Bachelor’s degree preferred
• A minimum of 8-10 years of relevant work experience in project management, event planning, peer to peer fundraising and/or community engagement
• A minimum of 3-5 years managing a team of direct reports
• Possess ability to think big picture strategically while maintaining excellent attention to detail
• Have entrepreneurial approach; excellent decision-making, problem-solving and judgment skills; creative outside of the box thinking
• Possess strong analytical skills and the ability to shape decisions based on data and experience
• Be proactive and action-oriented; have a willingness to ‘roll up your sleeves’ to meet goals
• Possess strong interpersonal and people management skills; ability to manage and be managed
• Have the ability to prioritize work at hand and excellent time management skills required
• Have an innate sense of pace and urgency as well as the ability to work productively and proactively, both independently and as part of a team
• Flexibility in approach and willingness to adapt when necessary
• Experience managing the execution of off-site events preferred
• Experience managing large, complex budgets
• Experience with customer relationship management and project management tools like Salesforce or Asana preferred
• Excellent computer skills, including Excel, Word, and PowerPoint
• Ability and willingness to travel and work weekend events, as well as events outside of non-traditional working hours
• Must have a valid Driver’s License and be able to work out of New York City office when needed
• Ability to lift and move boxes up to 50lbs

Salary and Benefits:

The salary range for this position is $110k - $125k. In addition to salary, The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research (MJFF) offers a comprehensive benefits package, including 15+ options for medical insurance (with MJFF paying 90 percent of the premiums); competitive dental and vision plans; 401(k) plan with 6 percent employer contribution; flexible spending accounts; employer paid life and disability insurance; 18 days Paid Time Off (PTO); 12 Well-Being (Sick) Days; 1 Floating Holiday; summer Fridays (office closure at 2pm) and a summer holiday week over July 4. Employees are also eligible for a discretionary bonus on an annual basis. MJFF provides staff and leadership cultivation through regular training courses and events. The Foundation values workplace flexibility, with staff and leadership working together to determine when, where and how programs and projects get done.

How to Apply:

Interested candidates should submit a resume and thoughtful cover letter describing their specific qualifications and interest in the position. Applicants who best match the position's needs will be contacted.

About Us:

The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research (MJFF) was founded in 2000 with one clear objective: accelerating meaningful therapeutic advances and, ultimately, a cure for Parkinson’s disease (PD). The Foundation applies extraordinary scientific, business and media assets to this singular focus—thus creating a unique and dynamic organization. Since inception, MJFF has quickly grown into the largest nonprofit funder of Parkinson’s disease research, having funded over $1.5 billion in research projects in both academic and industry labs worldwide.

Core to our philosophy is how we think of our capital and its risk profile relative to other stakeholders in the drug development pipeline. We work aggressively to de-risk various therapeutic strategies and tools in the hopes of building a robust pipeline of new treatments for patients. In order to achieve our mission of finding a cure for PD it is critical that we engage with, and bring together, members of the PD community including researchers, physicians, health professionals and most important, people with Parkinson's and their families.

We believe that to find a cure for PD as quickly as possible, our capital needs to push research forward today—we therefore deliberately hold no endowment or excessive reserves. We instead seek to deploy funds raised as quickly and wisely as possible. MJFF raises over $100 million annually. Today, the Foundation has approximately 201 full-time employees. We offer a collegial and collaborative environment where optimistic problem-solvers and entrepreneurial, resourceful individuals can thrive and make a tangible difference for millions of people living with Parkinson’s disease.

Vaccine Statement:

At The Michael J. Fox Foundation (MJFF), the health and safety of our team and our community is a priority. MJFF has made the decision to require all staff receive the COVID-19 vaccine as a condition of employment. Successful applicants for this position must be fully vaccinated by date of hire and proof of vaccine is required. Full vaccination is defined as two weeks after both doses of two-dose vaccine or two weeks after a single-dose vaccine has been administered. Anyone unable to be vaccinated, because of medical or religious reasons, can request a reasonable accommodation for consideration.

MJFF is an equal opportunity employer. We strongly encourage applications from individuals who will contribute to our efforts to build and support a diverse, equitable and inclusive workforce. Diversity may refer to characteristics including, but not limited to, race, religion, ethnicity, sex, gender identity, sexual orientation, socioeconomic circumstance, geographic background, ability and disability, political ideology, and age.