Career Opportunity:
Major Gifts Manager, Individuals

OPPORTUNITY

This is an exciting time to work at Oregon Ballet Theatre (OBT) – one of the nation’s leading ballet companies. We are in a position of strength and are well-positioned for the future, financially solid and debt free. After two rigorous national searches, OBT has appointed two visionary leaders to guide the company’s exciting next chapter: Artistic Director Dani Rowe and Executive Director Shane Jewell.

Artistic Director Dani Rowe comes to OBT after an expansive professional career as an acclaimed principal dancer with The Australian Ballet and Houston Ballet, and artist of Nederlands Dans Theater 1. She is an award-winning choreographer, having created renowned works for companies like San Francisco Ballet, New Zealand Ballet, Ballet Idaho, and more. Her rich career of performing, choreographing, and directing at the highest levels of classical and contemporary dance worlds has cultivated in her a curatorial aesthetic that is already revitalizing OBT with a dazzling mix of innovative and cutting-edge programming. Her vast network and deep relationships with top-level artistic collaborators will usher in a new era for OBT.

Executive Director Shane Jewell has over twenty years of experience working in performing arts administration and production. Most recently, Mr. Jewell was the General Manager of Gibney Company in New York City, a newly formed contemporary dance company that performed in NYC and toured internationally, where he built the infrastructure and led strategic planning that led to substantial growth and expansion. Prior to that, he served as Executive Director of the Orlando Ballet, Executive Director of Oklahoma City Ballet, and Executive Director of OK Mozart International Music Festival. Shane has raised over thirty million dollars for the various nonprofits of his employ, successfully completing two capital campaigns and a multi-million-dollar sustainability campaign while maintaining and driving growth in operational contributed income.

In addition to our energizing new leadership and strategic plan, our growing Board is actively engaged in oversight and stewardship. Our 250 employees are resilient and energized. We are adding two new studios to facilitate growth. Programmatically,OBT is robust, and we are changing lives through dance.. Our professional company of 27 dancers performs an annual season of five programs, featuring both classical and contemporary work. OBT2, our junior company, boasts an average of 20 dancers of exceptional talent. Our nationally renowned School trains hundreds of elite students from across the country. Our community education programs reach thousands of students in classrooms across the region. Through all our endeavors, we are committed to advancing equity and creating a culture of kindness.

Portland, Oregon is a cultural hub where the arts, sports, live music, and small businesses thrive, while also leading the way in sustainability with a robust mass transit system, bike friendly infrastructure and unique, walkable neighborhoods. The city is home to dozens of microbreweries, coffee shops, world-class restaurants, and is just a short drive to nationally renowned Willamette Valley wineries. Portland’s proximity to both the Pacific Ocean and Mt. Hood allows for easy access to nature’s playground. Acclaimed for its beauty, vitality and livability, the City of Roses has become a destination for young professionals, families, and world travelers alike, with no shortage of activities from outdoorsy adventures to cosmopolitan delights.


EQUITY

OBT is committed to the vitality of ballet as an art form that is accessible to everyone. We seek people who have lived, volunteer and/or have professional experience partnering, communicating, and engaging with communities of color, including Black, Indigenous, Latinx, Asian, and other communities.


POSITION

The Major Gifts Manager, Individuals leads the cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship of a portfolio of 250 individuals each giving at least $1,000.00 annually, and over $500,000.00 in aggregate. Portfolio constituents include current and lapsed donors, representatives of corporate supporters, and donor prospects among subscribers, individual ticket buyers, and fundraising event attendees. This position is pivotal to OBT’s development team, working collaboratively and strategically with staff, executive leadership, and the Board of Trustees. This position operates as a frontline fundraiser, relationship manager, and project manager for the individual funder pipeline identifying and cultivating new prospective funders through active portfolio management, and ensuring all reporting and benefits are fulfilled and is an external-facing representative of the organization with donors, stakeholders, and artists at OBT performances, events, and functions. A full job description is available here.


QUALIFICATIONS

-5 years of successful professional, volunteer and/or lived experience raising at least $300,000. annually from individual major donors in a non-profit setting. Must have exceptionally strong relationship-management skills. Strategic and analytical thinker with research skills. Successful experience leveraging, coaching, and supporting Boards in fundraising. Experience with CRMs, with Tessitura preferred.


COMPENSATION

$55,000. – $65,000. annually DOE and full benefits, including employer-paid medical, dental, and vision insurance; life insurance; and 25 days off annually (15 days PTO and 10 holidays). Employees may also elect and self-fund the following benefits: 403(b) retirement plan; short-term and/or long-term disability insurance; flexible spending account for health-related expenses and/or childcare; and additional life insurance.


APPLY

Submit a cover letter and resume or CV to jobs@obt.org. Applications will be reviewed as they are received, and the position will remain open until filled. A full job description is available here.