Director, Development Communications

Posted On: January 5, 2012

Media-Related Job

Media Organization: Hospital for Special Surgery

Company Description

Founded in 1863 in New York City, the Hospital for Special Surgery (HSS) is a world leader in orthopedics, rheumatology, and rehabilitation and is nationally ranked as No. 1 in orthopedics and No. 2 in rheumatology by U.S. News & World Report. The mission of HSS is to provide the highest-quality patient care, improve mobility for its patients, enhance the quality of life for all, and to advance the sciences of orthopedic surgery, rheumatology, and their related disciplines through research and education.

A member of the New York-Presbyterian Healthcare System and an affiliate of Weill Cornell Medical College of Cornell University, HSS operates 205 beds with more than 3,500 full-time employees. Nearly 250 distinguished medical doctors oversee 300,000 patient visits annually and perform more than 25,000 procedures each year in both inpatient and outpatient settings. HSS is located on the East side of Manhattan at 535 East 70th Street. More information can be found on the HSS website: www.hss.edu

Job Description

POSITION: Director, Development Communications (DDC)

Hospital for Special Surgery is in the quiet stage of a multi-year campaign. The Director, Development Communications will develop, implement, and oversee a comprehensive program of development and campaign communications. The DDC will also be responsible for a communications plan for the stewardship of individual donors.

The Director will report to the Vice President, Development and Chief Development Office. He/she will help supervise two Development Associates.

RESPONSIBILITIES:

The specific responsibilities include, but are not limited to:

• Working with Development leadership, develop, implement, and oversee a comprehensive program of development, campaign, and annual-giving communications that ensures consistent and effective messaging and promotes the mission of the organization.
• Conceive, design, and produce, in collaboration with campaign consultants, printed communications. Provide oversight of messages delivered through other media (video, Website, online giving).
• Write customized, highly persuasive proposals and letters of inquiry to cultivate and solicit major and principal gifts; write and oversee the production of other fund-raising materials.
• In collaboration with Development staff, create and oversee a stewardship plan for major donors.
• Research and fact-check all information required to write fund-raising materials and stewardship reports. Proofread, edit, and critique fund-raising materials, as requested.
• Manage and develop Development Associates and other staff in day-to-day and special projects.

REQUIREMENTS:

• A bachelor’s degree in English, journalism, communications, or a related field is required. A master’s degree is highly desirable.
• Six years of professional work experience is required. A minimum of three years of experience with development/campaign communications and stewardship, including creating/writing fund-raising materials such as letters, brochures, and reports is required.
• Experience supervising/managing a small team/department is required. Experience in a hospital/university setting is highly desirable.
• Exceptional writing, editing, proofreading, and verbal communication skills are required. Ability to adopt others’ tone/voice, “ghost write” correspondence, remarks, and other materials. (A writing test is required.)
• Creative and marketing-minded; adept at writing and contributing to the design of highly persuasive fund-raising materials that deliver emotional impact while being factually accurate and financially sound.
• Technologically savvy. Proficiency in MS Office (MS Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Outlook), with the ability to learn other software and database packages. Experience with Adobe Creative Suite (Photo Shop, Illustrator, etc.) and Raiser’s Edge is desirable.

To Apply

E-mail resume and 2-3 writing samples to Natalia Bilash; Director, Talent Acquisition, 3D Leadership, LLC: nbilash@3dleadership.com