Position:  Program Manager (Sponsorship & Recurring Giving)
Location:  St. Paul, MN
Conditions:  Full-Time; Benefit Eligible

Organizational Summary 

Common Hope promotes hope and opportunity in Guatemala through a comprehensive approach that includes education, health care, and housing. We partner with children, families, and communities to improve lives and break the cycle of poverty.

Join our dynamic team! The successful candidate will be self-motivated, relationship oriented, mission driven, and a team player. This is a great job opportunity for someone who enjoys leading people, driving strategy, and uncovering new opportunities for program growth and improvement. You will join a fun, passionate, and dedicated team that provides opportunities for students and families in Guatemala, and generates recurring revenues supporting our programs in Guatemala. 

Position Purpose 

More than 2,300 Common Hope students are sponsored by donors all over the world. The Sponsorship Program Manager is responsible for executing program deliverables and the annual Sponsorship Communication Plan. The person in this role also oversees Common Hope’s sustaining membership program (The Pathway) and our planned giving program (Legacy Circle). The overarching goals for this role are to:

• Educate sponsors on the culture of Guatemala, the complex challenges of poverty, Common Hope’s family partnerships, and the situations of the sponsored students and their families.
• Facilitate the communication and information exchange between a sponsor and the student and family in the program.
• Cultivate deeper relationships and engagement between the sponsor and the organization that result in connecting needs and resources for Common Hope.
• Develop strategies to recruit new sponsors and secure new sustaining members (monthly donors).
• Manage and build the sustaining membership program.
• Manage and build the Legacy Circle planned giving program.

Relationships are at the heart of Common Hope’s Sponsorship Program. The person in this role must be dedicated to great customer service and facilitating an extraordinary experience for sponsors and donors.

Role Responsibilities

This is a mid-level managerial role with one direct report (program coordinator). A successful candidate will have strong project management skills, be able to demonstrate knowledge of the role of recurring revenue and fundraising in nonprofits, have leadership experience, and enjoy working in a small office with a collaborative team.

This position is full-time and works from the Common Hope office in St. Paul, MN. This position collaborates virtually with the Guatemala Sponsorship Team.

Education & Communication

• Strategically utilize the Annual Sponsor Communication Plan to educate sponsors on Common Hope’s work, the culture of Guatemala, and how the Sponsorship program can help students be successful.
• Serve as the primary contact (lead relationship manager) for sponsors. Answer their questions, share program updates, and demonstrate the impact of their support and Common Hope’s work.
• Partner with Common Hope’s marketing team to develop sponsorship program materials, solicitations, digital resources, and public relations related to sponsorship communication.
• Stay informed on current events and security and safety issues in Guatemala to provide accurate and timely information to sponsors.

Sponsor Relations (Cultivation)

• Maintain and grow relationships with current and new Sponsors, building their engagement to grow our planned giving program.
• Build and maintain strong relationships with current and potential sponsors through phone calls, visits, communications, and events.
• Manage relationships with sponsors who are identified as major donors to identify opportunities for deeper engagement.
• Work with leadership to develop strategies for relationship growth utilizing patterns and emerging trends uncovered by tracking methodology.
• Lead moves management strategy to increase giving by 10% from major donors and sponsors annually.
• Lead strategies to move sponsors into major donors.
• Increase the total number of sponsors by 10% annually.
• Develop strategies to reduce the number of lost sponsors year over year.
• Manage and develop annual retention plan and rates of sponsors experiencing a disaffiliating student.
• Develop strategies to retain sponsors experiencing a student graduating.

Program Operations (Facilitation)

• Oversee and establish all new sponsor relationships.
• Develop the annual Sponsor Communication Plan in partnership with organizational leadership and Guatemala Sponsorship Team.
• Collaborate with Guatemala Sponsorship Team to ensure program communications and operations are aligned.
• Lead monthly review of scheduled Sponsor visits scheduled in Guatemala.
• Lead sponsorship investigations in coordination with the Guatemala Sponsorship Team.
• Ensure that all sponsorship related customer service tasks are being completed promptly and accurately.
• Track progress toward annual goals and provide updates to Executive Management Team.
• Develop strategies and execute plans to meet sponsorship revenue and acquisition goals.
• Develop expense budget for the program.
• Evaluate the annual Sponsor Communication Plan to make recommendations for improvement.
• Monitor the number of eligible students in coordination with Guatemala Sponsorship Team.
• Create campaigns to promote sponsorship and its benefits for a student.
• Produce communications related to student graduation and disaffiliation.
• Uphold and implement safety and gift policies.
• Manage one direct report, the Sponsorship Coordinator, ensuring their success and development.

Experience and Skill Set:

• Commitment to the mission of Common Hope and serving those experiencing poverty
• Demonstrated cross-cultural sensitivity and awareness
• Outgoing and enthusiastic
• Demonstrated leadership
• Excellent communication skills; effective listening, writing, speaking, and presentation
• Excellent project management and organizational skills
• Ability to identify opportunities for program growth, create an actionable plan, and bring plan to fruition
• Strong attention to detail and ability to multi-task
• Preference for experienced users of MS Office Suite
• Database management (Raiser’s Edge) proficiency a plus
• Understanding of the role of development and fundraising in nonprofit organizations
• Spanish language proficiency preferred
• Bachelor’s degree or equivalent business experience
• 3-5 years of applicable experience in nonprofit development work, fundraising, or similar

To Apply:

Send resume and cover letter to Doug Rosenberg at DougR@us.commonhope.org. Deadline to apply is April 10, 2023.