Annual Giving Officer, Friends

Annual Giving Officer, Friends

Development Department

Frontline Fundraising

Work Status:

Full Time

FLSA Status:

Exempt

Location of Job:

Davies Symphony Hall

San Francisco, CA 

Salary:

Pay Grade I

$77,850 - $84,720

Schedule:

Hybrid

Regular Hours:

9 am-5 pm; intermittent evenings and weekends

Reports To:             

Senior Giving Officer, Maestro Circle

Supervisory:

No

THE ORGANIZATION

The San Francisco Symphony is among the most adventurous and innovative arts institutions in the United States, celebrated for its artistic excellence, creative performance concepts, award-winning recordings, and standard-setting education and community engagement programs. Since it was established in 1911, the Symphony has grown in acclaim under a succession of distinguished music directors: Henry Hadley, Alfred Hertz, Basil Cameron, Issay Dobrowen, Pierre Monteux, Enrique Jordá, Josef Krips, Seiji Ozawa, Edo de Waart, Herbert Blomstedt, Michael Tilson Thomas, and Esa-Pekka Salonen. In May 2026, the Symphony announced Elim Chan as the 13th Music Director in its 115-year history, beginning with the 2027–28 season. One of the most sought-after artists of her generation, Elim Chan embodies the spirit of contemporary orchestral leadership with her crystalline precision and expressive zeal.

The San Francisco Symphony presents more than 200 concerts and presentations annually for an audience of nearly 350,000 in its home of Davies Symphony Hall and around the Bay Area. As a cornerstone of its mission, the San Francisco Symphony provides some of the most extensive education and community programs offered by any American orchestra. The Symphony’s free music education experiences engage students in grades 1–12 throughout the San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD), serving more than 25,000 students annually.

In 2001, the SF Symphony became the first American orchestra to launch its own in-house record label, SFS Media. Recorded live in concert and engineered at Davies Symphony Hall, SFS Media recordings showcase music by contemporary composers as well as core classical masterworks. San Francisco Symphony radio broadcasts, the first in the nation to feature symphonic music when they began in 1926, today carry the Orchestra’s concerts across the country. In 2004, the SF Symphony launched the groundbreaking multimedia Keeping Score series on PBS-TV and the web; the series was made available for unlimited free streaming on the Symphony’s YouTube channel in 2020. In 2014, the San Francisco Symphony inaugurated SoundBox, an experimental and eclectic live music series, which takes place in an alternative performance space located backstage at Davies Symphony Hall. In 2023, the San Francisco Symphony partnered with Apple for the launch of a new classical music streaming app, Apple Music Classical, and has since released 17 spatial audio recordings of live concert performances through the app. For its adventurous programming, the Symphony has been honored 19 times by the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers, and the Symphony’s recordings have garnered France’s Grand Prix du Disque and Britain’s Gramophone Award, as well as 17 Grammy® Awards.

JOB SUMMARY

The Annual Giving Officer, Friends (AGOF) is responsible for the fundraising strategy for the Symphony’s Friends level donors who give <$5,000 a year bringing in approximately $2.1 million annually. The AGOF serves on a team of three who oversee the fundraising strategy for the Symphony’s three giving levels: Friends, Baton Circle, and Maestro Circle. Solicitation efforts are employed primarily via telefundraising, direct mail, electronic media, and personal contact. Strategies include donor acquisition, renewal, and upgrades with the goal of moving donors to increase their level of investment in the Symphony. The AGOF is actively involved in managing and supporting the vendor relationships that are strategic thought partners in these efforts. The AGOF is a frontline fundraiser responsible for managing a portfolio of 50-60 Annual Gift prospects, with a goal of developing them as future major donors to the Symphony. This position reports to the Senior Giving Officer, Maestro Circle and works closely with gift officers and the stewardship/operations staff within the Development team.

ESSENTIAL FUNCTIONS & RESPONSIBILITIES

• Plan, implement, and evaluate annual strategy for renewal of donors under $5,000, acquisition of new donors, and solicitation of additional gifts, including upgrades, from current donors to achieve budgeted revenue goals.
• With the Senior Giving Officer, Maestro Circle and the Annual Giving Officer, Baton Circle, develop, execute, and communicate a comprehensive, integrated moves management strategy to meet and exceed income goals and increase donors at all levels of giving.
• Work with the Manager, Prospect Research and Development to integrate prospect research and wealth screening into the strategies for individual giving.  
• Manage the relationship between SFS and the Direct Mail Firm and drive all direct mail planning and execution to meet income goals and build new audiences for the SFS.
• Actively research membership strategies to ensure that the Symphony is implementing the most current text donor renewal and acquisition techniques and strategies.
• Oversee strategy and execution of telefundraising campaigns. Manage external telefund vendor. Manage all negotiations and strategy. Complete data pull process to ensure information is transmitted to the external vendor in a timely manner.
• Work with Development Operations and Stewardship teams to ensure timely and accurate gift entry, processing, premium fulfillment, monthly payment plans, and pledge follow ups.
• Work with Development, IT, Marketing, and Patron Services to ensure data and other key Membership system needs are met. Lead data append strategy and implementation plans.
• With the Deputy Director, Development and the Senior Giving Officer, Maestro Circle, govern and report on expenses, revenue, and ROI for current and future years.
• Collaborate with the stewardship and development operations staff on membership events and benefits, campaign premiums, stewardship activities, and other membership communications.
• Provide support at all Friends donor events and other events as specified by the Senior Giving Officer, Maestro Circle.
• Perform additional duties as required by the SFS.

MINIMUM QUALIFICATIONS

• 3-5 years of direct response fundraising or direct mail marketing, experience with printing/mail shop and online fundraising platforms.
• Strong organizational skills, with ability to work independently and manage highly detailed tasks.
• Ability to handle multiple tasks and priorities, and meet deadlines in a high-volume, fast-paced environment.
• Self-directed, performance-oriented; demonstrated achievement of goals.
• Excellent communication skills, both written and verbal.
• Committed to success of the symphonic artform and able to communicate thoughtfully and enthusiastically about the work of the San Francisco Symphony.
• Familiarity with and/or passion for orchestral music a plus.
• Proficient in Microsoft Office and donor database software. Tessitura preferred.
• Able to work nights and weekends as required.

SUPERVISORY RESPONSIBILITIES

          None

WORKING RELATIONSHIPS

The internal and external constituents with whom this position most frequently interacts include:

• Individual Giving and Legacy Giving teams
• Development Operations Team
• Editorial and Creative teams
• Donors and prospects
• Telefunding firm and direct mail consultants

EEO STATEMENT

In alignment with the values statement above, the San Francisco Symphony is committed to providing an environment of mutual respect where equal employment opportunities are available to all applicants and employees without regard to race, color, religion, sex, pregnancy (including childbirth, lactation and related medical conditions), national origin, age, physical and mental disability, marital status, sexual orientation, gender identity, gender expression, genetic information (including characteristics and testing), military and veteran status, and any other characteristic protected by applicable law.