Wisconsin Watch seeks a resourceful and ambitious Philanthropy Officer to support our fund development work in Southeastern Wisconsin and the greater Milwaukee area. The Philanthropy Officer will be a key member of the Philanthropy team, responsible for cultivating and expanding our charitable support. This role will focus on donor cultivation and growing a regionally based portfolio. The right candidate will be effective in building and maintaining relationships with individual donors, foundations, and corporate foundations, and collaborating with the Philanthropy team on fundraising campaigns and stewardship events. The Philanthropy Officer will play a critical role in ensuring our organization can continue producing excellent nonpartisan, solutions-oriented journalism that strengthens the communities we serve. 

About Wisconsin Watch and Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service

Founded in 2009, Wisconsin Watch is a nonprofit news organization dedicated to producing nonpartisan journalism that makes the communities of Wisconsin strong, informed and connected. We believe that access to local representative news is critical to a healthy democracy and to finding solutions to the most pressing problems of everyday life. Under the Wisconsin Watch umbrella, we have three independent news divisions, a statewide investigative newsroom, a regional collaboration in Northeast Wisconsin called the NEW News Lab, and the Milwaukee Neighborhood News Service (NNS). All three divisions maintain their unique reporting areas and together are positioned to grow and serve our communities with greater efficiency and impact.

NNS was founded in 2011 as a mission-driven newsroom that reports on and celebrates Milwaukee’s central city neighborhoods, specifically the city’s Black and Latinx communities. Through NNS’ reporting, website, e-newsletters and News414 texting service, we cover the ordinary people who do extraordinary things, connect readers with resources and serve as a watchdog for our audience. NNS, formerly a part of Marquette University, and Wisconsin Watch have a long history of collaboration. In 2024, NNS moved its administrative home and merged under the Wisconsin Watch umbrella. Together, Wisconsin Watch’s statewide team and NNS’ reporters collaborate to produce statewide investigative stories while highlighting issues impacting communities in Milwaukee. 

Duties and Responsibilities

1. Relationship and portfolio development
2. Build and manage a regionally based portfolio of donors. 
3. Prospect identification: Research and identify potential major donors who have a passion for our work and have the capacity to make significant gifts.
4. Relationship building: Collaborate with the Director of Philanthropy, CEO, and Milwaukee NNS Executive Director to craft funder outreach, write personalized communication, and conduct in-person meetings. Steward donors and maintain relationships.
5. Gift Solicitation: Approach qualified donors to solicit gifts, effectively articulating the impact of our work and how it overlaps with the donor’s passions.
6. Collaborate internally with business and editorial staff to craft meaningful donor interactions and proposals. 
7. Act as an ambassador to Southeastern, WI, attending relevant community events and networking opportunities.
8. Meets established fundraising goals to support organizational needs.

Systems:

1. Maintain best practice standards when it comes to record keeping, including logging contact reports to the donor database/CRM.
2. Collaborate with the Associate Director of Philanthropy to analyze weekly gift reports, customize acknowledgement copy, and route letters for approvals and signatures.
3. Draft acknowledgment letter templates and refresh/update content on a bi-annual basis.
4. Partner with the business team on database policies and best practices in record keeping.

Other duties: 

1. Track key initiatives, monitor deadlines, and coordinate with teams to ensure the timely execution of goals.
2. Performs other major donor/development activities as may be required (i.e. tours, public speaking or spokesperson activities).
3. Collaborate with the philanthropy team on stewardship event execution.
4. Serves as a community ambassador/spokesperson as needed.
5. Support proposal development and grant writing as needed.

Qualifications

1. Excels at relationship building and connecting impact-driven missions with individual passions.
2. Has experience with high-touch fundraising and gift solicitation.
3. Displays a desire to work with culturally diverse populations using a compassionate, collaborative, and respectful approach.
4. Responsive, tactful, and professional, possessing a relationship-centric mindset.
5. Thrives in high-pressure environments and remains adaptable amidst changing priorities.
6. Demonstrates a proactive, creative, problem-solving mindset with a focus on outcomes. Demonstrates a commitment to looking for solutions and opportunities for collaboration.
7. Is highly organized, detail-oriented, and capable of juggling multiple priorities.
8. Is familiar and comfortable with various technologies, from Google Workspace (Sheets, Docs, etc.) and CRMs to social platforms, ensuring smooth execution of tasks and communication across different tools.

Preferred Qualifications:

1. 5+ years’ experience in nonprofit fundraising, stewardship, donor relations, project management and/or a related area.
2. Proficient in Google Suite, MS Office, Word, Excel, and Outlook.
3. Excellent written and verbal communication skills
4. Passion for journalism, local news, media, and/or civic engagement.

Location: The Philanthropy Officer will be located in Southeastern, WI, preferably the greater Milwaukee area.

Status, Salary, and Benefits: 

1. Full time, hybrid position. 
2. Salary: $60,000 - $80,000.
3. Final salary offer amounts will carefully consider multiple factors, including prior experience, expertise and location.
4. 5 weeks of vacation, retirement fund contribution, paid sick days, paid family and caregiver leave, subsidized medical and dental premiums, vision coverage, and more.

Deadline: Applications will be accepted until the position is filled. For best consideration, apply by May 31, 2025.

To apply: Please apply at this link by submitting your resume and answer each of these three questions in 50 words or less.

1. Why are you interested in joining our team?
2. Why are you qualified for this role?
3. Is there anything else we should know about you?

If you’d like to chat about the job before applying, contact Anna January at ajanuary@wisconsinwatch.org

Wisconsin Watch is dedicated to improving our newsroom by better reflecting the people we cover. We are committed to diversity and building an inclusive environment for people of all...