Senior Director, Membership & Development
New Yesterday
Job Description
The Cal Alumni Association (CAA) provides all Cal graduates with rewarding connections to the university, to fellow alums, and to current students. Founded by the original graduates of the University of California in 1872, the Cal Alumni Association today represents more than half a million alums living throughout the world.
Our mission is to cultivate a lifelong relationship with our alma mater by connecting and inspiring alums, students, and the campus community through meaningful and inclusive opportunities. We foster a culture that celebrates diversity, creates a sense of belonging, and advances equity.
The Senior Director, Membership and Development is responsible for advancing the membership, annual giving, and donor stewardship programs of the Cal Alumni Association. This individual will drive revenue growth, alumni engagement, and long-term loyalty through integrated strategies that combine marketing, data analytics, benefit innovation, and relationship cultivation.
Reporting to the Executive Director, this position plays a critical role in achieving CAA's revenue and engagement goals, ensuring alignment between membership value, philanthropic support, and lifelong alumni connection. The ideal candidate brings expertise in nonprofit fundraising, membership business models, digital marketing, and team leadership. This role will manage the Director of Annual Giving, the membership sales and service team, donor stewardship and gift processing staff, and related contractors and vendors.
Strategic Leadership & Planning
- Develop and execute a comprehensive advancement plan encompassing membership acquisition and retention, annual giving campaigns, and donor engagement pipelines.
- Establish and monitor performance metrics across all revenue channels, including membership dues, annual gifts, and affinity campaigns.
- Advise the Executive Director on revenue strategy, donor behavior, and alumni lifecycle engagement.
- Prepare annual business plans and quarterly dashboards for internal and board-facing reporting.
Membership & Annual Giving Strategy
- Lead an integrated, multi-channel membership and annual giving program that includes direct mail, email, social media, telemarketing, peer-to-peer, and digital fundraising.
- Oversee acquisition, renewal, and upgrade campaigns with a focus on testing, personalization, and data-driven decision making..
- Collaborate with Marketing and Data teams to optimize segmentation, journey mapping, A/B testing, and campaign performance analytics.
- Supervise the Director of Annual Giving and guide year-round engagement strategies to build a robust and diverse donor base.
Revenue, Forecasting & Program Performance
- Monitor, forecast, and analyze revenue performance across membership dues, annual giving, and donor retention.
- Manage budgets, vendor contracts, and pricing models aligning with CAA's financial goals and strategic priorities.
- Leverage CRM and analytics tools to track lifetime value, retention, campaign ROI, and alumni engagement levels.
Partnerships, Member Benefits & External Engagement
- Manage relationships with more than 25 non-affinity benefit providers (e.g., UC Libraries, Cal Rec Club, Student Store).
- Collaborate with internal and campus partners (Business Development, Berkeley Network, UC Extension, Athletics) to develop new benefits, discounts, and promotional opportunities.
- Supervise Membership Sales efforts (including outbound campaigns) to maximize value-driven acquisition and service quality.
- Serve as an ambassador at campus, alumni, and donor events as needed.
Team Leadership & Talent Development
- Build, manage, and mentor a high-performing team aligned with CAA values of collaboration, inclusion, and excellence.
- Promote professional development, cross-training, and DEIB-informed leadership practices across the Advancement team.
- Create a positive culture of accountability, creativity, data literacy, and shared ownership of success.
- Bachelor's degree and 8+ years of progressively responsible experience in fundraising, alumni engagement, membership strategy, or nonprofit advancement.
- Proven success in designing and managing multi-channel fundraising or membership campaigns with measurable results.
- Experience with P&L or revenue forecasting responsibility.
- Strong supervisory experience with demonstrated team-building, mentoring, and performance management skills.
- Excellent communication, analytical, and interpersonal skills.
- Ability to work independently and collaboratively across departments.
- Proficiency with CRM systems (e.g., Salesforce, CADS) and marketing platforms.
- UC Berkeley alum.
- Experience in an alumni association, university advancement office, or membership-based nonprofit.
- Familiarity with Cal Advancement Data System (CADS).
- Experience managing marketing vendors and telemarketing programs.
- Knowledge of alumni lifecycle engagement strategies, behavioral segmentation, or predictive analytics.
This position is classified as an at-will, full-time, exempt position. Pay range will be between $130,000-$170,000 annualized, depending on experience. The role is eligible to participate in company-sponsored benefits, our 403(b) plan with a company match, and generous paid time off. CAA staff members also have access to many UC Berkeley faculty and staff discounts. We have a friendly, relaxed but professional environment, and we pride ourselves on our team approach.
CAA offers an excellent health care and supplemental benefits packages, 403(b), a generous paid time-off benefit, and more. We have a friendly, relaxed but professional environment, and we pride ourselves on our team approach.
Health Care Benefits:- CAA employees are required to contribute 10% of their total medical premium for the employee and 20% for any eligible dependents.
- CAA pays 100% of the premiums for Dental and Vision benefits for the employee and any eligible dependents.
- Vacation: 16 days/year for first 2 years of service, 18 days/year after completing 2 years of service, 21 days/year after completing 5 years of service.
- Sick time: 12 days/year
- Holidays: 11 total per year
- Paid time off between Dec 26 and Dec 31
- Birthday Holiday: 1 Day off
- As affiliates to UC Berkeley, CAA employees are eligible to participate in many of the on-campus professional development workshops, seminars and professional networks available to UCB employees. Please note that this does not include undergraduate or graduate courses offered to students.
- CAA has a partnership with UC Berkeley Extension that offers our employees a discount on enrollment fees.
- 403(b) retirement savings plan with a company match
- Supplemental Insurance with 100% of premiums paid by CAA:
- Life Insurance
- AD&D Insurance
- LTD Insurance
- Option to purchase supplemental insurance plans from AFLAC
- If you're a commuter, consider taking advantage our pre-tax public transit commuter benefit. You can load your Clipper Card or pay public transit fare with pre-tax dollars.
- Cal Bear Pass: Take advantage of UCB's partnership with AC Transit. The partnership offers a cost savings of up to 70% off the standard monthly bus pass rate! CAA employees are eligible to purchase an AC transit pass at the faculty/staff discount rate with pre-tax payroll deductions.
- UCB Campus Parking Permit: As affiliates to UCB, our CAA employees are eligible to purchase a campus parking permit at the faculty/staff discount rate with pre-tax payroll deductions.
- Eligible to join the Recreational Sports Facility (RSF) at the Faculty/Staff discount rate
- Special campus events
- Free admission to the University Art Museum
- Discount tickets for Cal Performances, Pacific Film Archive, and Hertz Hall
- AirBears: wireless internet access on campus
- Location:
- Berkeley
- Job Type:
- FullTime
- Category:
- Business