Director of Membership at The Phillips Collection

Job Title: Director of Membership

Job Status: Full-time

Location: Washington D.C.

Salary: $76,000 – $82,000

POSITION SUMMARY:

Reporting to the Chief Advancement Officer, the Director of Membership is a creative leader seeking to grow the pipeline of “Friends” Membership (donors of $75-$2,499) to position The Phillips Collection for long-term sustainability as it begins its second century. The Director of Membership develops and implements strategies that increase new member acquisition and improve retention, enrich the member experience, and enable the program to meet ambitious annual revenue goals. This position directs all aspects of the general membership program, including reporting and analysis, project management of direct-response fundraising efforts, and coordination of member events.

The Director of Membership is an important leader in the Advancement Department, helping to shape strategy and plans for the future of membership and annual giving programs with a priority on a fun and meaningful membership experience, data-driven portfolio management, and cross- and inter-departmental collaboration to grow donor pipelines.

The Director of Membership supervises the full-time Membership Associate, and coordinates with the Guest Services team to supports part-time, public-facing Guest Services Associates that promote membership sales at the museum admissions desk. Additionally, the Director of Membership works with the Major and Planned Giving team to cultivate an increasingly diverse pipeline of prospective donors to grow the 10,000-strong membership base, evaluating and enhancing all aspects of annual fundraising so as to support the museum’s commitment to diversity, equity, accessibility, and inclusion (DEAI).

The Phillips Collection Advancement Department is in an exciting time of transition, following a highly successful Centennial Campaign, the arrival of a new leadership (a new Museum Director and CEO in March 2023 and Chief Advancement Officer in October 2023), and record-breaking successes across the museum. A new strategic plan was approved in June 2024 to shape the near-term future and priorities of the museum.  

ESSENTIAL JOB FUNCTIONS & DUTIES:

Membership program management—

  • Executes best strategies in stewardship, renewal and upgrading of current membership (10,000 households); acquiring new members and guest conversion; and increasing annual fund giving from members.
  • Regularly evaluates effectiveness of membership program services, benefits, and policies, relating to retention and acquisition of members.
  • Collaborates with Curatorial, Public Programs, Education, and DEAI colleagues to design programming that engages and stewards members.
  • Oversees fundraising strategies and progress to goal for the Contemporaries program, the robust young professionals group at the Phillips
  • In concert with the Major and Planned Giving team, foster pipeline to convert “Friends” members ($75-$2,499) into new planned giving donors and/or the “Circles” tier of membership ($2,500+).

Member cultivation and stewardship—

  • Serves as primary representative of Membership program on a daily basis and at all Membership events, including exhibition openings, museum programs, exhibition tours, and members-only events.
  • Maintains membership information, correspondence, and documentation via the Altru database.
  • Collaborates with the Director of Major and Planned Giving, as well as the Guest Services team, to ensure that strategies for Membership pipeline development are being maximized.
  • Leads cultivation and engagement of The Phillips Contemporaries by building relationships with individuals, organizing events and tracking engagement and activity.

Direct response project management—

  • Develops and directs strategies internally with other departments and externally with consultants to develop campaigns using integrated mail, online communications, social media, website, and email to acquire, upgrade, and renew members and donors.
  • Works with external consultant to plan and execute dedicated annual acquisition campaign.
  • Writes copy for annual fund appeals, renewals, member emails, and secondary acquisition efforts. 
  • Develops email list segmentation strategies using interest groups to maximize and customize engagement, fundraising, and list health.
  • Partners with Marketing and Communications team to leverage e-newsletters, member magazine, and other communications opportunities that communicates the museum’s impact

Data management, reporting, and analysis—

  • Develops and maintains a system of tracking all program activity, develops and produces analytical reports on membership retention and growth campaigns and revenue, as well as composition of membership base and allocation of funds.  
    Monitors progress towards revenue goal and provides reports and analysis for senior management and the Board of Trustees.
  • With the Membership Associate and through support from the Advancement Operations team, develops, promotes, and documents best practices and policies associated with member, donor, and prospect management.
  • Collaborates with Operations team to oversee the gift tracking and acknowledgment process for all member-related gifts, ensuring that gifts are recorded accurately and acknowledged promptly, and that information is recorded in the constituent database.
  • Guides employer gift matching programs, as well as auction and staff requests related to Membership.
  • Utilizes member data to understand engagement and churn drivers and put solutions in place to deliver improved metrics. 

General Management 

Supervision and General Support

  • Manages the full-time Membership Associate and supports Guest Services Associates, who provide front line customer service to members and visitors, by providing training on membership sales, phone, and online communications, and by promoting customer service best practices at the front desk with an outcome of greater membership sales and a more engaging and welcoming experience.
  • Oversees all customer service issues, requests, complaints and inquiries regarding Membership.
  • Participates in periodic Trustee-led Advancement Committee meetings to promote alignment and follow through on pipeline development.
  • Prepares and manages annual budget for Membership revenue and expenses, in partnership with Chief Advancement Officer and Director of Operations.

 Special Events

  • Plans the calendar of annual Membership activities and events, in collaboration with the Special Events team.
  • Represents The Phillips Collection at myriad internal and external events organized for donors and prospects.
  • Staff additional evening and weekend events including VIP openings, Phillips after 5, and Public Programs events at the museum and Phillips@THEARC, in order to support Membership growth.

 The application deadline is Friday, August 23, 2024; the best consideration deadline is Friday, August 16.

Requirements

  • Bachelor’s degree required
  • 5+ years of Advancement experience in a not-for-profit environment, preferably in the arts and culture sector
  • Demonstrated ability to design and implement effective cultivation, solicitation, and stewardship strategies for engaging and upgrading a pipeline of at least 5,000 members or guests
  • Strong understanding of trends in membership and loyalty programs, especially through current digital fundraising tactics while continuing to maximize traditional print-based, direct mail strategies
  • Collaborative, positive team player with high degree of personal initiative and accountability, as well as skill in a customer/donor-centric service role as a spokesperson for The Phillips Collection and the Membership program
  • Superlative written and verbal communication skills; ability to craft strong externally facing, data-driven presentations a plus
  • Strategic, creative, curious, and organized thinker, skilled at managing multiple competing priorities
  • Prior experience with analytics, including reporting metrics and insights; ability to understand data and leverage it to design effective and engaging member-facing communications
  • Experience with leading, managing, and mentoring direct report employees
  • Meticulous attention to detail, particularly with data and numbers.
  • Experience with sophisticated CRM essential, and Blackbaud/Altru databases preferred
  • Knowledge of and passion for the arts, and especially the visual arts, strongly preferred
  • Proficiency with email marketing platforms; experience with iContact or similar e-mail client a plus
  • Willing to work during evenings and weekends, as needed

Apply via AAM