Associate Director of Development, Legacy Giving & Major Gifts

The Institutional Development team within VP Development and Alumni is currently seeking a Full-time Regular Associate Director of Development, Legacy Giving & Major Gifts.

The University of Calgary is Canada's leading next-generation university, a living, growing and youthful institution that embraces change and opportunity with a can-do attitude. The university has a burgeoning new strategic direction, Framework for Growth. We will be Canada's most entrepreneurial university in the country's most enterprising city by ensuring a transdisciplinary focus for our scholarship; deeper partnerships and integration with businesses, governments and purpose organizations in our community; and future-focused program delivery that sees us offer more modes of instruction, modularization and micro-credentials.

The Advancement Office exists for the mutual benefit of the University of Calgary and its stakeholders and coordinates development, alumni relations, communications and community partnerships. The development area in particular is an active, collaborative team that enhances University fundraising efforts in support of designated University priorities.

This position reports to the Director of Development, Legacy Giving and Major Gifts and supports the various university development teams. The Associate Director of Development, Legacy Giving & Major Gifts (the "Associate Director") will have demonstrated superior interpersonal skills, tact, integrity, excellent listening skills, a high energy level and the ability to run multiple projects simultaneously which can help growth of the entire legacy giving program. The Associate Director will be responsible for fund development and is involved in strategic planning, and has access to highly sensitive and confidential information, requiring the ability to make discretionary decisions, which impact fund development programs and services. The impact of decisions made by this position will be university-wide.

This position is responsible for planning and implementing donor relationship programs for the Legacy Giving program, including direct interaction with donors, advisors and volunteers to secure donations.

Diplomacy, tact, discretion, conflict resolution and ability to manage fluid expectations, projects and deadlines are key skills required.

Primary Purpose of the Position (key purpose, functions, roles):

The position is involved in the planning, development and implementation of a proactive legacy giving development program, to help achieve the university's Legacy Giving fundraising targets. In collaboration with the Director of Development, you will assist in the identification, cultivation, solicitation and stewardship of donors to the University of Calgary. This position contributes to the goal of ensuring continued financial support is received from donors, and appropriately stewarding and recognizing these donors.

This position exercises considerable independent managerial discretion in the development of relationships with professional advisors and donors. This individual has independent discretion and operates across all aspects of typical managerial decisions.

Maintaining professional relationships with donors, advisors and other campus-based fundraisers is vital to the success of this role and to the university. Adverse relationships will have a detrimental impact on the institution and the university's success. In addition, confidentiality related to donations and the development program is critical to the ongoing success for this position. Disclosure of this information would be detrimental to the university.

Summary of Key Responsibilities (job functions include but are not limited to):

• Secure legacy and major gift donations.
• Build and maintain effective relationships with volunteers in the community, alumni and with university faculty and staff and administrators to ensure appropriate involvement and consultation in securing gifts.
• Regularly meet and report to the Director to ensure the Legacy Giving team can achieve success.
• Contribute to the development of legacy giving annual operational plans.
• With the Director, develop and implement individual solicitation strategies for prospective legacy giving donors.
• Initiates calls and visits to prospective legacy giving donors and their advisors.
• With the Director, prepares proposals and financial illustrations of proposed gifts.
• Work with lawyers, accountants, trust officers, life underwriters, financial planners and other professional advisors to help administer legacy gifts and to educate advisors of the various legacy gifts offered through the university.
• Draft agreements for review by the Director of Development, Legacy Giving and prospective donors and their advisors.
• Lead and assist in arranging events, seminars or workshops for the Legacy Society and prospective donors, professional financial and estate planners and related groups, as well as educational awareness sessions for internal groups.
• Assist in preparing legacy giving marketing materials including direct mail letters, brochures and newsletters with the Director of Development, Legacy Giving and broader Advancement team.
• Identify articles on legacy gift opportunities and news for institutional publications.
• Follows procedures for prospect identification, research, tracking, recording and reporting gifts.
• Lead the Legacy Giving stewardship program, in conjunction with Donor Services, by ensuring appropriate recognition and ongoing stewardship for Legacy Giving donors and Legacy Society members.
• Stay abreast of tax aspects of charitable gifts and keep informed about new legislation and revenue rulings affecting such gifts.
• Identify new prospects for legacy giving and undertake prospect research on those prospects, with assistance from the Development Research Team.
• Serve as a back-up to the Director of Development, Legacy Giving.
• Assist in supervision of the broader Legacy Giving Team.
• Other related duties as assigned.

Qualifications / Requirements

• University degree or related education preferred and a minimum of 5-7 years directly related experience, preferably in a fundraising or post-secondary educational setting.
• Knowledge of and familiarity with legacy giving vehicles, such as bequests, insurance and trusts, would be an asset, as would knowledge of financial instruments such as publicly listed securities and estate administration.
• Demonstrated experience in soliciting planned (legacy) and/or major gifts ($25,000+).
• Proven strategic leadership ability.
  • Demonstrated ability to lead projects and events to completion.
  • Exceptional interpersonal skills.
• Strong interpersonal skills and ability to work both independently and collaboratively, and interact with staff at all levels.
• Solid understanding of endowments and financial reporting.
• Excellent computer skills including Microsoft Office applications.
• Exceptional organizational skills.
  • Able to handle and prioritize multiple tasks.
  • Must be able to work under pressure and manage complex and often competing priorities, set deadlines and collaborate with other team members to schedule deadlines accordingly.
• Understanding of Canada Revenue Agency guidelines for tax receipting of charitable gifts.
• Strong written and verbal communicator who possesses good listening as well as sound judgement and decision making capabilities.
• Knowledge of Blackbaud CRM software an asset.

Application Deadline: August 14, 2026.

We would like to thank all applicants in advance for submitting their resumes. Please note, only those candidates chosen to continue on through the selection process will be contacted.

This position is classified in the Professional Career Band, Level 3 of the Management and Professional Staff Career Framework.

For a listing of all management and staff opportunities at the University of Calgary, view our Management and Staff Careers website .

About the University of Calgary

UCalgary is Canada's entrepreneurial university, located in Canada's most enterprising city. It is a top research university and one of the highest-ranked universities of its age. Founded in 1966, its 36,000 students experience an innovative learning environment, made rich by research, hands-on experiences and entrepreneurial thinking. It is Canada's leader in the creation of start-ups. Start something today at the University of Calgary. For more information, visit ucalgary.ca.

The University of Calgary has launched an institution-wide Indigenous Strategy ii' taa'poh'to'p committing to creating a rich, vibrant, and culturally competent campus that welcomes and supports Indigenous Peoples, encourages Indigenous community partnerships, is inclusive of Indigenous perspectives in all that we do.

The university's commitment to the Indigenous Strategy is evident through the oversight of 18 Elders serving on the Circle of Advisors and the many unit-based circles working towards implementation of the strategy including the Faculty Advisory Circle and teams such as the Office of Indigenous Engagement, the Writing Symbols Lodge, and the Indigenous Research Support Team. Many Indigenous-based events and processes are impacting curriculum, programming and polices at the University of Calgary.

As an equitable and inclusive employer, the University of Calgary recognizes that a diverse staff/faculty benefits and enriches the work, learning and research experiences of the entire campus and greater community. We are committed to removing barriers that have been historically encountered by some people in our society. We strive to recruit individuals who will further enhance our diversity and will support their academic and professional success while they are here. In particular, we encourage members of the designated groups (women, Indigenous peoples, persons with disabilities, members of visible/racialized minorities, and diverse sexual orientation and gender identities) to apply. To ensure a fair and equitable assessment, we offer accommodation at any stage during the recruitment process to applicants with disabilities. Questions regarding [diversity] EDI at UCalgary can be sent to the Office of Institutional Commitments (View email address on ca.workus.org) and requests for accommodations can be sent to People & Culture (View email address on ca.workus.org).

Do you have most but not all the qualifications? Research show that women, racialized and visible minorities, and persons with disabilities are less likely to apply for jobs unless they meet every single qualification. At UCalgary we are committed to achieving equitable, diverse, inclusive and accessible employment practices and workplaces and encourage you to apply if you believe you are right for this role.

We encourage all qualified applicants to apply, however preference will be given to Canadian citizens and permanent residents of Canada.