Massachusetts Creative Jobs

Our Mission

We in Boston University Development & Alumni Relations (DAR) harness the power of philanthropy to make an excellent education accessible and welcoming to all, and to advance BU’s global leadership in research, scholarship, artistic creation, and professional practice. To support our work, we have built—and are continuing to build—an outstanding team of dynamic, mission-driven advancement professionals who constantly strive to create an environment where everyone belongs. Where it’s not just about a job, but a career and a community.

Now, our Alumni Engagement team is looking for an Assistant Director who will manage alumni events and programs sponsored by BU’s schools and colleges.

Alumni Engagement at Boston University

Alumni Engagement at Boston University is responsible for connecting with, engaging, and helping foster lifetime connections with the 380,000+ Boston University Alumni across the globe. Alumni Engagement is the first point of contact for alums looking to reconnect or engage with their alma mater through School and College programs, educational programs, special events, Alumni Weekend, Global Days of Service, Career and Business networking, volunteer opportunities, and Affinity Networks.

Assistant Director, School Alumni Programs & Events

The Assistant Director, working with the Director of Alumni Programs and Events, will support strategies for engaging alumni and increasing their connection to each other and the University through managing events and programs sponsored by BU Schools and Colleges. This person will work closely with the Director of Alumni Programs and Events to develop and implement policies and procedures associated with Alumni Engagement support of BU school events.

Responsibilities:

• Manage logistics and programmatic details for alumni-focused events sponsored by BU colleges and schools. The Assistant Director serves as the project manager for these events, providing oversight of all event coordination throughout the planning, marketing, execution, and analysis of each event.

• Ensure that events meet the goals of school/college partners while maintaining a standard of excellence set by the Alumni Programs & Events department and carrying out Alumni Engagement standard operating procedures.

• Manage the creation of registration pages, email marketing, and scheduling of all online marketing including emails and social media. In coordination with the Alumni Relations Associate and Alumni Help Desk staff, ensure all registration data is up to date in the Development & Alumni Relations CRM and event software. Responsible for pulling marketing lists and any other materials needed to promote and manage the program.

• Develop and maintain strong relationships with internal DAR stakeholders as well as partners across the university and external vendors, ensuring effective communication, collaboration, and alignment of goals.

• Provide in-depth analysis for all events and programs in their portfolio. Analysis includes a breakdown of event registrants and attendees by demographic; region; school; college; class year; philanthropy; first time registrant/attendee; total number of registrants/attendees. Run constituent reports that provide analytic data for programs and events including reporting event attendance in the CRM, building queries to determine populations for mailings and emails, and creating reports analyzing event attendance and trends.

• Staff school and college-sponsored programs, which may include evening and weekend events. In addition to staffing the events in their portfolio, the Assistant Director will be expected to staff 4-6 signature Alumni Engagement events throughout the year, e.g. Alumni Weekend. Serve as a point person for alumni guests, vendors, and/or university colleagues during events.

Required Skills

• Bachelor’s degree required; a minimum of 3-5 years of professional experience in event planning and volunteer management preferably in Alumni Relations, or the equivalent level of experience in other non-profit or for-profit environments.

• Project management experience, preferably as pertains to event planning. Experience demonstrating oversight and delegation of planning meetings and tasks.

• Strong communication skills via written materials and in-person dialogue with internal and external partners.

• Strong ability to prioritize and adapt to changing needs, collaborate, and communicate well with both internal and external stakeholders and vendors.

• A high level of attention to detail and ability to work in fast-paced environment managing logistics for one-day or multi-day programs and events.

But that’s not all we’re looking for; we want someone who embodies our values:

• Teamwork, transparency, and mutual respect, because we value every member’s contributions and know that leadership can come from anywhere.

• Diversity, equity, inclusion, and a commitment to ensuring that each of us knows we belong here.

• Integrity in how we work and how we treat one another.

• Strategic thinking and curiosity in the relentless pursuit of fresh approaches and measurable results.

• Continuous growth and improvement, both as individuals and as a team.

• Joy and shared appreciation for working hard toward goals that matter.

If this resonates with you and you want to help us in our ambitious next campaign—and maybe do some of your best work as an advancement professional— we encourage you to apply. If you are hesitant to apply because you have not previously performed every responsibility listed in the description, but you do possess transferable skills, our values, and the defined qualifications, we still want to hear from you and welcome your application as well.

To learn more about Development & Alumni Relations at Boston University, and other job opportunities, please stop by the DAR Talent website: https://www.bu.edu/dar-talent/.

If you require a reasonable accommodation in order to complete the employment application process, please contact the Equal Opportunity Office at 617-353-6474 or druckman@bu.edu.

We are an equal opportunity employer, and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, natural or protective hairstyle, religion, sex, age, national origin, physical or mental disability, sexual orientation, gender identity, genetic information, military service, pregnancy or pregnancy-related condition, or because of marital, parental, or veteran status. We are a VEVRAA Federal Contractor.

Required Experience