Executive Brief

Director of Development Analytics
Georgia Tech Institute for Technology

The Organization: Georgia Tech

The Georgia Institute for Technology (Georgia Tech)

Georgia Tech is a top-ranked public research university situated in the heart of Atlanta, a diverse and vibrant city with numerous economic and cultural strengths. The Institute serves more than 45,000 students through top-ranked undergraduate, graduate, and executive programs in engineering, computing, science, business, design, and liberal arts. Georgia Tech's faculty attracted more than $1.4 billion in research awards this past year in fields ranging from biomedical technology to artificial intelligence, energy, sustainability, semiconductors, neuroscience, and national security. Georgia Tech ranks among the nation's top 20 universities for research and development spending and No. 1 among institutions without a medical school.

Georgia Tech - At a Glance:

Mission & Values:

Georgia Tech's mission is to develop leaders who advance technology and improve the human condition. The Institute has nine key values that are foundational to everything they do:

  1. Students are our top priority.
  2. We strive for excellence.
  3. We thrive on diversity.
  4. We celebrate collaboration.
  5. We champion innovation.
  6. We safeguard freedom of inquiry and expression.
  7. We nurture the wellbeing of our community.
  8. We act ethically.
  9. We are responsible stewards.

Over the next decade, Georgia Tech will become an example of inclusive innovation, a leading technological research university of unmatched scale, relentlessly committed to serving the public good; breaking new ground in addressing the biggest local, national, and global challenges and opportunities of our time; making technology broadly accessible; and developing exceptional, principled leaders from all backgrounds ready to produce novel ideas and create solutions with real human impact.

Academic Excellence:
  • Georgia Tech is ranked #3 in Best Undergraduate Engineering Programs. All of Georgia Tech's graduate engineering programs rank in the top 10 (Source: U.S. News & World Report).

  • Scheller College of Business ranks #21 among all Undergraduate Business Programs and #17 for their Part-Time MBA (Source: U.S. News & World Report). 

  • Computer Science ranks #6 by U.S. News & World Report's Undergraduate Program Rankings#7 by U.S. News & World Report's Graduate School Rankings, #17 by Times Higher Education World University Rankings, and #28 in The Guardian's QS World University Rankings.

  • In the category of Statistics and Operational Research, Georgia Tech ranks #9 in The Guardian's QS World University Rankings. Georgia Tech's graduate urban planning program is ranked #6 in the U.S. and #2 in Big City Programs by Planetizen.

Diversity:
  • The Institute is consistently rated among the top universities in the nation for graduation of underrepresented minorities in engineering, physical sciences, and architecture and planning.
     
  • With more than 60 chartered student organizations exploring religious, racial, sexual, and ethnic identity (but open to all), Georgia Tech's students find a way to celebrate, strengthen, and share their part of the robust cultural melting pot that thrives in the university's community.

Georgia Tech Office of Development (DEV)

The Office of Development is committed to securing the philanthropic resources that are transforming Georgia Tech. We engage alumni, friends, families, corporations, and foundations in the life of the Institute and encourage financial investment in Tech's future.

The fundraising team at Georgia Tech currently consists of 100+ professionals who are focused on securing transformative philanthropy (major and principal gifts) to support the strategic priorities of the Institute and its colleges, schools, and programs including Athletics.

Learn about the groups that make up the Office of Development:
College & School Representatives
College & School Representatives

From endowed chairs and professorships to undergraduate scholarships, graduate fellowships, and facilities, donors can support the college, school, or academic program of their choice.

Corporate Engagement
Corporate Engagement

Building partnerships with the corporate community is a top priority for Georgia Tech. Working together, the group grows philanthropy and helps companies connect to Tech through research, recruitment, and diversity initiatives.

Foundation Relations
Foundation Relations

Support from foundations provides vital resources for Georgia Tech strategic initiatives, making it possible for the Institute to advance knowledge across all disciplines.

Gift Planning
Gift Planning

Gift planning begins with a donor's desire to make a gift. Whether the choice is a bequest provision in a will or revocable trust, or a life-income gift, the gift planning team assists with all gifts.

Intercollegiate Athletics
Intercollegiate Athletics

Athletic excellence has long been a source of pride and passion at Georgia Tech. The university wants to become one of the elite athletics programs in the nation with the best combination of athletics and academics.

International Development
International Development

Georgia Tech's vision of leadership in the 21st century is a global one. Moving international efforts to the next level cannot happen without private philanthropy.

Parent Giving
Parent Giving

Parents play a vital role in the life of Georgia Tech. Through advocacy, volunteering, and philanthropy, they have a unique opportunity to become stakeholders in every Yellow Jacket's future.

Regional Development
Regional Development

Regional development representatives travel extensively, connecting with alumni and friends and sharing opportunities for supporting Georgia Tech through private philanthropy.

Reunion Giving
Reunion Giving

Each year, milestone reunion classes celebrate through combined philanthropic giving that advances Georgia Tech and enhances opportunities for students – today and for generations to come. 

For fiscal year 2022, the DEV team’s efforts resulted in over $211 million in new gifts and commitments, which helped to publicly launch Georgia Tech’s largest comprehensive campaign in the Institute’s history Transforming Tomorrow: The Campaign for Georgia Tech which is intended to bring over $2 billion in new commitments and gifts from individuals, foundations, corporations, and other organizations. One of the most significant priorities within Transforming Tomorrow is ensuring access of the brightest undergraduate, graduate and professional students to Georgia Tech, regardless of their socioeconomic background. To learn more about Transforming Tomorrow and the other thematic priorities of the campaign, click here.

Georgia Tech Office of Development (DEV) - Leadership Spotlight:

Leslie Gonnella - Associate Vice President, Development Operations and Services

Leslie Taylor Gonnella
Associate Vice President, Development Operations and Services


Leslie Taylor Gonnella is a seasoned executive-level development professional with a track record spanning over two decades, dedicated to leading the operational and administrative aspects of development and alumni relations programs. With a passion for driving impactful outcomes, Leslie excels in building highly productive and strategic teams that deliver proactive solutions.

Currently serving as the Associate Vice President of Development Operations and Services at the Georgia Institute of Technology since April 2023, Leslie oversees the day-to-day operations of the development division. Her responsibilities include managing diverse teams covering budget and finance, prospect development, information processing, reporting, donor relations, event management, gift administration and facilities. She plays a pivotal role in building and leading the systems and processes that support the division in meeting and exceeding annual fundraising goals.

Prior to her current role, Leslie held significant leadership positions at institutions such as Lehigh University and the University of Chicago. At Lehigh University, as the Associate Vice President & Chief Operating Officer from October 2017 to March 2023, Leslie led operations for the development and alumni relations division, modernizing all operations teams and spearheading division-wide planning efforts overseeing the launch of the $1 billion-dollar campaign. At the University of Chicago, Leslie served in leadership roles for the Medical Center and Hospital supporting grateful patient fundraising, Central operations supporting all schools and units across campus and eventually Booth School of Business, where she served as the Chief Operating Officer and Campaign Director, she oversaw development operations and led the department in the successful launch of a $1 billion-campaign.

Throughout her career, Leslie has demonstrated a unique ability to collaborate with institutional leaders, manage multi-billion-dollar campaigns, build development communications teams, campaign brands and plans, design relationship management systems, and oversee data analytics, reporting, and pipeline development. Her expertise extends to talent management, budgeting, and finance, as well as event management, CRM conversion, gift administration, compliance and policy development.

Leslie holds a Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science from Whittier College and has been recognized as a Fulbright Research Scholar (Budapest, Hungary). Her commitment to excellence, coupled with her strategic mindset and extensive experience, continues to drive impactful outcomes in the field of development and alumni relations.

The Opportunity: Director of Development Analytics

Georgia Tech - Director of Development Analytics - Job Description (PDF Download)

Position Summary

The Director of Development Analytics in the Office of Development (DEV) will work in partnership with the AVP of Operations and Services and as part of a collaborative development information services program. They will play a crucial role in enhancing the institution's fundraising efforts by leveraging data-driven strategies and analytics to drive efforts to increase the size and quality of the prospect pool. The Director of Development Analytics is responsible for leading and managing data analysis and related reporting efforts to support all fundraising goals. This role involves using advanced analytics to inform strategic decision-making, optimize donor engagement, and enhance the effectiveness of fundraising campaigns. The Director of Development Analytics will partner directly with Prospect Research, Prospect Management and Information Services and will collaborate with all development teams as well as with various departments, including, The Alumni Association, GT Foundation, Development Donor Relations and Development Communications, to ensure data-driven strategies are integrated into all aspects of development.

With a high degree of accuracy and attention to detail, this role will collect, mine, visualize, and analyze data, build predictive models, and employ other statistical analysis techniques to measure program effectiveness and improve operational strategies. The Director will develop recommendations based on data to enhance strategic fundraising decisions and process improvements. He/she will generate reports and data dashboards to illustrate performance for donor giving and portfolio/pipeline efforts.

As a newly established role within GT Development, the incumbent will be responsible for creating a Development analytics program. This includes providing recommendations on staffing, tools, industry partnerships, program impact, and best practices.

The Role and Responsibilities

Responsibilities:
  • Drive increased productivity and efficiency in the fundraising operation, by conducting predictive modeling and data mining to identify potential major donors and assess their capacity and propensity to give.
     
  • Build a best-in-class Development analytics program, employing comprehensive analytics strategies to inform fundraising activity and goals, maintain dashboards, reports, and data visualizations to monitor key performance indicators (KPIs) and track fundraising progress.
     
  • Analyze prospect/donor data to identify trends, patterns, and opportunities to inform prospect assignment and portfolio optimization.
     
  • Evaluate, implement, and manage analytics and CRM tools to enhance data analysis capabilities; stay current with industry trends and advancements in data analytics and fundraising technologies (e.g. Power BI etc.).
     
  • Create insights and recommendations for donor segmentation and personalized communication strategies. Evaluate the effectiveness of fundraising campaigns and initiatives, offering actionable insights for improvement.
     
  • Work collaboratively with Development Information Services, OIT, GTF and related departments to execute cross-platform and interdepartmental projects and encourage overall data-based decision making. Manage, monitor, and execute regular and ad hoc data cleansing and append projects.
     
  • Other duties as assigned.

Skills and Qualifications

Skills and Abilities:
  • Strong leadership and interpersonal skills.
     
  • Detail-oriented with a strategic mindset.
     
  • Proven ability to prioritize and work independently, responsibly, and meet deadlines.
     
  • Strong analytical and problem-solving skills with the ability to interpret complex data sets.
     
  • Excellent communication and presentation skills, with the ability to convey data insights to non-technical audiences.
     
  • Demonstrated ability to lead and manage projects and teams effectively.
     
  • Advanced proficiency in SQL and experience with CRM systems, preferably in a fundraising context.
     
  • Experience developing data models using PL-SQL, Tableau or Power BI.
     
  • Experience with data modeling (AI), ROI and metrics building and monitoring, creation of visual presentations and analysis of direct marketing.
     
  • Enjoy finding solutions to problems. 
     
  • Knowledge of fundraising principles, donor lifecycle, and development best practices.
  • Strong understanding of fundraising database concepts and hands-on SQL programming.
     
  • Experience with Blackbaud CRM.
Qualifications:

Required Qualifications

  • Bachelor's degree or equivalent combination of education and experience.
     
  • Minimum 7+ years of analytics or related experience is required.

Preferred Qualifications

  • A degree in Statistics, Math, Computer Science or another quantitative field preferred.
     
  • 10+ years preferred in development analytics, prospect management or prospect development field preferred.

Applications & Nominations

The Georgia Institute for Technology has partnered with Boyden Executive Search. For more information about this opportunity or to submit a cover letter and resume, please email:

Lisa Vuona
Managing Partner, Boston
lvuona@boyden.com
LinkedIn

Lisa Vuona has decades of experience in executive search and human resource management, primarily in the non-profit, healthcare and education sectors. She is distinguished by her track record and network, and by her approach, which combines the strategic power of data with a finely tuned ability to understand the client’s organization and identify high-caliber leaders who fit the culture.

Lindsey Gale
Executive Search Consultant, Boston
lgale@boyden.com
LinkedIn

Lindsey Gale has extensive experience in social impact with nearly 25 years of success in executive search, fundraising and consulting. She is an accomplished relationship builder, strategist, communicator and community influencer, and applies these skills to help individuals and a variety of non-profit organizations achieve their goals.

Don’t check off all the boxes or meet every single requirement? We have learned that potential candidates hesitate when applying for a job unless they meet every single requirement. Boyden Boston is dedicated to inclusivity and valuing diversity and equity in the workplace. If this opportunity excites you, but your background may not be a perfect match, we still encourage you to apply.

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