Job Description: A Director of Gift Planning at Penn State

In the fall of 2014, Cheryl Kaplan and Drew Kovacs, respectively the director of talent management and associate director of talent acquisition in Pennsylvania State University’s development office, worked closely with development communications staff to revamp external job descriptions.

This effort is part of restructuring the office of development as it gears up to increase staffing over the next year and beyond in preparation for Penn State’s upcoming capital campaign. “We’re making some improvements to the organization to best position ourselves to take advantage of the opportunities that we see ahead,” says Mr. Kovacs.

The new job postings clearly describe not only the position’s requirements but also information about the college or campus organization where the employee would work, the university, and the local community where the employee would live.

“We try in a succinct but detailed way to paint as clear a picture as possible about the nature of the role and the environment in which it happens,” says Mr. Kovacs.

This job description, for a director of gift planning, was recently used by the department.