More than three-quarters of those working in prospect management and advancement careers saw their salaries rise in the last year, according to a new salary survey from APRA, the Chicago-based professional association that includes prospect researchers and others who assist in fundraising.
The survey included 708 professionals in the field, including positions such as prospect researchers, data analysts, relationship management analysts, campaign analytics managers, and directors of advancement. The survey found the mean salary among all positions was $84,808. The mean salary for those at the director level was $99,303.
The survey found the field is primarily made up of people who identify as women (77 percent). Nineteen percent identified as male, 1 percent as nonbinary, and 4 percent chose not to disclose. While men are a minority, their mean earnings — at $87,750 — are about 4 percent higher than women’s mean salary of $84,075. At the director level, the male-female earnings gap was 8 percent, with men’s mean salary of $105,621, compared to women’s $97,868.
Remote work and hybrid work are popular among these staff, with 33 percent being full-time remote, 48 percent operating on a hybrid schedule, 12 percent required to be in the office full time, and 7 percent doing a “flexible work schedule.” The report describes a flexible schedule as one that “may include variable days in office, a compressed work week, variable work hours or other accommodations that do not fit into other work modalities.”
Other findings from the report:
- Twelve percent of respondents said they have a disability. Of that group, 26 percent said they had not disclosed their disability to their employer. Survey participants’ disabilities included visual, mobility, or hearing impairments, neurodivergence, mental health/depression, cancer, auto-immune disease, and chronic illness.
- The highest share of advancement professionals (26 percent) worked in organizations with budgets of $250 million to $500 million. The next largest share (19 percent) worked at nonprofits with budgets of $5 million to $25 million. Just one percent worked in organizations with budgets less than $1 million, while 7 percent worked in organizations with $1 million to $5 million budgets.
- Two-thirds of advancement services professionals are satisfied with their jobs. When asked about specific areas of satisfaction, 84 percent were satisfied with their job security, and 75 percent were satisfied with their work modality (hybrid, remote, or in-office). The most dissatisfaction among these workers involved growth opportunities (31 percent) and compensation (26 percent).
