Head of Alumni & Development Operations

About IMD

The International Institute for Management Development (IMD) has been pioneering leadership development for nearly 80 years. Founded by business for business, we are an independent university institute with Swiss roots and global reach. Operating from Lausanne with strategic hubs in Singapore, Shenzhen, and Cape Town, IMD works with 19,000+ executives from 120+ countries annually. Our 145,000+ alumni form a powerful global network. Consistently ranked among the world's top business schools, IMD bridges cutting-edge research with real-world application to help leaders solve problems, scale solutions, and drive impact. Real Learning for Real Impact.

To reinforce our team, we are looking for a

Head of Alumni & Development Operations

The Job’s Mission

The Head of Alumni & Development Operations will play a pivotal role in scaling up IMD’s development and alumni engagement activities in preparation for a capital campaign. This position is responsible for operational excellence and adapting to rapid changes in technology. The role requires a proactive approach to “building while flying,” ensuring that operations of development and alumni activities are continuously improved, follow industry standards and best practices, employ automation and AI whenever possible and align with IMD’s strategic priorities.
The Head of Alumni & Development Operations will report to and work closely with IMD’s Chief Alumni & Development Officer, supporting the vision:
The Alumni & Development team will strengthen IMD’s global community of alumni & partners cultivating connections that last a lifetime. Through meaningful engagement we secure resources (time, network and money) to advance IMD’s mission.
The role will interact with cross-functional teams and contribute to the achievement of near-term goals as well as build the foundation for a comprehensive capital campaign.

Key Activities & Accountabilities

Operational Leadership
• Develop an efficient and compliant international donation management service thatfacilitates, processes, accepts and administers donations each year.
• Provide leadership for IMD’s fundraising and alumni engagement platforms, including Salesforce, Blackthorne, Kindsight’s Ascend, Marketing Cloud, and Financial Force. Work closely with IMD’s central IT to ensure that A&D’s CRM is fully functioning and evolves to meet future needs.
• Take advantage of new technologies, solutions, AI, agentic agents, and global philanthropic sector best practice.
• Ensure implementation of ASCEND, the prospect management system that provides an effective prospect management system to front line fundraising officers.
• Have overall accountability for compliance, assurance and risk management for the department. With IMD legal, ensure expertise is provided in relation to Data Privacy, influencing IMD policy and process.
• Ensure that due diligence and gift acceptance policies and processes are fit for purpose and working effectively and ensure ultimately that risk is accurately assessed and mitigated.
• Keep abreast of professional and regulatory developments and, with the Chief Alumni &Development Officer, act as the expert on all regulatory and statutory matters relating to philanthropy.
• Build and maintain supportive, productive working relationships and partnerships with leaders and staff across IMD, including Finance, Legal, Marketing, Communications, the Head of Development and the Head of Alumni.
• Support recruitment, onboarding, and professional development of team members, including frontline staff and regional hires.

Alumni Operations
• Supervises database management and data integrity by supervising the Database Manager and implementing best practices around data entry standards, quality control and liaising with finance on the annual audit.
• Develop a deep understanding of IMD’s alumni club management system and support the development of the platform to better serve the needs of the alumni community, including the implementation of a alumni digital engagement tool.

Development Operations
Annual Giving & Stewardship
• Execute Giving Day in partnership with Marketing, Communications and 3rd party provider.
• In partnership with Head of Development, develop comprehensive stewardship plan.
• Takes lead on annual Philanthropy Report and other stewardship reports.
• Execute recognition programs and stewardship reporting. Assist with the production of pledge reminders 3 times yearly, or as needed.

Gift Processing & Stewardship
• Oversee gift entry, receipting, and acknowledgment processes by working closely with database manager.
• Manage cross border giving partners and assure tax deductibility for donors wherever possible.
• Create new online giving platform.
• Ensure timely and accurate donor recognition and stewardship communications by working closely with communications and marketing teams.
• Conduct monthly reconciliation with the Finance Office for all donations.

Prospect Research & Wealth Screening:
• Perform constituent research to aid in prospect identification and engagement strategies.
• Identify potential donors with high giving capacity and affinity for giving to IMD.
• Create prospect briefings for the fundraising team.
• Prepare and disseminate high-quality and accurate profiles, strategic briefings, and information about our highest-level prospects and donors that are critical to securing major gifts.
• Oversees wealth screening process, and conducts proactive and on-demand prospect research.

Technology & Innovation
• Champion the adoption of GenAI and agentic AI solutions to streamline operations and enhance alumni engagement.
• Stay abreast of rapid changes in technology and hiring, ensuring IMD remains at the forefront of innovation.

Education
• Bachelor’s degree in business administration, information systems, nonprofit management, or a related field.

Experience
• Minimum 5 years of experience in advancement services, alumni relations, or development operations.
• Proven track record of leading strategic digital initiatives in complex organizations.
• Experience managing budgets and business cases with clear accountability for ROI and financial performance.

Competencies
• Strong proficiency in CRM systems (e.g., Salesforce, Raiser’s Edge, or similar), data analytics, and reporting tools.
• Strong proficiency in philanthropic giving.
• Excellent organizational, analytical, and problem-solving skills.
• High attention to detail and commitment to data accuracy.
• Strong interpersonal and communication skills; ability to collaborate across departments.
• Comfortable navigating ambiguity, with a hands-on attitude and strategic mindset.

How to apply

If you have the above skills and would like to work in our stimulating environment, please send your complete application file (letter of motivation and resume in English, copies of your work certificates and diplomas). 

If you’re a qualified candidate with a disability (such as dyslexia, sight and/or hearing disabilities, etc) and you need a reasonable accommodation in order to apply for this position, please specify it in your application. 

A valid Swiss work permit or Swiss or EU-25EFTA citizenship is required for this position.