Swarthmore College is a highly selective liberal arts college located in the suburbs of Philadelphia, whose mission combines academic rigor with social responsibility. Swarthmore has a strong institutional commitment to inclusive excellence and nondiscrimination in its educational program and employment practices and encourages candidates who will further advance the goal of fostering a diverse and inclusive community. As one of the nation’s finest institutions of higher learning, Swarthmore College is global in outlook and draws students from around the nation and world. The 425‐acre campus is a designated arboretum, complete with gardens, rolling lawns, a creek, wooded hills, and hiking trails in the Crum Woods.
Who We Are:
The Office of College Advancement builds and strengthens relationships with alumni, families, and friends to advance College priorities through joyful engagement and celebration, philanthropic and volunteer support, and stewardship of Swarthmore’s contributions to the common good. We work intentionally as a collaborative group that drives innovation, creates space for rich dialogue, inspires trust, and develops a community rooted in inclusivity and belonging.
The opportunity:
The Assistant Director will contribute to producing strategic, value-added technology solutions for end-users to meet organizational challenges. The Assistant Director supports the Advancement staff in technical systems used by the division and creates queries, reports, and data visualization for staff, College leadership, and College volunteers. Additionally, this position develops documentation and training, including written, video, and live sessions, for colleagues in order to make technology and data accessible to the end users. Through this work, the Assistant Director acts as a key partner in the strategic planning and effective operation of fundraising and engagement programs at Swarthmore College.
Essential Responsibilities
CRM Reporting and Management
- Create and manage Slate CRM queries, reports, portals, forms, and dashboards that align with Advancement’s strategic direction and positively impacts constituent engagement.
- Facilitate discussions between leadership, fundraisers, and technical resources to define needs and assist in establishing new policies and procedures.
- Proactively build relationships across campus (Communications, Admissions, Lang Center for Civic and Social Responsibility, Chester Children’s Chorus, Center for Innovation & Leadership, Career Services, and more) to support their work with constituent engagement and to acquire and understand available relevant data.
- Contribute to the successful implementation and continued infrastructure development of new technologies, including the Slate CRM and related systems.
- Test, deploy, and validate regular updates, feeds, and/or new functionality delivered by Technolutions.
- Continuously develop custom Slate CRM features (views, tabs, prompts, rules) to meet evolving divisional needs.
Training, Documentation, & ITS Support
- Develop and deliver comprehensive training (written, video, live sessions) on Advancement systems.
- Maintain a user-friendly report library with clear documentation.
- Train colleagues throughout the College in the Slate Advancement CRM and additional tools deployed by Advancement.
- Maintain proficiency in all Advancement Software tools to effectively lead training and provide support.
- Research emerging Slate CRM tools, updates, and automation techniques to optimize functionality and workflows.
- Assist College constituents (alumni, families, students, and friends) in navigating technology made available by the Advancement division, such as the Alumni Portal, Slate Forms, and more.
Data Analytics and Visualization
- Support the Director and Senior Associate Directors in developing and growing a fundraising analytics program, contributing to projects involving predictive modeling, forecasting, data mining, and visually engaging reporting.
- Contribute and update data visualization technology(s) to enhance and extend Advancement’s current reporting and data visualization capacity. Utilizing the Advancement CRM, Slate, and additional industry leading interactive visualization software, such as Tableau or Microsoft Power BI.
Advancement Vendor Management
- Serve as a technical point of contact for Vendors, including but not limited to: AlumnIQ, CyberSource, GiveCampus, Double the Donation, and Technolutions.
- In collaboration with Advancement colleagues, work to maintain, develop, and implement the various tools provided by vendors.
- Coordinate the exchange of data between Slate and various tools, implement solutions, and ensure appropriate testing of applications.
- Work with Advancement colleagues to determine technical needs, including identifying needed systems, tools, or services, collaborating on RFPs, and assessing resources needed for implementation and maintenance.
- Support Advancement and ITS colleagues in managing and testing Software tools for the division.
Who you are:
- Experience developing training material and conducting both regular and ad-hoc training sessions
- Ability to thrive under pressure and handle multiple projects simultaneously.
- Strong organizational and project management skills with the ability to manage competing priorities.
- Extreme accuracy and attention to detail with ability to handle multiple and varied tasks both independently and collaboratively. Data management skills demonstrating the ability to manage large amounts of data and organize it into meaningful reports.
- Excellent analytical, communication, and interpersonal skills. A talent for listening, interpreting, and synthesizing information. Ability to effectively bridge communications between non-technical software end-users and the technical team.
- Strong sense of collegiality and ability to establish collaborative professional relationships using tact and diplomacy, and the ability to maintain a high level of confidentiality. Strong customer service skills.
- Ability to work evenings, weekends, or as needed to complete projects or meet heavy demand.
What you bring:
Required Qualifications
- Bachelor's Degree with two years of job-related experience or an equivalent combination of education and experience.
- Demonstrated CRM Experience with strong understanding of the general underlying database structures and rules.
- Proven experience working with databases and building reports.
- Exceptional computer skills with experience evaluating and mastering software applications.
- Highly proficient in Windows operating system, Microsoft Suite, Google Suite
- Working knowledge/understanding of SQL, HTML, and CSS to create queries, reports, forms, portals, and dashboards in Slate and desire to increase proficiency.
- On occasion, incumbent may be required to work outside of normal office hours, including nights and weekends, for such tasks as staffing events, or completing tasks required to meet deadlines.
Preferred Qualifications
- Five years of experience
- Advanced degree or certifications
- Proven experience in SQL, HTML, CSS
- Experience in Slate CRM developing Queries, Reports, and Portals.
- Experience in Advancement
- Experience with Power BI or Tableau building reports and dashboards.
What You Will Get:
You’ll work at one of the world's most renowned liberal arts Colleges, with incredible benefits, a stunning 420-acre campus, and a collaborative work environment. Join a team of passionate, creative people who work hard and have fun supporting the College students, faculty, and staff.
We want to hear from you if you are excited about this role! For full consideration, submit applications with an uploaded resume, including a cover letter, by July 7, 2025. Applications received after this date may be reviewed on a rolling basis until the job has been filled. A cover letter indicating how your qualifications and experience have prepared you for this position. If you have experience that meets any of the preferred qualifications, please include a detailed explanation of any such experience in your cover letter and how it meets the preferred qualification(s).
The market range for this position is $72,000-$84,000 per year, which represents the College’s good faith and reasonable estimate of the range at the time of posting. The salary offered is determined based on factors including, but not limited to, experience and education of the final selected candidate, departmental budget availability, internal salary equity considerations, and available market information.
PA Criminal Clearance Required
Swarthmore College requires a PA Criminal background check for all staff positions prior to the start of employment.
Education Verification Required by Position
An education verification is required for this position because a college degree is a required qualification for this position.
Preview our Benefits Flyer. We offer benefit plans starting at zero cost! Upon benefit eligibility, the College contributes 10% of an employee’s salary to their retirement account. Employees are 100% vested in their accounts on the date participation begins.
2025 Swarthmore Benefits Guidebook
Retirement Plans
Tuition Grant Program
Tuition Reimbursement Program
Paid Time Off (Staff)
Holiday Schedule
Swarthmore College actively seeks and welcomes applications from candidates with exceptional qualifications, particularly those with demonstrable commitments to a more inclusive society and world. Swarthmore College is an Equal Opportunity Employer. Women and minorities are encouraged to apply.