Mastering the MGO Interview: The Top 20 Questions to Expect and How to Ace Them

Interviewing for a Major Gifts Officer (MGO) role can seem daunting You’re vying to join the fundraising A-team tasked with securing those elusive stretch gifts, The competition is fierce and you need to bring your A-game

This comprehensive guide will equip you to tackle the most common MGO interview questions. I’ll explain what hiring managers look for in responses and provide sample answers to inspire your preparation.

By studying these questions and practicing responses, you’ll enter each interview with the confidence and expertise to show why you’re the ideal candidate for the role. Let’s dive in!

Overview of the MGO Hiring Process

Before we get to the questions, it helps to understand the typical MGO hiring process:

• Online application – The process starts by submitting an application and resume online. This is your chance to highlight your relevant major gifts experience.

• Phone screening – If your application is strong, you’ll be invited for a 30-45 minute phone screening with the hiring manager or HR They assess your qualifications and communication skills

• In-person interviews – The next step is 1-3 rounds of in-person interviews, often including both fundraising leaders and prospective team members.

• Skills assessment – Many MGO interviews incorporate Excel or presentation assessments to evaluate your technical abilities.

• References – Your references will be contacted to vouch for your major gifts capabilities and achievements.

Throughout the process, the focus is evaluating your expertise in major donor relations moves management and campaign strategy. The questions aim to understand how you’ll apply this experience to advance their fundraising goals.

Now let’s look at the top questions to expect.

The 20 Most Common MGO Interview Questions

1. Why are you interested in this Major Gifts Officer role?

This is often the opening question, gauging your passion for major gifts fundraising. Emphasize the aspects of the role that inspire you and align with your experience. Convey sincere interest in the organization’s mission.

Sample Answer: As a seasoned major gifts fundraiser, I’m drawn to this opportunity because of XYZ Nonprofit’s focus on education, a cause I’m deeply passionate about. Your $50 million campaign aligns with my experience leading eight-figure fundraising efforts for universities. I’m excited to leverage my expertise in cultivating and soliciting major donors to help XYZ Nonprofit make an even greater impact in the community. This role is the perfect next step to contribute my skills as part of a mission-driven development team.

2. What do you consider to be the main responsibilities of a Major Gifts Officer?

This question assesses your understanding of the core MGO function. Respond by outlining the end-to-end major gifts process.

Sample Answer: The core responsibility of an MGO is managing an active portfolio of high-net-worth prospects capable of making significant six and seven-figure donations. This involves identifying potential major donors through research and networking and nurturing those relationships over time to inspire transformational support.

Day-to-day, an MGO qualifies leads, conducts discovery meetings to determine capacity and affinity, develops customized cultivation plans, and asks for stretch gifts to fund key campaign priorities. It’s also essential to collaborate with other development staff and key volunteers to coordinate solicitation schedules and strategies. The MGO guides donors to become long-term partners in the organization’s vision for impact.

3. How do you go about identifying potential major donors for an organization?

This evaluates your ability to build a pipeline of new major donor prospects through research and analytics.

Sample Answer: There are several methods I use to identify potential major donors:

• Reviewing annual fund and existing mid-level donor lists for major gift capacity

• Researching the backgrounds of board members and volunteers

• Tapping networks of current major donors, community leaders and foundations

• Studying databases like WealthEngine to profile philanthropic participation and assets

• Working with colleagues to brainstorm contacts within spheres of influence

The key is casting a wide net through both internal contacts and external research. I evaluate biographical, career, and philanthropic data points to pinpoint prospects aligned with the cause and capable of making significant gifts. Building a robust pipeline of potential major donors is the crucial first step.

4. Walk me through your process of moving a prospect from identification to solicitation.

The ability to effectively move a major gifts prospect through the pipeline is fundamental to MGO success. Outline your structured cultivation approach.

Sample Answer: My process starts by learning as much as possible about the prospect’s interests, history, motivations, and values through initial research and conversations with internal stakeholders.

Next, I arrange an informal discovery meeting to explore their affinity for our mission and determine capacity for a major gift. I then develop a tailored cultivation plan to systematically engage them through events, personalized information, and leadership opportunities, with the goal of securing a major gift in a 12-18 month timeframe.

Along the way, I work closely with leadership and volunteers to build relationship bridges until the prospect is ready to have a solicitation conversation. This moves through pre-ask discovery, the proposal meeting, and the final gift request, supported by proposal materials to inspire their transformational investment. It’s a carefully coordinated effort to steward donors towards meaningful, realization-level support.

5. How would you approach re-engaging a lapsed major donor?

Reactivating disengaged major donors is key to maximizing lifetime value. Share your method for tactfully reconnecting dormant supporters.

Sample Answer: The first step is requesting an informal meeting or phone call to get reacquainted and learn what’s new in their lives. I come prepared to provide organizational updates and listen for cues on why they may have lapsed. Without judgement, I aim to understand their perspective and identify opportunities for renewed involvement.

If they express openness to re-engage, I suggest specific, meaningful ways to participate based on their interests, whether an event, volunteer role, or behind-the-scenes tour. My focus is rebuilding rapport and trust through consistent personal outreach. If appropriate, I will transparently discuss their past support and the impact it had, expressing hope they will consider renewing their partnership when the timing feels right. The goal is to thoughtfully nurture the relationship back to realization-level support.

6. Describe your experience securing leadership annual fund gifts.

While the focus is major gifts, annual fund expertise is beneficial. Discuss securing mid-level annual support.

Sample Answer: For the past three years, I worked closely with the annual giving manager to upgrade donors capable of giving at the leadership annual fund levels of $2,500 to $25,000. By reviewing their giving history and leveraging our moves management process, I successfully motivated 75 donors to increase their gifts into the leadership categories, increasing revenue by 52% in my second year.

I achieved this by having one-on-one conversations focused on the increased need and greater community impact they could achieve through an upgraded annual fund commitment. This experience strengthened my ability to effectively articulate a case for support and inspire donors to give at capacity.

7. How would you go about developing a major gifts prospect strategy focused on women?

This assesses how you would craft targeted cultivation strategies for a key constituency, like women.

Sample Answer: Studies show women often have different motivations and giving preferences compared to men. I would develop a three-prong strategy focused on connecting with women philanthropists:

• Partnering with women board members and volunteers to engage their networks through intimate events.

• Creating a Women’s Leadership Council for gender-specific education and networking opportunities.

• Developing collateral that highlights programs specifically empowering women & girls that resonate with their passions.

The key is making engagement opportunities personal while underscoring how their philanthropy will empower other women. This allows for genuine relationship building that inspires transformational investments over time.

8. What metrics do you track to measure the effectiveness of a Major Gifts program?

Quantifying success beyond dollars raised is expected. Share examples of key performance indicators you monitor.

Sample Answer: While total dollars raised is important, I track other KPIs to measure overall program effectiveness:

• Number of discovery meetings with new major gift prospects

• Conversion rate from initial contact to first gift

• Attrition rate of existing major donors

• Increases in giving among renewed/upgraded donors

• Major gift pipeline volume by stage

• Asks made vs gifts realized

These metrics allow me to continually evaluate what’s working and where improvements are needed. I can monitor effectiveness of the identification process, stewardship program, and solicitation approaches based on these indicators. Tracking key benchmarks is crucial for maximizing results.

9. How have you successfully involved leadership volunteers in the major gifts process?

This evaluates your experience leveraging volunteer partnerships to advance MGO outcomes.

Sample Answer: I understand the importance of volunteer engagement in major gifts fundraising. For one campaign, I worked closely with the Campaign Cabinet to organize small cultivation dinners hosted in their homes for targeted prospects. These intimate settings, hosted by known community leaders, effectively warmed up new major donor prospects.

I have also partnered with Board members to conduct peer outreach