Vice President, Direct Response

Company: St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital
Location: Memphis
Posted on: April 1, 2026

Job Description:

At ALSAC you do more than make a living; you make a difference. We like people who are different…because we’re different, too. As one of the world’s most iconic and respected nonprofits, we know what it’s like to stand out. That’s why we’re looking at you. Your background, perspective, and desire to make an impact set you apart. As we work to help St. Jude cure childhood cancer, we're calling on the game-changers, innovators and visionaries to join our family. Not just for the kids of St. Jude, but also for you. Because at ALSAC, we develop and celebrate our employees. So, bring your whole, authentic self and become part of our shared mission: Finding cures. Saving children.® Job Description The Vice President, Direct Response serves as the enterprise executive responsible for leading, modernizing, and scaling one of the organization’s most critical revenue engines. This role oversees and drives transformational growth through donor acquisition, retention, and long-term loyalty across large-scale direct mail and multi-channel direct response programs. This VP establishes and executes the long-term strategic vision for Direct Response—reimagining traditional direct mail approaches through audience-led planning, data-driven optimization, innovation, and full-funnel integration. The role carries broad enterprise influence, shaping cross-channel donor strategies and aligning Marketing, Creative, Digital, Analytics, FP&A, and Development teams around a unified audience-centric roadmap. A people-first leader, the VP will build, develop, and inspire a high-performing, diverse team of marketers, analysts, creatives, and operational experts while fostering a culture grounded in inclusion, transparency, accountability, and operational excellence. This executive is a strategic thinker with strong financial discipline, exceptional communication skills, and a proven ability to drive large-scale change and breakthrough performance. Top Skills for Success Deep Direct Response & Direct Mail Expertise: Mastery of large-scale donor acquisition and retention programs with deep experience in direct mail strategy, segmentation, testing, and data-driven optimization. Strategic Leadership & Vision : Ability to define the future-state strategy of Direct Mail within a multi-channel ecosystem—evolving traditional approaches, modernizing systems, and driving organizational transformation. Enterprise Influence & Cross-Functional Partnership: Leads alignment across Marketing, Creative, Digital, Analytics, FP&A, Development, and key external partners. Influences enterprise donor strategy and drives cross-channel cohesion. Financial & Operational Management Excellence : Proven success managing multimillion-dollar P&Ls, forecasting accurately, optimizing budgets, and elevating operational performance and vendor ecosystems. Executive-Level Communication : Capable of translating complex strategies into compelling narratives for Boards, executive teams, cross-functional leaders, vendors, and external partners. People Leadership & Talent Development : A leader of leaders with a track record of growing high-performing teams, cultivating leadership pipelines, and building inclusive, engaged, high-accountability cultures. Change Leadership & Modernization : Experienced leading organizations through modernization of processes, technology, data, testing frameworks, and audience-led planning. Operational Rigor & Process Optimization : Focused on operational excellence through workflow redesign, forecasting improvement, automation, and performance measurement discipline. Essential Job Functions 1. Executive Leadership of Direct Response Strategy Serves as a senior member of the Direct Response leadership team and key contributor to enterprise donor strategy. Defines and evolves the long-term strategic vision for Direct Mail and Direct Response. Provides high-level thought leadership for list strategy, segmentation, cultivation, retention, and donor loyalty. Positioned to support or step into other Direct Response leadership functions when needed. 2. Drives Transformation & Channel Evolution Leads the long-term strategic planning and modernization of Direct Mail, balancing sustainability with innovation. Oversees segmentation and audience strategy aligned with enterprise-wide plans and in collaboration with Marketing, Creative, Analytics, and Digital teams. Champions cohesive donor journeys across mail, email, paid media, social, search, call center, events, and digital giving experiences. Drives enterprise alignment with standardized measurement frameworks, analytics best practices, and transparent performance reporting. Cultivates strong vendor and partner relationships that maximize enterprise value and operational efficiency. Partners closely with Brand and Creative leadership to ensure creative excellence aligned with audience strategies and brand standards. Leads a high-performing, diverse team with a focus on mentoring, coaching, and developing leaders. 3. Owns Revenue, Expense & Audience Growth Objectives In partnership with FP&A and divisional leadership, sets annual revenue and expense budgets aligned with enterprise goals. Leads forecasting accuracy, risk management, and in-year adjustments to optimize performance. Establishes donor acquisition, retention, and audience composition objectives across the organization. Motivates and inspires teams to meet or exceed revenue, audience, and performance targets. 4. Oversees Direct Mail Operations & Execution Excellence Leads annual planning for Direct Mail programs, including cadence, KPIs, audience targets, and campaign budgets. Makes strategic, in-year campaign optimizations to maximize near-term results and long-term value. Oversees all aspects of mail program execution: creative development, segmentation, testing, production, vendor management, and analytics. Partners with cross-functional leaders to leverage Direct Mail capabilities in support of broader organizational goals. Drives operational excellence through process optimization, cost efficiency, resource planning, automation, and smart technology/AI adoption. Minimum Requirements Bachelor’s degree in business, Marketing, Finance, Analytics, or a related quantitative field; advanced degree preferred . 10 years of progressive leadership experience in direct response, performance marketing, fundraising, or data-driven consumer marketing. 5 years of senior leadership experience (Director, Senior Director, VP) overseeing large teams and significant budgets. Proven success leading large-scale direct mail acquisition and retention programs with deep direct response expertise. Demonstrated experience managing multi-million-dollar P&Ls , forecasting accurately, and driving revenue and margin performance. Strong background in audience segmentation, list management, testing frameworks, and analytics-driven decision-making . Experience developing and executing integrated multi-channel plans including direct mail, email, digital, paid media, and other direct response vehicles. Exceptional communication, presentation, and influencing skills with executives, boards, partners, and cross-functional teams. Proven track record of building and developing high-performing, diverse teams . Experience leading organizational change across processes, technology, data, and workflows. Strong vendor management experience across production, media, data, and operational partners. Demonstrated commitment to operational excellence and continuous improvement. This position is based at our National Executive Office in Memphis, TN, and includes eligibility for a relocation package. Benefits & Perks The following Benefits & Perks apply to Full-Time Roles Only . We’re dedicated to ensuring children and their families have every opportunity to enjoy life’s special moments. We’re also committed to giving our staff excellent benefits so they can do the same. Core Medical Coverage: (low cost low deductible Medical, Dental, and Vison Insurance plans)? 401K Retirement Plan with 7% Employer Contribution Exceptional Paid Time Off Maternity / Paternity Leave Infertility Treatment Program Adoption Assistance Education Assistance Enterprise Learning and Development And more ALSAC is an equal employment opportunity employer. ALSAC does not discriminate against any individual with regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, age, sexual orientation, gender identity, transgender status, disability, veteran status, genetic information or other protected status. No Search Firms: ALSAC does not accept unsolicited assistance from search firms for employment opportunities. All resumes submitted by search firms to any ALSAC employee or ALSAC representative via email, the internet or in any form and/or method without being contacted and approved by our Employee Experience team and without a valid written search agreement in place will result in no fee being paid if a referred candidate is hired by ALSAC.

Keywords: St. Jude Children’s Research Hospital, Bartlett , Vice President, Direct Response, IT / Software / Systems , Memphis, Tennessee