matt@mattfarrow.co

EDUCATION

Master of Science – Data Science
Southern Methodist University 2022

Bachelor of Fine Arts – Theatrical Production
Ithaca College 2005

WORK EXPERIENCE

Director, Prospect Development & Strategy

Children’s Medical Center Foundation Sep 2021 – Present

Providing data collection, pre-processing, exploratory analysis and modelling services to clients in the early R&D stages of developing data driven products. Projects include:

  • Data description and preliminary product feasibility insights for a start-up real estate bond platform; including assessing suitability of various property transaction databases for use in initial product prototype.

  • Development of statistical anomaly detection regimes and key historical insights from internet quality time-series data for use in parametric insurance products, including documenting analysis tools in an R package.

Assistant Director, Prospect Development

Southern Methodist University 2019 – 2021

  • Design, create, and implement innovative data strategies using R to improve prospect management and fundraising outcomes.

    • Build and maintain standardized monthly reporting to fundraising staff that contains their fundraising plans, current portfolio with time since last contact for their prospects, and incomplete activity in the database.

    • Build and maintain a dashboard for the Prospect Development team, highlighting their work towards internal metrics on a monthly and fiscal year-to-date basis as well as quantifying the team’s efforts towards the larger University fundraising operation.

    • Provide data analysis and reporting to University leadership to inform strategic decisions.

    • Keep abreast of new techniques and information around R by attending conferences, engaging with active Twitter communities, and maintaining a curated list of blogs.

  • Collaborate with fundraisers during regular prospect management meetings in order to develop solicitation strategies and ensure prospects are being moved through the prospect pipeline.

  • Overhauled prospect management guidelines and develop documentation for new processes, training fundraisers through written documentation, group demonstrations, and one-on-one training.

  • Created a Prospect Management Idea of the Day program that shared a different prospect management-themed recommendation each day for a month that was shared with all fundraisers by email and then hosted on internal intranet for future reference.

  • In collaboration with the Campaign Process and Volunteer Specialist, manage the Clearance process for reviewing and approving upcoming asks of $100,000 or more.

Senior Researcher

Southern Methodist University 2017 – 2019

  • Provided research and portfolio development support for eleven fundraisers on the Major Gift and Leadership Gift teams.

  • Regularly attended Major Gift team staff meetings and and biweekly meetings with each Major Gift fundraiser and the Director of Major Gifts to discuss ongoing prospect management strategy.

  • Assisted the Director of Development Research and Prospect Management with reporting on team activity by highlighting the number of prospects identified and overall prospect value added the constituent database on a monthly basis.

  • Continued with record update, research request, and donor database responsibilities as a member of the Development Research and Prospect Management team as detailed below.

  • Using R and RStudio, I produced a number of data analyses and visualizations for our teams in order to ground decisions in data.

    • In collaboration with the Major Gifts team, developed a prospect pool for local, DFW outreach.

    • Analyzed prospect ratings in the constituent database to help establish fundraising goals for each school and college as part of the Pony Power initiative.

    • Conducted a post-campaign analysis of prospect affinity, capacity and campaign giving at the zip-code level, reporting findings regularly to the Executive Director of Development Services to identify the ideal regional distribution of National Major Giving officers.

Researcher

Southern Methodist University 2013 – 2016

  • Taught myself the R programming language in order to create systems that were more flexible, and reproducible, and efficient in order to produce data analyses and visualizations for our teams including prospect lists for fundraisers and monthly rating analyses for the Prospect Development team that were used to highlight to leadership the additional potential wealth capacity that had been identified.

  • Managed portfolios, identified and researched prospects, and developed fundraising strategies for fundraisers in Planned Giving, National Major Giving, Athletics, and the Edwin L. Cox School of Business.

  • Maintained information on all prospects rated at or above $1 million which was summarized monthly and presented to the University Development leadership team in support of the The Second Century Campaign’s $1 billion goal.

  • Updated constituent records with information found through research, news alerts, and fundraiser interactions.

  • Responded to research requests by creating single paragraph bios, one-page research cards, full research profiles, and public affairs profiles for university constituents.

Researcher

Children’s Advocacy Center of Collin County 2010 – 2012

  • Planned three annual fundraising events including a $1.3 million gala for over 800 attendees, golf tournament with over 100 players and motorcycle ride with over 1,100 participants. Duties included: planning all aspects of events, identifying and soliciting prospective sponsors, tracking sponsorships and managing budgets, contracting with vendors, conducting site visits, developing print materials, and supervising volunteer committees ranging from 10-40 people.

  • Tracked over 600 auction items, donor information, descriptions, restrictions, and values for the annual black tie Gala.

  • Implemented a streamlined protocol and conducted analysis to develop a more strategic approach to fundraising events while supporting the mission of the Children’s Advocacy Center.

  • Decreased expenses to dollars raised at annual Gala from $0.55 per $1.00 to $0.47 per $1.00.

  • Stewarded CACCC donors, volunteers and sponsors through thank you notes, personal visits and recognition events.

  • Twice oversaw the creation and implementation of a new route through Collin County for the motorcycle ride involving three law enforcement agencies and the North Texas Tollway Authority.

Technical Supervisor

Ithaca College 2006 – 2010

  • Empowered 60-80 students annually to execute the lighting design for six main stage theatrical productions. Supervised the lighting department including managing student employees and work crews.

  • Served as client liaison for the building’s first major renovation project since its construction in 1960’s.  Duties included: attending bi-weekly construction progress meeting with architects, engineers and contractors, reviewing all construction drawings for the 78,000 square foot building, acting as on-site client representative for day-to-day operations and assisting contractors with understanding the components of a theatrical renovation including theatrical dimming systems, lighting network control infrastructure, counterweight and automated rigging and audio/visual infrastructure.

  • Managed major curriculum revision for the Design and Technology degree program.  Duties included: documenting all revisions during planning meetings, distributing revised information to faculty, taking planning meeting ideas and developing them into a working plan for submittal to college.

  • Taught the following courses: Stagecraft, Basic Lighting Technology, Basic Lighting and Sound Technology, and Advanced Lighting Technology.

PRESENTATIONS AND WORKSHOPS

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