They say it takes a village to raise a child. The same can be said of a business, with an entire community of people helping to make it a success. However, to get the most out of this community involvement, you first need to understand who your community is.
Your community members may include your employees, both past and present. But your current staff and your corporate alumni are not the only members of your organization’s community. There are other stakeholders, like your clients, your suppliers, and business partners/collaborators.
Inviting these external stakeholders onto your corporate community platform is an excellent way to foster connections that benefit all parties. A customizable platform such as Aluminate for Enterprise is ideal for this.
In this article, we examine the top 10 reasons why corporate communities are important for building a successful business, and how you can use these insights to your advantage.
10 reasons why building a corporate community is important
Here are the top ten reasons why building a corporate community is crucial for your business’s success.
1. Employee engagement and retention
Businesses with a thriving corporate community tend to have more engaged staff. Corporate communities foster a sense of belonging and connection among employees, which can improve engagement and reduce turnover rates. This is why successful businesses dedicate so much energy to community development.
Using a platform like Aluminate to build a corporate community network for team-building, collaboration, and employee recognition is one of the top employee engagement strategies.
Expanding your network and giving your employees a space to engage with one another, the company, alumni, and external stakeholders will give them access to endless opportunities, benefits, and collaborations. This will boost engagement even further.
2. Knowledge sharing and collaboration
By bringing together current employees, alumni, and external stakeholders all on the same platform, you foster a space for the exchange of ideas, best practices, and resources. Your teams will collaborate with your external stakeholders, leading to the formation of new projects and initiatives.
The Groups feature on the Aluminate for Enterprise platform is ideal for external collaboration. Community members can create group chats with one another based on interests, projects, and initiatives. This will lead to valuable knowledge-sharing and the creation of beneficial collaborations.
Our user-friendly digital library is another excellent way for your community members to share and access resources.
3. Talent development and mentorship
One of the many benefits of a strong corporate community is its potential for talent development and mentorship. With so many members available for discussion, debate, and collaboration, you are bound to find the right fit for talent development and mentorship roles.
Although your corporate alumni are usually the top contenders, learn to look throughout your community for potential fits for job vacancies. This is even easier to achieve when you build a talent management system that integrates with your community platforms.
Our platform offers a mentor-matching feature, allowing community members to connect with their ideal mentor with ease. Including external stakeholders on your corporate community platform widens the pool of available mentors even further.
4. Brand advocacy and loyalty
Your corporate community plays a large role in brand advocacy. They are the faces and voices of the various levels of your organization. A strong sense of community has a positive impact on customers’ brand loyalty, too.
Having not only your current employees, but also your alumni, clients, customers, and suppliers on your community platform will enhance brand advocacy. All these external stakeholders will be constantly involved and find value in your corporate community.
This will lead to them speaking positively about your brand to their networks, which will lead to even more networking opportunities, widening your community further,
Harness all of this brand positivity through your corporate community. Establish a network that is also integrated with social media, with our social data sync, where they can be unofficial ambassadors for your brand.
5. Talent recruitment through community involvement
Your HR team can post job openings on your corporate community platform, providing alumni and external stakeholders with opportunities to join your organization or refer qualified candidates. The larger your corporate community is, the higher your chances are of finding the perfect candidate.
Many organizations rely on corporate communities, such as their alumni associations, for planning leadership succession and filling job posts. There are many benefits to hiring boomerang employees, which is why it is essential to stay in touch with your alumni.
Our digital dashboard is the perfect place for your HR team to post job openings. This customizable feed will show job openings to the most qualified candidates, as each member only sees the content that is most relevant to them.
6. Customer feedback and relationship-building
Your corporate community helps you in many ways. It is essential to reciprocate and meet your community’s needs, too.
When you include customers and clients on your corporate community platform, you can use it to encourage customer feedback. Post surveys on your platform’s dashboard or digital library to discover what your customers want and need.
This helps both your company and your client/customer base. They have their opinions, suggestions, and grievances heard, and you gain valuable insights into how you can improve your services and build stronger relationships with them.
7. Brand differentiation
Entrepreneurs know the importance of their community in building their brand. But in a sea of local businesses with similar offerings, how does yours stand out?
Establish solid brand differentiation with the content you share with your community. Use it to show how your brand stands apart from the rest. Highlight that your business offers more than just innovative products and stellar service, but also a unique sense of community.
8. Cost savings and efficiency
Corporate communities can lead to cost savings through supplier partnerships, employee discounts, and streamlined communication channels.
Through the platform, suppliers can offer exclusive discounts and promotions to your current employees, providing added value to the company’s workforce. Employees can take advantage of these offers, saving money on essential supplies or services while supporting company partners.
A corporate community platform will also significantly reduce your talent recruitment costs. Companies can save up to $50,000 when rehiring an alumni from their network. These savings include headhunting and recruitment costs, onboarding, training, and development.
Aluminate for Enterprise is the ideal platform for connecting with and rehiring your alumni. Our digital dashboard makes it easy for HR to find the ideal candidates for open roles, whether these are alumni, their connections, or external stakeholders.
9. Innovation and problem-solving
No matter your niche, innovation is the key to future growth. Having an extensive corporate community can stimulate further innovation and problem-solving.
Your corporate alumni network is especially helpful here. They not only retain the skills that made them so valuable to you. They have acquired new ones, after leaving your employ. They are also already familiar with your company processes, so they can offer realistic and practical solutions to your challenges.
However, having your employees and alumni engage with external stakeholders on your platform will lead to further innovation, idea-sharing, and the creation of new projects and collaborations. Your team will have access to fresh insights and solutions from external sources.
Aluminate makes it a breeze for teams to share ideas and knowledge through groups, virtual meetings, and the customizable dashboard.
10. Long-term sustainability
The benefits of a corporate community extend to the long term. Cultivating a strong corporate community fosters a sense of shared purpose and commitment to the company’s vision and mission. This sets your business up for long-term success and sustainability.
Your community members will feel as if they are part of something bigger. This leads to brand advocacy, enhancing your brand’s reputation and reach.
Create your corporate community with Aluminate for Enterprise
Corporate communities form the foundation upon which everything else in your organization is built, from employee engagement to brand advocacy and client feedback. Having a wide corporate community, including not only employees and alumni but also external stakeholders, is the key to innovation, collaboration, brand differentiation, and long-term business success.
With the right platform, businesses of all sizes can enhance these facets of their company to build success. And the more versatile your corporate community platform is, the more benefits you will enjoy.
Aluminati has the perfect solution – Aluminate for Enterprise. It is the world’s most customizable corporate community platform, giving your corporate connections access to content, opportunities, and connections that benefit them. With our robust network features, every business can enjoy a deeper sense of community and collaboration.
Ready to supercharge your corporate community? Request a demo today.
