While they may appear the same, talent acquisition and recruitment are very different things. Recruiting revolves around filling vacancies, often favoring quantity over quality. Talent acquisition focuses on identifying and acquiring top talent in a specific field.
Therefore, talent acquisition is a more strategic approach, and better suited to meeting a company’s long-term goals. And one of the best tools any talent acquisition team can have is a strong corporate alumni program.
Let’s examine how the corporate world is relying on corporate alumni networks for talent acquisition and continued business growth.
What are corporate alumni networks?
In the academic world, an alumni network is a group of former students who stay connected to one another, and their alma mater. The corporate world has its own version — the corporate alumni network.
A corporate alumni network is a group of former employees and colleagues who stay connected to one another and their former employer.
When a company invests in a corporate alumni relations program, the employer enjoys brand advocacy, client referrals, new partnerships, and more. Those who want to maximize the benefits, use their corporate alumni networks for talent acquisition.
The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic
Low unemployment rates have left companies scrambling to secure talent from a narrow pool of active job seekers. This fierce competition has necessitated an innovative approach to attracting top candidates. Using corporate alumni networks for talent acquisition fits the bill.
Recruitment is no longer as simple as it once was. In days gone by, you’d advertise a vacant post, make a shortlist of top candidates, do a couple of interviews and you were done. The COVID-19 pandemic changed all that.
After working from home during the imposed global lockdowns, many people decided they preferred their remote work environments. Those who could no longer enjoy the remote work model left to join other companies that gave them this freedom. Others chose to pursue different career paths entirely.
Emboldened by such shifts in the workplace, a notable commitment gap among generations soon became apparent.
This was highlighted by a recent CareerBuilder study.
The study showed that individuals from what is known as the Baby Boomer generation typically stay in a job for eight years and three months, while Gen X stay for about five years and two months. Worse still, Millennials stick around for only two years and nine months, and Gen Zers only two years and three months!
That’s why businesses need to look at new ways of attracting and keeping talent.
The rise of boomerang hiring
A few decades ago, employees would join a company fresh out of college and climb the ranks, accumulating experience and status along the way. Most stayed with the company until they retired, and felt like “part of the family” there.
But those who chose to leave the company had a grim reality to accept. All ties with their former employer and colleagues would be severed.
Rehiring former employees was unheard of. Employers never considered bringing them back, and employees wouldn’t dare try to come back. This was a stark contradiction to the message these companies preached during their recruitment drives: “Join us, and you’re a part of the family!”
Fortunately, today’s employers realize that being a family means staying connected, even when their best employees choose to leave. That’s why so many top organizations have corporate alumni programs.
And because corporate alumni networks consist of well-qualified former employees and colleagues, they understandably turn to their corporate alumni networks for talent acquisition. They’re not the only ones. Across organizations in multiple industries, 28% of “new hires” are boomerang hires.
Thus, today’s career trajectories resemble spirals of alternating solid lines (during active employment) and dotted lines (when employees have left but remain connected through alumni networks). As they return to their former employers, these dotted lines once again solidify.
The future of talent acquisition
Corporate alumni programs are revolutionizing talent acquisition strategies everywhere. With new generations spending only 2.5 years in their jobs, where will we be in 10 years? We’ll be left with a handful of potential candidates, as alumni networks compete to attract the same talent.
You can use this approach in your talent acquisition processes, too.
By keeping in touch with former employees, you’ll create a sense of community and tap into a wealth of collective knowledge and experience. Your corporate alumni already understand your company’s culture, values, and operations, after all.
Rehiring them simplifies the recruitment process, and increases your chances of finding the right fit for the role. When you hire boomerang employees, they bring fresh perspectives, industry insights, and innovative ideas back to you, driving growth and giving you a competitive edge.
By maintaining relationships with your former employees, you demonstrate commitment to their professional development, transcending the transactional nature of the initial employment contract. This boosts morale, loyalty, and retention, as current employees see their contributions to the company are valued, even after leaving the organization.
Business benefits of corporate alumni networks
Corporate alumni networks offer distinct business benefits.
Former employees offer access to a pre-vetted talent pool
When they leverage corporate alumni networks for talent acquisition, talent acquisition teams have access to a pre-vetted talent pool. And boomerang hiring is a talent acquisition strategy that delivers results.
Boomerang employees hit the ground running. They need little to no training upon rehiring and often bring new skills learned elsewhere. That’s what we call a win-win situation!
Recruitment cost savings
Several major financial institutions report that approximately 10% of their workforce are boomerang employees. The trend continues to gain momentum in the corporate world, and when you look at the potential recruitment cost savings, it’s easy to understand why.
Rehiring your ex-employees can save as much as $50K per rehire. About half of this saving comes from bypassing headhunter fees (ranging from 15% to 40% of annual salaries). The rest of those savings come from their increased productivity.
Knowledge-sharing and collaboration
An alumni community network promotes knowledge-sharing and collaboration. Your past employees have amassed institutional knowledge from their time in your employ, and afterward. This makes them ideal candidates for mentoring your newer employees.
Boosts employer brand and increases employee engagement
Boomerang hires are already familiar with the company culture and know many of the other employees. That’s why they are generally happier, more productive, and stay longer than new hires. This, in turn, enhances your employer branding and employee engagement.
Benefits for alumni
Companies aren’t the only ones who benefit from alumni networks! Here are some advantages alumni gain from being part of the network.
- Career advancement: Alumni have access to career development opportunities, mentorship, and vacant job positions in the company. Using corporate alumni networks for talent acquisition gives your alumni all they need to survive in a competitive job market.
- Perks and discounts: Alumni enjoy extra value for their participation. Corporate alumni programs offer alumni perks and access to exclusive events. Extra perks include special offers and discount company products, which makes alumni more inclined to recommend them.
- A sense of belonging: Alumni networks allow alumni to continue feeling like a “part of the family”. This builds alumni engagement, as they feel recognized, valued, and appreciated. And this makes them more likely to want to return as a boomerang hire.
How to build a successful corporate alumni network
Whether launching an alumni network from scratch or revamping an existing one, two distinct but complementary things are essential to the process: a sound strategy and the right tools.
Strategy
Ask yourself the following questions:
What is your company looking to achieve with the alumni program? What benefits will it offer the alumni, what will it offer the company? How much is the budget, or will the alumni program potentially bring in enough new business to exceed this cost?
If the answers satisfy you, it’s time to start designing your corporate alumni network. Consider the resources needed, who will run it, and how it will be structured. And choose the right tools for the job.
Tools
For the seamless integration of your alumni network with your talent acquisition strategy, you need digital tools that facilitate networking, provide valuable data insights, and track engagement. These tools should preferably also integrate with internal HR systems for easier workforce planning and recruitment.
You don’t need separate software for your job postings, applicant tracking systems, or even your data analytics. The Aluminate for Enterprise platform is all you need. You can use the platform as an alumni database, mentorship program, and talent management system, building talent pipelines for the future.
Advertise upcoming job opportunities on the digital dashboard, Segment alumni members with the Groups module to create talent pools for future reference. Share valuable resources with alumni via the digital library. And monitor and improve your networking efforts using our Insights feature.
Change your recruiting game with Aluminate for Enterprise
When you use your alumni management software for your talent management and hiring process, you will streamline your entire talent acquisition process. Your alumni community is a source of the best potential candidates, with the specialized expertise you know you can rely on.
Forget those old, tired recruitment processes of the past. Leading businesses have learned to leverage their corporate alumni networks for talent acquisition. And you can do the same for your company’s future hiring needs.
With Aluminate for Enterprise, you’ll have all you need to build a robust alumni network and talent acquisition platform. It’s time to change your recruitment strategies game. Request a free demo today.
