Are you thinking about launching an alumni network for your law firm? Legal alumni networks can offer law firms a wide range of benefits. It can boost your reputation, attract top legal talent, bring in more clients, and much more.
However, you’ll only start to enjoy these benefits when you’ve built your alumni relations program on a firm foundation. These are the secrets to launching an alumni network for your law firm that will deliver results.
Why are alumni networks important for law firms?
Alumni networks are not just about camaraderie. They also offer public relations and business development benefits.
- Public relations: A law firm with a successful alumni program will gain a more positive reputation and an improved public image. It’s great PR and will make your firm look more attractive to both clients and prospective employees.
- Client referrals: By building an alumni program for your law firm, you create a database of potential future clients and client referral sources. Indeed, the revenue from a single alumni’s return as a client or referral could sponsor the entire program.
- Talent recruitment: Your alumni network is not just a source of potential clients. It’s also the ultimate talent management system. You can use it to encourage both new hires and rehires. And your alumni can refer others to you for possible employment as well.
An alumni network can have a significant impact on business development. Do you want to know more about what an alumni network can do for your law firm? Our guide to the business benefits of law firm alumni networks explains it all.
8 Secrets to launching an alumni network for your law firm
Are you looking for guidance on launching an alumni network for your law firm? Here are our eight secrets to launching an alumni network for your law firm.
1. Set clear legal-focused goals
The first step in launching an alumni network for your law firm is to set clear goals for your program.
Is your goal simply recruiting talent or gaining client referrals? Is it a public relations exercise to enhance the public perception of your firm? Or do you wish to offer your fellow legal professionals more opportunities for professional development?
Some of your alumni community may already be members of other alumni networks, connected to the universities or law schools where they studied. Make a clear distinction between what their alma mater offers them, and what you offer them.
2. Reconnect with former attorneys and partners
Once you have established your goals for the program, it’s time to start reaching out to suitable candidates.
They may be former colleagues, clients, or partners from your law firm, or legal professionals that you attended law school with. Although you may not work together closely, you are all part of the legal community and can share a common bond in your alumni community.
Reconnect with them by telephone, email, direct message, or in person. Tell them that you intend to launch an alumni network for your law firm, and invite them to become members.
3. Provide industry-specific perks
Any alumni relations program, whether it be academic, corporate, or legal, should offer its members value. So, the next step in launching an alumni network for your law firm is to determine what those valuable benefits will be.
When you first meet with your prospective alumni program, you can suggest certain benefits and perks. Provide industry-specific perks that will appeal to your alumni. These may include (but need not be limited to) access to networking opportunities, legal conferences, Continuing Legal Education (CLE) credits, etc.
Ask your alumni what perk or benefit they would be most interested in. Try to offer a mix of in-person and online events to fit in with your alumni’s busy schedules.
4. Invest in alumni program management software
Once you have a basic idea of how your legal alumni network will unfold, it’s time to start laying the foundation for it. This requires a platform on which you can all communicate and collaborate. This is where your law firm alumni will be informed of all the latest firm news and program developments.
Aluminate for Enterprise is the ideal choice for this purpose. Brought to you by Aluminati, the world’s most customizable online community platform, it serves as both an alumni database and an alumni engagement platform.
Whether you’re launching an alumni network for your law firm, or looking for a new platform to upgrade your program, this is the one. Aluminate offers the best features for creating a thriving law firm alumni network.
The digital dashboard is the core of the Aluminate community builder. Here, you can post the latest news, information about upcoming events, and much more. To target specific sub-communities with news relevant to them, segment your alumni community with our Groups module.
5. Establish a leadership/stewardship team
Every alumni program needs firm leadership. Establish a leadership team of attorneys, where each leader cares for the alumni, the alumni program, and your law firm – indeed, your entire legal community. They will make the big decisions about the current running of, and future of, your program.
You can appoint stewards for your program, too. Stewardship typically involves maintaining and strengthening donor/supporter relationships. It is a vital part of many academic alumni relations programs, as they often focus heavily on fundraising. But it can mean so much more.
Stewardship encourages lifelong affinity to the program. It promotes peer influence and investment.
In the context of legal alumni, it can mean donating time and effort to pro bono work, peer recognition activities, or mentoring your current employees. Our mentor-mentee matching feature will help with that.
6. Host legal networking and CLE events
You should host regular events if you want to engage alumni and keep them actively participating in the program.
Legal networking and CLE events will offer your alumni access to opportunities for professional development. However, social interactions are essential for alumni engagement too. They highlight the firm’s commitment to peer bonding, creating a sense of belonging and adding more value to the program.
It’s crucial that no one feels left out of these proceedings. If any of your alumni have moved to another city, state, or even country, they should still be able to participate. Virtual events and online networking sessions will ensure that they are all included.
7. Showcase alumni achievements in the field
Showcase your individual alumni’s achievements in the field. Each alumnus will have something they are proud of. It could be a case that they won despite the odds, or a case that set a legal precedent. Perhaps they have been offered an in-house legal role or made a partner at a prestigious law firm.
One of the best methods for disseminating the latest alumni news is a regular alumni newsletter. This not only keeps alumni up-to-date with what’s happening in the legal community but also drives engagement. Read our guide to learn how to write an engaging alumni newsletter.
It’s important to remember your alumni community’s other causes for celebration, too, such as milestone birthdays, retirement announcements, and so forth. This adds a personal touch that will make them feel seen and appreciated, and further engage them with the program.
8. Track impact and evolve
Your work doesn’t end after launching an alumni network for your law firm. The key to a successful alumni relations program is to monitor and nurture it and keep alumni data up-to-date.
Aluminate’s social data sync feature updates data automatically (with permission) when members update their details on social media platforms like LinkedIn or Facebook. Our guide on the best ways to keep alumni data updated will explain all the other ways you can keep alumni data on track.
Track the program’s evolution and assess its impact regularly. This is how you will keep your alumni network relevant and your alumni engagement high. Allow your alumni to make suggestions for the program, and encourage them to offer feedback.
As membership grows, and time goes by, the program will naturally evolve. You’ll realize what’s working for you, and what is no longer serving your program’s goals. Our Insights feature can show you what your alumni are interacting with the most, at a glance.
Use Aluminate for Enterprise to cultivate your law firm alumni network
Launching an alumni network for your law firm is an excellent decision.
It will show your fellow legal professionals that your organization values staying connected. It can offer both your firm and your alumni unique and tremendous value in your respective professional journeys. And it can also help your firm to grow and build a more solid reputation.
But before your alumni program can do any of that, you need the right platform. One that’s designed to support every aspect of alumni programs. You need Aluminate for Enterprise.
Request your free demo today.
