A corporate alumni programme is probably the most valuable tool in your arsenal and can provide long-lasting ROI benefits to your organisation, your employees and your customers. Around 98% of Fortune 500 companies already have some form of corporate alumni programme and if you don’t have one, you could be missing out on some serious advantages.
Let’s take a look at some of the key benefits that a corporate alumni engagement programme can not only lead to significant cost savings for your organisation but increased revenue and ROI. Talent Acquisition Having a database of former employees is a great starting point, but imagine having a fully engaged community of former employees who regularly interact with each other and your organisation. Your human resources department can save time and money by recruiting ‘boomerang’ employees. Boomerang employees are employees who return to your organisation having gone away and increased their skills, knowledge and/or experience elsewhere. Couple this with their insider knowledge and experience and the onboarding process is then further reduced, saving time and money. Your thriving alumni community will also serve as an invaluable indicator to external recruits and potential hires that your organisation places great value in its employees and alumni. A boomerang hire is also great for internal PR. Brand Advocacy Organisations are relying less on traditional advertising methods and turning instead to content marketing and social media strategies. This is a very effective way of not only delivering relevant news and information to your alumni but also can be of significant benefit when your alumni engage and share your content with their own community groups. This can increase the exposure and value of your content exponentially. When it comes to brand ambassadorship, Alumni deliver 5x more value than the average customer. Make sure you provide your alumni with the resources and information they need to communicate your organisation’s goals, values and initiatives. Get alumni to engage with your organisation’s social media channels, sharing content etc. Your engaged alumni will be fully equipped to recommend your organisation with confidence. Networking opportunities Undiscovered new business opportunities are waiting inside your corporate alumni programme network. Your alumni go on to find new jobs, start their own businesses, create new products and services and drive innovation. Many of these new ventures will require business partners, and what better than a trusted, previous employer? Your alumni can keep your organisation abreast of the latest industry trends and help you maintain a competitive advantage in your market. A dedicated corporate alumni programme network platform will enable your organisation to also organise both online and real-world networking events for your alumni and help to cement those relationships. Six ideas for your next Alumni event. Workplace Culture & Professional Development A healthy, sustainable and engaged workforce is a productive workforce and your corporate alumni community platform will show your employees you care about them. External organisations will see how much value you place in your employees too. Establishing a mentoring programme will also allow your alumni to ‘give back’ to your organisation, enabling more effective professional development of your current employees, creating a more positive work environment. As mentioned at the beginning of this article, many of the biggest organisations in the world already have a corporate alumni programme and are reaping the benefits. Allowing them to maintain their competitive advantage. If you want to build your online management platform, or you require an alumni engagement software, reach out to one of our experts.
