Alumni have proven to be an invaluable asset for academic institutions. However, there is another category of alumni that is just as valuable — corporate alumni.
Businesses are now constantly reminded to make the most of alumni. But why are alumni important for your company, and how can you get the most out of these relationships?
In this guide, we delve into the six main reasons why your corporate alumni play a big role in your business success. We also cover the top three ways you can nurture these crucial connections, so you can start reaping the benefits of a corporate alumni network right away.
6 Reasons why your corporate alumni are important
Why are alumni important? Here are the top six reasons.
1. Brand ambassadors
Your corporate alumni are more than just the people who worked with you in the past. They are walking examples of your company culture, and brand identity. Hence they are perfectly suited to be brand ambassadors, taking your brand to new audiences.
Think of your alumni association as your brand’s embassy. They are already familiar with your brand. This means they can easily drum up interest, and answer questions about the brand and what it stands for. And the better your relationship with your alumni, the better for your brand’s public image.
2. Talent acquisition
Talent acquisition is a top priority for any organization destined for success. Often, the best candidates for open positions, particularly in management, are your corporate alumni. Although they may have left the company, this does not exclude them from consideration as boomerang employees.
When you stay in touch with your corporate alumni, you gain access to their corporate networks, too. Your corporate alumni can refer suitable candidates from their networks for your job openings.
Aluminate for Enterprise makes talent acquisition from your alumni network easy. This customizable platform will make job openings visible to the most suitable candidates, saving your company up to $50,000 per hire in recruitment costs.
3. Knowledge sharing
Your corporate alumni offer a wealth of knowledge. Some of it will have been learned while at your organization, and some since leaving to pursue other opportunities. When they share their knowledge and experience with your current employees, it can lead to innovative ideas and new collaborations.
They might just have the solution to a business problem you’ve been grappling with, thanks to new skills they’ve acquired.
4. Networking opportunities
When networking with fellow alumni, your previous employees and colleagues build better, stronger relationships. Many of these develop into new business alliances and opportunities.
By staying actively involved with them, you can take advantage of these opportunities, too. Aluminate’s Groups module lets you create smaller networks within your corporate community, so you never miss a chance to stay in touch.
Alumni associations present their prior employers with lifelong networking opportunities. By hosting these networking events, you can form powerful new business partnerships.
5. Mentorship
Your corporate alumni are the ideal mentors for your current and future employees. The expertise they bring to the table is invaluable. They can support new employees still finding their feet in the organization. Alumni can also dispense career advice if they previously filled the role of that new employee.
Help them to help your employees with Aluminate’s mentor-matching feature. This peer-to-peer virtual mentoring platform matches employees with their most suitable mentors from your alumni association.
6. Business Development
The alumni who use your products and services can recommend these to others in both their corporate and personal networks.
This can be a valuable source of business referrals and potential partnerships that lead to your business’s future growth and development. Best of all, it does not have to cost you anything, except for staying in touch with alumni on your corporate alumni network.
How to nurture your corporate alumni connections
Are you eager to create your own strategy for ultimate alumni engagement? Here are our three best tips for building a strong alumni network.
1. Invest in a corporate community platform
The best way to nurture your corporate alumni connections is to designate a special platform for them. Better yet, integrate it into your corporate community network, and manage all your important business relationships from one platform.
If you don’t have this set up yet, it’s time to get it done, with Aluminate for Enterprise. The platform is highly customizable and can serve as an enterprise social network for employees, alumni, and external stakeholders like clients, suppliers, and business partners. Those are all your most important contacts, easily managed and engaged on one platform.
2. Host networking events
Your corporate alumni are the ideal attendees for your networking events.
Host gatherings where your best business minds, past and present, can exchange ideas. Be creative to make it appealing for all. Invite your alumni to make speeches, or host a panel discussion. Collaboration workshops are also an excellent way to get everyone involved.
Aluminate’s social data sync lets you stay up-to-date with your corporate community’s changing contact details. It’s also the perfect platform to share invitations to your events on the customizable dashboard.
3. Offer alumni professional development opportunities
Never miss an opportunity to engage your alumni. Show them that their relationship with you is not a one-way street, but rather a mutually beneficial partnership.
Offer them professional opportunities on your corporate community platform that appeal to their interests and align with their skill sets. These could be online courses, webinars, alumni-to-alumni mentoring, or networking events. They can see news and invitations tailored to their interests right from the digital dashboard when signing in.
Stay in touch with your alumni with Aluminate for Enterprise
Just as in the world of academia, the corporate world is learning to embrace the power of alumni networks.
An engaged alumni network offers your business networking and partnership opportunities. It’s a vast resource of knowledge and skills you can tap into, anytime. And, of course, it’s the ideal choice for mentoring your employees and marketing your brand to the public.
The key to enjoying these benefits is having the right software for keeping in touch with, and engaging, your alumni. Aluminate for Enterprise is the top choice for managing your alumni network as well as your greater corporate community.
Start building the connections that count. Request a free demo today.
