Building an Alumni network from the ground up can be difficult. Luckily, we have plenty of experience helping a diverse range of organizations do this. Here are a few items you should consider when building a corporate alumni network.
Decide on the population pool early:
What kind of criteria will you have for candidates? Do you want to include current alumni in your portal? An advantage there is you are able to start with a larger, more active pool. Will you include former interns, contractors or those who were terminated from their positions? Determining the answer to these and questions like these will expedite your network building efforts.Reach out to existing unofficial groups:
This is one of the first things that should be done when creating your alumni network. Find out if any unofficial alumni groups already exist, and invite them into the fold. If they are passionate enough to found or join this group, then they are likely prime candidates for your official alumni network. Don’t forget to screen them based on the criteria we established above.Sell the idea early...and late:
The first adjustment made to current procedure when looking to expand your alumni network concerns onboarding and recruitment. Pitch the alumni network as an employee benefit. This is an exclusive club they gain admittance to from the moment onboarding concludes and they should know its value. Prospective employees should also be told about the network as way to express how the organization cares for its own.This should prompt a change in your exit interviews as well. Exiting employees should be offered the alumni network as a way to keep up with company news, events and business opportunities.Communicate frequently:
The various advantages of having this portal all go back to communication. The more engaged your network is with the service, the more likely they are to be active. Active, engaged members are the core of successful corporate alumni networks. [Click to Tweet]Simply put - this is a discourse community that is dependent on all of its pieces working cohesively.
Get together when you can:
Although you are all connected virtually, alumni events are a positive reason to gather the troops and bring everyone face to face. These networking events can spur business development, serve as recruiting tools prospects and career development for the alumni. This is also a chance for representatives of the host organization to address the alumni at a relaxed, social gathering that keeps the relationship fun.Informal versions of Alumni networks birthed companies like Yelp and Uber. [Click to Tweet] Imagine what your organization can accomplish with the powers of technology and your alumni combined. For more information visit http://www.alumnipro.com
This post first appeared on Alumni And Talent Development - Insala, please read the originial post: here
