What is a corporate alumni program?
Networks are the most powerful tools we have on both a human and business level. Having a personal and business network today is probably one of the most efficient and powerful ways to keep us connected with future opportunities and past experiences.
A corporate alumni program can be any program that seeks to keep former employees connected to your business. How you structure it is entirely up to you. It could be something as simple as a newsletter or utilizing social groups on Facebook or LinkedIn. Many companies go further, offering previous employees access to exclusive resources on specialized platforms creating whole networks.
Have you ever thought of creating an alumni network to stay connected with past experiences?
One simple move will make a big difference so you and your company will be successful in every aspect.
1. Corporate alumni are a great resource for new talent.
As an employer and owner of a company you might feel tired and overwhelmed by the complex hiring and HR processes. It's not at all simple to find the ideal candidate and fit for a position within your company. Have you ever considered tapping into your alumni pool? Whether your company has a policy for rehiring previous employees or not, corporate alumni should not be underestimated in their power to help you attract – and even retain -new talent. For the companies that do engage in “Boomerang Recruiting” (that is, recruiting all-star team members back to the company), a well-designed Corporate Alumni program has been reported to generate as much as 17% of all hires. And for companies with stricter “No Rehiring” policies, the power of the alumni network remains strong. Whether advocating for you within their growing networks at large or engaging in one-on-one conversations with potential hires looking for an insider perspective, former employees’ are considered more objective, and therefore they (hopefully) can be your most convincing brand ambassadors. A Corporate Alumni program powered by an online platform can help nurture that ambassadorship.
2. Corporate alumni know your business well and can now offer valuable feedback.
For insights on everything, from launching a new product to getting honest opinions on company culture, there is no better resource than your company alumni network. From a high industry level, alumni often move on to more senior roles in similar or tangential industries and can therefore provide invaluable insights into industry intel, trends, and best practices. On a more company-specific level, your alumni know your business and products inside and out from their experience there – and now that they have left, they can offer truly honest opinions on everything from the new products you are testing out to your employee environment.
3. Corporate alumni can help to increase your current employee engagement and loyalty.
With so many companies and opportunities out there, it is so difficult to keep the employees engaged and create loyalty. While the Corporate Alumni network may seem to center primarily around “Alumni” – the benefits extend far beyond just previous employees. The truth is the benefits pay tenfold also for your current employee network. Top corporations can increase loyalty and reduce employee turnover and retain top talent by leveraging the full power of their past and present employee network. How? By setting up networking events that show (instead of just telling) your employees that you are truly dedicated to their personal growth and, most importantly, by giving them access to an alumni database where they can make connections and outreach on their own time. This kind of network building is powerful. Every company out there is organizing corporate events for their employees on regular basis, some also include their alumni, or have special events dedicated just to them. Although groups on social media networks are a way to promote these events, a specialized platform can boost their success.
3 Features your corporate alumni platform should have When looking for a platform to host your network; look out for the following features.
Directory tools with profile assessment capabilities
First and foremost, a corporate alumni program should have the key feature supporting, of course, a robust network. At its core, corporate alumni programs are only as strong as the number of engaged members that are within them -- which means that the most important starting point of any program is making sure that you have the proper directory capabilities built in.
Second, one powerful ROI that corporate alumni programs drive is the optimization of recruiting costs. How? By providing a platform that not only unites your past and present employee base but creates a valuable network for tapping into when recruiting.
Last and certainly not least, you’ll want to make sure that the platform you’re using to support your corporate alumni program is not just a one-and-done sort of tool. What does this mean? You’ll want to keep members as engaged as possible, and on a regular basis, to help grow the network which will in turn grow the value it adds to both your company and its employees.
If you wish for your company to go to a luxury level and achieve its full potential in 2023 having alumni platform is a must!
It is time to be modern, it is time to grow in the networking space. Find your way, find your people, and find your success with the Alumni Reach Platform.
Unlock the full power of your corporate alumni network with Alumni Reach!
Learn more at: https://alumnireach.com/