Corporate alumni networks: Old ties, new wins
The relationship between employees and companies is undergoing a transformative shift. As tenure becomes shorter, organisations increasingly recognise the untapped potential of corporate alumni networks. These networks not only sustain bonds with former employees but can enhance business growth and innovation.
Increasingly few people remain “lifers” in one company. Today, talent is constantly on the move. Where it was taboo to job-hop, it’s now expected and accepted, with most people having multiple jobs during their lifetimes. Globalisation and the gig economy is shifting recruitment practices and redefining how companies manage talent.
With the average employee tenure starting to mirror that of an undergrad degree, corporates are evolving their largely informal, ad-hoc alumni connections into actively managed programmes.
Investec, celebrating its fiftieth anniversary, is one of the latest International organisations to launch an official alumni programme.
“Investec is investing in the necessary tech and resources to unlock a broad spectrum of value. Over the last five decades, we’ve amassed about twenty thousand alumni. That’s a huge pool of talented, like-minded individuals that we are now able to access, and engage in a consistent and deliberate way,” explains Investec executive and sponsor of the new programme, Ciaran Whelan.
It's all about connections
According to Emma Sinclair, founder and CEO of EnterpriseAlumni, an alumni network will only be successful if “an extraordinarily human centric approach is taken.”
“It's challenging to lift an organisation’s culture and the associated feelings of warmth and collegiality and transpose it onto a digital platform. You must think of the alumni as the customer and remember you’re building a community, regardless of whether it’s for return on investment or to build new business. You need to give first. Start by being warm. Evoke memories and remind people what they so enjoyed about being at your company.”
This high-touch approach is something Investec prioritises as a cornerstone of its culture: “Because we are such a human-centric firm, and because of our culture more broadly, Investec people stay for longer than the average tenure."
She continues, “You’ve invested a lot… built relationships even friendships and now you’re leaving. I’m hoping this programme can make it feel less like a hard break. You can feel closer and connected to the organisation. We want people to feel that they're part of the Investec family even if they're not still employed with us."
A powerful recruitment tool
When you think alumni network benefits the first thing that comes to mind is recruitment, and that’s for good reason.
EnterpriseAlumni, says up to 20% of their customers' annual hires are alumni.
“Investec’s recruitment process already benefits from people being eager to bring the right talent to the business, but we expect the number of quality referrals to increase. The alumni programme will expand both Investec’s and the alumni’s relational and network capability," says Tager.
The boomerang boost
Good talent management carefully balances the value brought by long-tenured employees with the “freshness” that new recruits bring. One values the old guard for their institutional knowledge and established skills, but a business also requires new talent to innovate, diversify and evolve. Tager argues that so-called boomerang employees, or returning employees, offer the best of both.
Returning employees bring the best of both worlds. They integrate far quicker. They're far more familiar with the culture and bring a fresh pair of eyes, different ways of thinking, and learnings brought from other organisations. This helps keep us adaptive in our ways of doing.
And according to EnterpriseAlumni not only are boomerangs a unique value add, when they return, they tend to stay. They report a 44% higher retention rate for rehires after three years of service than for new hires over the same period.
The power of networks to the bottom-line
Whelan believes the benefits of an alumni network must go beyond a valuable recruitment tool, and social interaction. “There’s a certain feel, a culture, a common understanding that makes an Investec experience a shared experience. We want to leverage that alignment to encourage alumni to think of Investec as first choice when they need the services that we can offer. We also look forward to being able to put alumni in touch with each other specifically when it benefits their business."
"So, it’s as much about creating business opportunities, as it is about talent management.”
Whelan also believes Investec alumni can provide a decerning group of people to consult with and garner feedback.
We want to be able to test out certain services and products on our alumni. They too can use the network to do the same for their businesses. The network should create a lot of goodwill. It’s a win-win relationship that mutually benefits the firm and our alumni.
High tech, high touch
To build an alumni network that brings business, boosts recruitment and champions your organization, it cannot be a “one size fits all approach”, or predominantly digitally facilitated. Both Tager and Whelan appreciate this.
“Our new alumni platform’s high-tech capability enables us to create a powerful database and easy online sharing of information, but it can’t just be all online. The network needs to be a blend of digital and in-person interactions,” says Whelan.
For Sinclair the digital platform provides unparalleled reach and inclusivity which is very different to the old-fashioned – ‘drinks after work’ method of networking.
“An alumni platform can be accessed from all corners of the world, wherever your alumni live, and it offers something for everyone. It doesn’t matter if you’re studying, taking a sabbatical or are on maternity leave, you can find and keep connected to your tribe. It’s the lowest barrier to entry, ensuring everyone feels included and that’s a beautiful thing.”
On the other side of the spectrum, for Tager it’s the in-person, bespoke alumni events that get her excited: “Members can expect intimate engagements- meaning access to leaders, access to events, access to understanding our products and some of our strategic initiatives prior to the market knowing about them. We want to bring people back into the inner circle in a way that is meaningful, so the partnerships can continue and stay connected to our brand ambassadors along their journey.”
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