{"id":11807,"date":"2020-12-10T11:18:58","date_gmt":"2020-12-10T11:18:58","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.aluminati.net\/?p=11807"},"modified":"2022-09-26T11:04:40","modified_gmt":"2022-09-26T10:04:40","slug":"demonstrating-the-value-of-alumni-relations","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.aluminati.net\/demonstrating-the-value-of-alumni-relations\/","title":{"rendered":"Demonstrating the Value of Alumni Relations"},"content":{"rendered":"

How to ensure Alumni Relations is seen as a crucial, calculated and cost-effective element essential to the delivery of your institutions\u2019 ambitions.<\/b><\/h3>\n

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Alumni are your institution’s biggest stakeholder group and the living embodiment of your institution\u2019s goals.\u00a0 However, whilst maintaining a <\/span>world-class alumni relations programme<\/span><\/a> is neither easy nor cheap, failing to invest at all in it will make life harder and be more expensive in the long run.<\/span><\/p>\n

Alumni Relations programmes have very real goals and should be aligned closely with those of your institution. Typical examples include working with alumni to find advocates, expanding employment opportunities, fundraising, increasing student recruitment and more. This particular event discussed how institutions as a sector can demonstrate the impact of their work by sharing best-practices.\u00a0\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

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The panel were all asked the same question, <\/b>Why is Alumni Relations Important?<\/i><\/b><\/p>\n

Ian Moore, Head of Alumni Relations and Annual Giving at the Queen\u2019s University in Belfast said that one of the things he is conscious of is that Alumni are the living embodiment of a university\u2019s product and that whilst knowledge is not something you can see, you can see it being used and the impact they have on the world around them.\u00a0 Alumni are constantly exposing the values that have been instilled in them by their time at university and their success reflects on the institution.\u00a0 Universities need to know who their alumni are, where they are, and what they are doing.<\/span><\/p>\n

Holly Peterson, Head of Constituency Engagement at the University of London, UK noted that the two main things that an institution produces are alumni and research. Whilst research and fundraising programmes can have more obvious routes to success, alumni relations goals are not as clear cut.\u00a0 Holly suggested that universities have the potential to produce thoughtful humans who use their knowledge to make the world a better place.\u00a0 She also noted that lots of studies have shown that people who receive a university education are more civilly engaged.\u00a0 It is important to see how university affects alumni by staying in touch with them and understanding how they are taking their work into the world.<\/span><\/p>\n

Any Alumni Relations department must ask themselves what their institution\u2019s goals are, what their alumni engagement strategy is, and how can their alumni help the institution achieve its mission?\u00a0 Many programmes will focus on alumni employability and securing university places for school-leavers.\u00a0 Our recent study, <\/span>Mentoring Improves the Employability of University Graduates<\/span><\/a> shows how important alumni-student mentoring programmes can be in helping with this goal.<\/span><\/p>\n

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