Alumni Relations
These could be the most critical of the relations an
institution may have. I am not kidding (not being a kid any more), but dead
serious. The brand of their alma mater is carried by each alumnus/alumna for
their career and the rest of their life after! Therefore, the institution or
its office-bearers need to have a plan of action on roping in the natural
goodwill that alumni feel for their alma mater. All great institutions in the
world have active alumni support in terms of words and deeds. In India too,
some of the better institutions, public and private, have a wonderful alumni
network.
What Can be Done
In the pre-internet and mobile phone days, getting in touch
and keeping in touch was difficult. Now, it is not. There must be a full-time
body or committee headed by a faculty member of the institution to take care of
alumni affairs- or relations, if you prefer that word to ‘affairs’.
There are several things one can do to make the alumni a
vibrant and connected force. But you must remember to think of it as a human
relations exercise, first and foremost, and not as a financial extraction
exercise.
Chapter Meets
Regular opportunities that come every year, include a social
gathering or chapter meet, attended by the institution head or faculty members,
or both. This connects the alumni back like nothing else, except a visit by
him/her to the campus. Since that is difficult, you must reach out. Maybe the
costs of the chapter meets could be shared between the institute and the alums,
but that is an accounting matter. The meets must happen regularly. If budgets
are small, this can be initially a low-cost venue, and expanded into a more
high-profile one after funding is sorted out. Sponsorship of these by alumni
companies is an option.
We were able to attract 500 alums to attend chapter meets at
IMT Nagpur (which I headed then), and about 650 of them at IMT Ghaziabad (which
I was associated with later), in a year. The interactions were lively, and
organised entirely by current students who had a genuine interest in linking up
with their seniors from the institute. The alumni felt good, and came up with
their ideas on improving their institution further in several directions.
Awards for Alumni
Distinguished alumni awards are another way to recognise the
contributions made by alums to their organisation, to the profession, or to
causes. There could be one at the convocation each year, and some at chapter
meets too.
Admissions Interviews
Most Indian B schools have personal interviews for admission
into the institution. You could invite select alums to contribute as a panel
member to select future students. This is a sure way to improve ties with
alumni, while increasing their feeling of ownership in their alma mater. We
have successfully tried this in the IMT system, and at IIM Indore.
Guest Lectures
Most alumni would have experiences to share after a few
years of work experience. What better way to get this into your classrooms than
to invite them for a guest lecture? They would be very pleased to take a day
off sometimes, and come to their institution for one. They also get to meet
potential recruits if their company is in hiring mode. They may end up
mentoring some youngsters regarding what career paths they should or should not
take. A formal mentoring program can also be thought of, and implemented apart
from this.
Seminars on a Theme
Themed industry seminars are something we successfully did
at PESIT Bangalore. In one academic year, four such seminars were held on four
different themes in HR, Finance, Operations and Marketing. These are eminently
doable in cities, and also in other locations, for a modest budget. Many
industry bigwigs including alumni can be the speakers. It forces students to
think about trends in functional areas of management, and organise an event in
their interest area too.
Merchandising
To alumni of any program, mementoes of the institute are
very dear. US universities do a great job of merchandising mugs, t-shirts and a
range of alma mater-branded stuff. We must learn to do this better.
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