Corporate Alumni: the 4 key benefits of creating your own community

Corporate alumni is an established practice within the education sector, and community management is emerging as an essential pillar for consolidating links within companies.

The creation of a corporate alumni community is now a key issue, offering a new perspective on employee engagement and employer brand. We have listed 4 fundamental benefits of integrating a corporate alumni programme into your company. By highlighting the employer brand, boomerang recruitment, business opportunities linked to the network, the creation of a pool of work-study students, and campus management, companies have a unique opportunity to develop. Let’s get on with Corporate Alumni, where building lasting relationships is perfectly aligned with your company’s growth and longevity.

The 4 key benefits of creating your corporate alumni community :

  1. Developing your employer brand
  2. The boomerang employee, HR’s secret weapon
  3. Business opportunities from your network of former employees
  4. Campus Management, a breeding ground for work-study students… The secrets of next-generation onboarding

 

Créer sa communauté corporate alumni

 

1) Develop your employer brand through corporate alumni

Let’s go back to the basics. What is employer brand, and how is it impacted by your network of former employees?

Employer brand has become an indispensable and differentiating element in today’s recruitment world. Employer brand can be defined as the image and perception of a company as an employer, among both current employees and future candidates. It encompasses the values, culture, benefits and opportunities offered by the company. A strong employer brand is based on several key elements:

  • culture
  • employees’ opinion
  • candidates’ perception
  • company brand

 

According to a LinkedIn study, 75% of HR professionals believe that employer branding has a significant impact on recruitment. Better still, according to Deloitte, companies with a strong employer brand are 3.5 times more likely to attract the best talent.

 

How do corporate alumni impact on this trend?

It’s easy to see how developing a corporate alumni strategy can have an immediate and positive impact on your employer brand. By bringing your (former) employees together on a collaborative platform that conveys your values. You’ll be sure to get the right message across and engage your members thanks to a collaborative community tool that will enable you to :

  • develop your employer value proposition
  • control and shape your communication with your community
  • receive feedback and initiatives
  • optimise your social presence through events (physical or online)
  • access a wealth of data to evaluate your corporate alumni strategy

 

Companies like PwC are making this a strength for its human resources department, with internal mobility and boomerang recruitment. PwC’s corporate alumni programme is a strong signal for the employer brand, offering candidates and employees a long-term vision thanks to the network.

 

2) Boomerang recruitment, HR’s secret weapon

Boomerang recruitment, or boomerang employee, refers to a person who leaves a company, only to return some time later. It’s a practice that’s becoming increasingly widespread, mainly because of the many advantages it offers:

  • faster recruitment process
  • the employee is immediately operational
  • more motivated, committed employees who share your values
  • optimised recruitment costs

 

According to a UKG study, 65% of French employees could return to their former company. But only 13% actually do! It’s worth noting that this trend is growing rapidly: according to LinkedIn’s employment barometer, it has risen by 36% over the last three years. A back-to-basics approach that is an opportunity not to be missed for your company.

 

How can your corporate alumni programme help you?

Even if it seems obvious, keeping in touch is the key to successful boomerang recruitment. The majority of boomerang employees are managers (32%), particularly senior managers from large groups (SMEs or ETIs) and from all sectors of activity. These successful profiles, having left to discover new horizons and new experiences, then return to put all these new skills to work for their former company… Profiles made of gold!

Your corporate alumni platform allows you to maintain a strong link with these people. They become members of your community, and sometimes even ambassadors. So, through your programme, you can continue to pass on your values and job opportunities to people who are committed and who trust you!

Many profiles are also in short supply. According to a ManpowerGroup study, 40% of employers worldwide are struggling to fill their vacancies. The boomerang employee therefore becomes a strategic issue for your human resources… and your corporate alumni strategy!

Corporate alumni handshake

 

3) The business opportunities offered by your network of former employees

More than just a professional network, corporate alumni open doors to unsuspected business opportunities. By cultivating strong relationships within this community of former employees, companies can access new growth opportunities.

Your corporate alumni programme is not just an archive of professional memories. It’s an incubator of business opportunities, offering new ground for developing your business opportunities. Cultivating and exploiting this network is key to :

  • developing collaborations and partnerships
  • develop innovative projects
  • access new markets

The Adecco case study

Networks such as The Adecco Group Alumni have made this the centrepiece of their operations, building on the commitment and strong ties they maintain with their community. Every year, the association organises a ‘tour de france’ of alumni and brings its members together for festive and convivial events. It’s a chance for members to connect with each other, seize the opportunities of the moment and develop new, rich and fruitful relationships.

 

4) Campus Management, a breeding ground for work-study students… The secrets of next-generation onboarding

In an increasingly competitive world, attracting the best talent is essential to the success of any business. And what better place to find these diamonds in the rough than on university campuses?

It is with this in mind that many companies have re-launched the position of “campus manager”. This specialist in school relations is responsible for creating links and forging partnerships with the target institutions, which train the profiles that the company needs.

As well as developing your employer brand, the aim of your corporate alumni programme is to turn future graduates into potential recruits of choice! Some networks have chosen to dedicate their platform to welcoming and monitoring all their work-study students. These students, trained for two years within the company, are an important resource for future recruitment.

 

Why create a corporate alumni network?

Launching a corporate alumni programme goes far beyond simply maintaining links with former employees. It’s a new and promising opportunity to convert professional relationships into business opportunities and HR resources. It’s a trend that’s growing in many sectors.

So investing in the creation and dynamic management of a corporate alumni community is becoming key to business development. Many have already taken the plunge and can now reap the rewards of this work. By cultivating these links beyond the doors of the company, organisations are forging a community that is committed to and adheres to their values, offering new opportunities for development.

It is time for companies to consider their former employees as strategic partners and to capitalise on this human capital. Setting up a corporate alumni programme is a key investment in creating a genuine community within your company.

 

Want to go further?

 

Written by:

Matthieu

Matthieu

Je recherche le meilleur de l'actualité alumni pour vous : tendances, bonnes pratiques, guides... Toutes les infos dont vous avez besoin pour apporter de la valeur à votre réseau !

Alumni [a .lym.ni]
Plural noun

1. Graduate of a university / school / training
2. Alumni of a company / organisation
3. Plural of alumnus

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