1. Older and Wiser – Using
Alumni to Benefit Students,
Employability and the
Wider Institution
Kerrie Holland
Alumni Volunteer Manager

2. Alumni Volunteering the Birmingham Way
 180,000 Alumni across 180 countries
 Established Development and Alumni
Relations Office
 Alumni Volunteer Manager and College
Alumni Relations Managers in post
 621 Alumni volunteered 3,260 hours in
2011/12

3. Benefits of Alumni Volunteering
 Increases alumni affinity and propensity to
give
 Enables the University to achieve the ‘nice-to-
haves’
 Access to expertise, networks and
opportunities
 Enriches student experience
 Impact on employability

4. Volunteering at UoB
 Two Strand Volunteering Programme:
– ‘Mass’ Volunteering – range of
opportunities for which alumni can self-
identify
– ‘Bespoke’ Volunteering – high profile
opportunities for which we select and
approach specific alumni

5. ‘Mass’ volunteering
 Mixture of activities to have broad appeal e.g.
internship leads, mentoring, translations,
conservation, international recruitment,
careers event speakers.
 Non-campus based ‘remote’ opportunities
 Mass promotion to alumni
– Alumni publications
– Linked In/facebook groups
– Specific e-mail comms

7. ‘Bespoke’ volunteering
 Finding a specific person for a specific role
 Finding a specific role for a specific person
we are keen to engage
 Guest lectures (MBA Leadership
Programme), Leadership Mentoring,
Advocacy, Event Hosting, Interviewees,
Panel Members, Advisory Boards..

8. Case Study - Careers
 UoB Careers Network had substantial investment in
2011
 Targets set for Alumni Relations include:
– Mentoring (3 schemes)
 Leadership
 Alumni Mentoring Scheme
 Targeted programmes for employability
concern areas
– Internships
– Work Experience
– Advertising Vacancies

9. Volunteering Opportunities
 Sometimes harder to find volunteering
opportunities than to find alumni volunteers!
 Potential areas:
– Careers
– Schools/Faculties/Individual academics
– International recruitment
– Research and Commercial Services
– Special Collections
– Student Societies
– Research Institutes e.g. Ironbridge/Shakespeare Institute
– Recruitment panels, philanthropic funding distribution, internal
awards judging
– Marketing and Communications
– Sport

10. Group Discussion
 How could alumni volunteers support your
institution/function?

11. Managing a Volunteer Programme
 Strategy and programme design
 Finding alumni
 Identifying opportunities for volunteers
 Defining role requirements
 Promotion
 Stewardship
 Measuring impact

12. Pitfalls!
 Needs to be a genuine opportunity, and can
be harder than you think to engage
academics
 ‘End user’ needs to take ownership
 Tact and diplomacy is essential

13. Group Discussion
 What do you need to consider to a) support
and b) measure the impact of alumni
volunteering effectively in your
institution/function?

14. Summary
 Alumni volunteering is mutually beneficial
 Be creative
 Promotion is key – internally and externally
 Decide how to measure impact before you
start
 Make sure you can manage your programme
 Look after your volunteers!

15. Thank You
 Any Questions?