Leveraging Alumni Network in India Inc

When I think of the word ‘alumni’; I am naturally taken back to my years at NMIMS, especially being among the esteemed institution’s very first batch of students. Today, the institute stands among the top ranked institutions of the country and has nurtured many would-be entrepreneurs, business professionals, founders and co-founders like me. Tracing my journey so far has helped me reconnect with my alma mater; especially while scouting for talent at NEWJ. The strong alumni network at NMIMS has proven to be a great asset for us with assured talent keen on leaving their mark on the world.

The efficacy of alumni networks of colleges and universities has been a long-standing debate. Owing to the cultural diversities in India, leveraging the top talent from different universities and institutes can be a challenge as well as an opportunity at the same time. Based on our experience at NEWJ, here are two ways through which alumni networks can be beneficial for both students as well as recruiters especially in the media and allied sectors:.

While many institutes in India have structured campus placement programmes, we still have a long way to go to match the skills and employability gaps. Recruiters, especially in the media sector, can treat this as an opportunity to identify potential trainees and interns who can be upskilled and moulded based on their requirements. For startups, this can prove to be an excellent opportunity to brand themselves as ‘job creators’.

Networking Opportunities for Business Development: Alumni networks can also prove to be an excellent resource base for connecting with potential clients and brand partners. At the same time, participation in prominent networking events also acts as a platform to promote your company’s values and culture through the leaders.

I believe the future will judge “post-truth” phenomena as the logical next step in the technologically fuelled evolution of our collective social consciousness.

1. Way Forward

While recruiters and human resource managers continue to be on the lookout for talent for campus recruitment, it is also important for representatives of alumni organizations to create relevant databases which categorize and segment alumni based on various criteria- skillset, experience level, location etc. Existing employees of the organization must also be constantly engaged in activating their alumni network. Last but not the least, given the sheer size of young talent in India, practitioners as well as policymakers must leverage technology in creating end-to-end solutions for optimizing alumni engagement and networking.