Top 10 ideas for an innovative alumni event.

“Anything’s possible if you’ve got enough nerve.” –J.K. Rowling

This adage by J.K. Rowling perfectly captures the power of effort and innovation. If a person or a company has the nerve to do something great then they can surely achieve it.

Similar is the case for an alumni association. If the association dreams of conducting some amazing events and for increasing the engagement by multiple times then the association can surely achieve it. The association must conduct some relevant and meaningful events for the alumni network in order to increase the engagement in the network and build a good connect with the alumni.

Once the association decides to conduct an event, the next big thing is deciding what kind of event to keep and how it could be different from the events conducted in the past.

This is a list of 10 innovative event ideas that an alumni association can conduct for the alumni network in order to keep the network up and buzzing!

1. Reunion

A reunion helps bring back a lot of memories for the alumni. It is an evening of fun and if the venue is the institute itself, it is like the cherry on the cake! A reunion is an alumni event where one particular batch or the entire alumni or a couple of batches are invited to reconnect and relive their old memories. Most the reunions are either for the entire alumni community or for older batches of the institute. Whenever the oldest batches are called for the reunion it really makes them happy and some of the biggest donations are collected when such reunions happen. The entire batch comes forward to rejoice and they donate generously for the development of their institute or any other cause that the institute supports. Reunions are a great way of making memories and showing that the association cares for its oldest batches as well.

2. Networking Event

Networking events add a lot of value to life of the attendees. Such events give the attendees a chance to build amazing connects, find some amazing career opportunities and grow their network. Networking events could target young alumni and bring them closer to the alumni network as they would benefit the most from such events and eventually the participation in networking events increases too. Some examples of networking events could be a referral drive, a career counselling session or a normal discussion event based on the job scenario. All of these pull a large audience specially in times of a pandemic or a recession when people are eagerly looking for job opportunities.

3. Family day

The alumni association can keep an event where in the family of the alumnus can also come and take part. The spouse and kids of alumni can be invited and a fun filled event can be organized. This helps the alumni build a better bond among one another as their families also get a chance to meet and interact. There could be friendly contests and a picnic kind of event. The institute can sell some merchandize in such events as a lot of family members too would be interested in blending in and the sales could be pretty good in such events. Such events show the community that the alumni association and the institute cares for the family of the alumni too.

4. Games and Entertainment Night

Everyone loves a fun filled evening of games and entertainment. If the association is looking to keep a relaxing evening for the alumni to just meet and enjoy then a games and entertainment night works well. To cite an example, in times of the pandemic of Covid-19, there has been a lot of negativity around and it's a good idea for alumni associations to conduct such fun-filled events virtually in order to lighten the mood. This event can be conducted online very easily and it would help the alumni community to de-stress and relax for sometime with their fellow alumni.

5. A sports tournament

The alumni association can conduct a sports tournament for the alumni community. It could be an open event and alumni from any batch could be called. to take part in it. The best part of the sports tournament is that it can be conducted in the grounds of the institute as well and hence, it automatically brings back a lot of good memories for the alumni. They get to visit their institute and relive their fond memories with their fellow alumni as well. This again could be a fun event and the institute can make the alumni aware of any institute updates in such events and can sell merchandize or run a fundraiser too. The sports event could be for a good cause as well and all the proceeds can be donated. Such things have a very positive impact on the image of the institute. A marathon could also be conducted by the association wherein the present students as well as alumni can come together and take part.

6. An alumni trip

The alumni association can take some alumni on a trip. They could open the event for a select few slots depending upon the number of alumni they want to take. Such things create a good buzz around the alumni network that the community is so well bonded that they are taking trips together. These trips are a great way of helping the alumni reconnect and relive their memories. The association can partner with some travel company too in order to conduct such a trip in a hassle free way.

7. Virtual webinars

In times when people are unable to meet up physically it is very important to keep the culture of events alive. Otherwise also, the association can conduct some meaningful virtual events and webinars are a good way of spreading knowledge. The association can conduct webinars around topics like jobs, networking opportunities, mental health and any such topic which needs attention and might help the alumni network. The association can invite distinguished alumni or any prominent experts from the industry to keep such webinars and promote them well from their end in order to get a good participation in the event.

8. Mental health and Yoga sessions

The association can conduct events around mental health awareness and help support the alumni in times of need. There could be yoga sessions too, they could either be online or in person. These sessions are a good way to relax and unwind and help the alumni association in taking care of it's alumni. These sessions bring a lot of peace and are a good way to make the alumni network think about their mental health too.

9. Act of kindness day

This is a very unique event idea and it boosts the image of the alumni association to a great extent. The association can keep an "act of kindness day" wherein the association can organize a trip to an old age home or an orphanage or to any such place and the alumni can go and help out the needy people. Other ideas for such events could be organizing a beach clean-up or a general cleanliness day. Such events are good for the society and help the association and the institute too.

10. Chapter and Club Meets

Every alumni network has several clubs and chapters and the association must conduct chapter and club meet-ups for them from time to time. This is a good way to keep the regional groups active. Whenever an alumnus needs help in their area or are in a time of need the regional groups are of great use. If someone needs a certain blood group or any other medical help, having a good connect with the alumni nearby helps a lot. Thus, having regional meet-ups helps a lot and the association must work towards it.

The above are 10 innovative ideas for keeping the alumni network active and the alumni engagement. Every alumni association should experiment with these ideas and conduct some amazing events!