At EnterpriseAlumni, we see a growing recognition in professional services firms: alumni programs are not solely about maintaining goodwill or building a sense of community. They’re about driving tangible and trackable revenue. For organizations ready to embrace the potential of their alumni relationships, here are some of the key considerations.
Let’s start with the big question: are you already tracking direct revenue from your alumni network? If not, you’re not alone. Many firms aren’t, and there are plenty of reasons for that. But revenue is a primary benchmark; it’s not about taking credit every time a former employee hires your firm, but it is about recognizing how the relationships you’ve built and nurtured are contributing to the bottom line over time.
For context, consider the scale: if your firm has thousands of alumni, that’s a huge pool of potential clients, advocates and referrers. Every one of them represents an opportunity, whether they’ve gone to competitors, shifted industries entirely, or taken leadership roles in companies you’d love to work with. The sheer volume of possibility can be overwhelming, but it also highlights the need for strategy and structure.
When it comes to alumni revenue, data is king. You need systems in place to track your alumni – where they’ve gone, what roles they’re in, and how they’re interacting with your firm. But data alone isn’t enough; you also need internal buy-in and cross-department collaboration. We’ve seen that building close relationships with finance, client development and new business teams is essential. These teams help you connect the dots between alumni data and the revenue outcomes.
For example, in a typical professional services firm, pitches and client wins often have alumni fingerprints all over them. Maybe an alum has referred the firm to their new company. Maybe they’re the decision-maker who signed off on the project. By tagging these connections in your system, you start to see patterns: how many of your clients employ alumni? How often are alumni directly responsible for bringing in new business? These insights don’t just inform your alumni strategy – they become key metrics for the health of your firm overall.
Your former colleagues who become clients can be your biggest advocates – and your toughest critics. They know your firm inside and out. They know what you’re capable of, and they hold you to high standards. This isn’t a bad thing. In fact, it’s a testament to the strength of the relationships you’ve built. But it does mean you need to approach these relationships with care.
One of the most effective ways to maintain strong alumni-client relationships is through proactive communication. We typically recommend a multi-layered approach:
These steps help ensure that alumni feel valued and heard, whether they’re hiring your firm for the fourth time or working with you for the first time in their new role.
One of the biggest shifts we encourage firms to make is to think of alumni relationships as lifetime investments. It’s not just about who they are today – it’s about who they’ll be in five, ten, or twenty years. This mindset is especially critical when engaging younger generations of alumni. Early-career alumni might not be in a position to hire your firm yet, but they could be in the future. Keeping them engaged now lays the groundwork for future opportunities.
This long-term perspective also means thinking beyond individual transactions. For example, one alum might hire your firm multiple times across different companies. Another might refer you to a colleague or champion your firm within their organization. These are all wins for the network – and for your firm.
If you’re ready to get serious about alumni revenue, here are a few practical steps to consider:
Even if your process is manual at first, begin tagging alumni connections in your CRM or other systems. Who’s hiring you? Who’s referring you? Build out this data over time.
Make sure your finance, client development and new business development teams are aligned on the importance of alumni. Their buy-in is crucial for tracking and leveraging alumni revenue.
Not all alumni relationships are created equal. Segment your alumni based on factors like career stage, industry and level of engagement. This allows you to personalize your outreach and add more value.
From newsletters to one-on-one conversations, maintain a steady drumbeat of communication. Keep alumni in the loop on firm news, opportunities and ways to stay connected.
Regular, strategically planned events keep alumni engaged and demonstrate program value. Aligning events with business goals, setting a cadence, and tracking engagement ensures consistency, strengthens connections, and helps showcase impact to leadership.
As your alumni program grows, manual processes will only get you so far. Consider investing in tools that make tracking and engagement more efficient. These might include alumni management platforms, CRM integrations or data visualization tools.
At the end of the day, tracking and leveraging alumni revenue isn’t just about dollars and cents. It’s about strengthening your firm’s ecosystem. Alumni are your advocates, your referrers, and often your clients. They help you stay connected to the industries you serve and bring new opportunities to the table. By investing in alumni relations, you’re investing in the long-term health and growth of your firm.
Professional services firms are uniquely positioned to benefit from alumni networks. Your people are your product, and the relationships they build – during and after their time with you – are some of your most valuable assets. By approaching alumni engagement with intention and strategy, you can turn those relationships into a powerful driver of revenue and success.
Read more about the fit between Alumni Management and Professional Services companies.