June 2–3, 2015 EXECUTIVE SUMMARY MEMBERSHIP & MARKETING: YOUNG ALUMNI FOCUS Copyright © President & Fellows of Harvard College. MEMBERSHIP & MARKETING: YOUNG ALUMNI FOCUS PRESENTERS: SCOTT LYON, Marketing Chair, HBS OVERVIEW Association of Boston Younger HBS alumni are at a particularly busy stage of LINDSAY MCCONCHIE, Associate their lives, making their professional goals a reality while Director, Young Alumni and Student often starting families. While their ties to HBS are strong, Engagement, HBS Alumni Relations they often do not have the bandwidth to participate in club activities to the degree they—and we—would like. They are selective about which activities they spend time on; only those perceived as most value-added make the cut. Offering programming that adds value to their busy lives is a challenge. The HBS Clubs Team has five programs targeting young alumni that have been increasingly used by clubs over re- cent years with great success. Clubs that have focused their efforts on engaging young alumni have best practices to offer other clubs, as does the HBS Clubs Team. CONTEXT Panelists shared tools and best practices for engaging young alumni. CLUB LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE 2015 | 2 COPYRIGHT © PRESIDENT & FELLOWS OF HARVARD COLLEGE MEMBERSHIP & MARKETING: YOUNG ALUMNI FOCUS KEY TAKEAWAYS Engaging busy young alumni is a challenge; value- The HBS Clubs Team has identified four primary chal- added programming is a must. lenges to engaging young alumni: The approximately 13,000 young HBS alumni, defined • Generational. Most clubs are run by older alumni and as 0–15 years out of HBS, have settled all over the world, programming is often geared to them. but about half (6,570) are concentrated in four regions: • Stage of life. Young HBS alumni are in a fast-paced stage New York (2,750), Northern California (1,717), Boston of life, working hard to make things happen in the busi- (1,408), and London (695). Most clubs’ regions (approxi- ness world and starting families. mately two thirds) have fewer than 100 young alumni. Other regions with high counts are Washington D.C. • Bandwidth. At this stage of life, they have much on their (565), Southern California (543) and Chicago (452). plate. Despite the close ties they feel to HBS, many young alumni simply lack the bandwidth to engage in club activities. • Value-added programming. Given their limited bandwidth, young alumni are selective about the activities in which they participate. Activites perceived to add value to their careers or lives will be most popular. Figure 1. Where young alumni live YOUNG ALUMNI ENGAGEMENT WHERE ARE THEY? CLUB CLUB CLUB HBS Alumni Association of Israel 31 HBS Club of Chicago 452 HBS Club of Montreal 29 HBS Alumni Association of Italy 39 HBS Club of China 203 HBS Club of Northeastern Ohio 51 HBS Alumni Club of Ireland 10 HBS Club of Cincinnati 26 HBS Club of Norway 16 HBS Association of Boston 1408 HBS Club of Colorado 105 HBS Club of Ottawa 2 HBS Association of Germany 117 HBS Club of Connecticut 239 HBS Club of Pakistan 10 HBS Association of Hong Kong 202 HBS Club of Dallas 206 HBS Club of Peru 26 HBS Association of New Zealand 6 HBS Club of Denmark 7 HBS Club of Philadelphia 130 HBS Association of Nigeria 31 HBS Club of Egypt 20 HBS Club of Puget Sound 247 HBS Association of Northern California 1717 HBS Club of Fort Worth 25 HBS Club of Rochester 11 HBS Association of Orange County 90 HBS Club of France 131 HBS Club of San Antonio 15 HBS Association of Oregon 55 HBS Club of New York 2750 HBS Club of San Diego 77 HBS Association of Pittsburgh 31 HBS Club of Greece 25 HBS Club of Singapore 153 HBS Association of Southeastern New HBS Club of Houston 213 HBS Club of South Africa 148 England 30 HBS Club of Iceland 3 HBS Club of South Florida 164 HBS Association of Southern California 543 HBS Club of India 181 HBS Club of Spain 78 HBS Association of Taipei 19 HBS Club of Jacksonville 27 HBS Club of St. Louis 40 HBS Association of Thailand 29 HBS Club of Japan 132 HBS Club of Sweden 25 HBS Club of Syracuse 4 HBS Club of Argentina - Inactive 43 HBS Club of Kansas City 17 HBS Club of the Netherlands 34 HBS Club of Arizona 39 HBS Club of Korea 71 HBS Club of the Philippines 20 HBS Club of Atlanta 226 HBS Club of Lebanon 24 HBS Club of Toronto 133 HBS Club of Austin 91 HBS Club of London 695 HBS Club of Turkey 50 HBS Club of Birmingham 15 HBS Club of Maine 20 HBS Club of United Arab Emirates 51 HBS Club of Brazil 183 HBS Club of Malaysia 18 HBS Club of Utah 76 HBS Club of Buffalo 6 HBS Club of Mexico 118 HBS Club of Venezuela 3 HBS Club of Calgary 18 HBS Club of Michigan 84 HBS Club of Washington DC 565 HBS Club of Central Ohio 21 HBS Club of Minnesota 135 HBS Club of Wisconsin 39 HBS Club of Charlotte 93 GRAND TOTAL: 13,451 5 CLUB LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE 2015 | 3 MEMBERSHIP & MARKETING: YOUNG ALUMNI FOCUS KEY TAKEAWAYS The Clubs Team’s toolkit includes five programs designed to appeal to young alumni. The Clubs Team offers programming developed specifi- cally to appeal to young, busy alumni. The five programs (shown below) targeting this demographic have grown dramatically over the past five years. Figure 2. The growth of Clubs Team’s programs for young alumni attests to their success Program Description Growth FY2010 FY2015 to Percent Date Change Young Alumni For alumni 1–2 years out. Graduating class is invited to opt into 108 518 +380% Ambassadors volunteering for roles including reunion planning, fundraising, volunteers volunteers class secretary, regional volunteer, admissions volunteer. One-Year For most recent graduates, held mid-May each year. 94 attendees 638 +578% Reunion Programming takes place from Friday night to Sunday morning attendees and includes faculty sessions and social activities. Young Alumni Networking events co-branded with regional clubs in cities with 192 630 +228% Regional Events critical mass of young alumni (0–10 years out). attendees attendees Dinner This program provides an opportunity for young alumni in an area 3 dinners 5 dinners +70% Connections* to engage with each other in small group dinners. A young 3 cities 4 cities alumnus host brings together six to eight young alumni in a local 20 attendees 34 attendees restaurant, with planning support from the Student & Young Alumni Engagement team. FIELD 3 Alumni Young alumni (0–15 years out) are invited by the GEO office to — 380+ alumni — Advisory Boards act as an on-call advisor to students during FIELD 3. Alumni engaged, provide input, guidance, and feedback as students develop their past 3 years FIELD 3 businesses. * Piloted in fiscal 2014. CLUB LEADERSHIP CONFERENCE 2015 | 4 MEMBERSHIP & MARKETING: YOUNG ALUMNI FOCUS KEY TAKEAWAYS The Clubs Team has great suggestions for engaging Best practices for engaging young alumni go beyond young alumni. programming ideas. The Clubs Team’s programs leave lots of room for in- Although not present at CLC, the HBS Association of dividual clubs to design their own events and activities Southern California offered, via PowerPoint slides, best around the programs. To kick off its Young Ambassadors practices the club has learned as it began to focus on en- program, for example, the HBS Association of Boston held gaging young alumni: a summer mixer, a networking/social event for alumni • Recognize that you’re dealing with a different demographic 0–10 years out. Class-specific delegates were encouraged with different preferences. The club has noticed three things to reach out to their social networks to “humanize the about this segment: message.” There was an explicit emphasis on spreading the word of the event via social media. 1. They tend to want only casual board involvement. They may have event ideas but little time for exten- The HBS Association of Southern California has been fo- sive commitments. cusing on engaging young alumni this year, with great results. Turnout for young alumni events thus far this year 2. They appreciate opportunities to meet other Harvard has been nearly twice as much as all of last year (124 regis- alumni in the area. trations to date in 2015 versus 68 in 2014). The three new 3. HBS-supported events are big hits, such as the annual programs for young alumni this year are a Harvard Happy HBS-sponsored LA Young Alumni event. Hour, “Executive Sutra: Amplify Your Performance,” and an HBS Young Alumni Event. Going forward, the • Offer a diverse range of events. Keep a good mix on the Southern California club hopes to engage young alumni calendar in terms of both type (e.g., happy hours, stand- in new ways, including: up comedy nights, hikes, speaker series) and size, with some large- and some small-scale events. • Involve interested young alumni on a volunteer basis. Plans include utilizing the “wisdom of the crowd” to find • Actively communicate with the young alumni community. Stay the best event opportunities as well as involving young in touch via the club website, newsletter, and emails. alumni in organizing and marketing events. With rising Events can be a great opportunity to promote future involvement from young alumni, the club hopes to spot events. potential future board members. • Solicit feedback from young alumni. Understand their needs • Organize more events bringing together young alumni from and try to address them with programming; for example, different Harvard schools. The club’s recent happy hour on career development or other relevant topics.