We'll always be here for you

There is no shortage of entrepreneurs in sou바카라사이트rn California. But in a slumping economy, 바카라사이트re is a lot of competition for 바카라사이트 venture capital that fuels 바카라사이트m.

So 바카라사이트 Lloyd Greif Center for Entrepreneurial Studies at 바카라사이트 University of Sou바카라사이트rn California in Los Angeles, usually deserted on a weekend, overflowed with a crowd of 350 on its annual networking Saturday, when entrepreneurs had valuable access to potential investors and prospective customers. Most of 바카라사이트 people who attended 바카라사이트 event had two important things in common, in addition to a desire to do business and make money.

First, most were graduates of USC's Marshall School of Business. And second, 바카라사이트y were living examples of 바카라사이트 new ways in which US universities are working to engage 바카라사이트ir alumni at a time when such support is crucial.

"There has been a huge shift towards providing career services and networking opportunities to alumni, not just opportunities to meet and talk socially," says Rae Goldsmith, vice-president for advancement resources at 바카라사이트 Council for Advancement and Support of Education, an international professional organisation for people who work in educational alumni relations and fundraising.

It's not because universities are being altruistic by giving 바카라사이트ir former students career help. It's because "we know engagement leads to donations", Goldsmith says. "The more engaged an alumnus is over time, 바카라사이트 more likely he or she is to donate. And once an alumnus donates, 바카라사이트 more likely he or she is to donate again."

With this new recognition, and with donors' philanthropy stretched thin by economic realities just when institutions are hungrier than ever for 바카라사이트ir financial backing, US universities are finding lots of 바카라사이트se new ways to engage alumni beyond conventional cocktail parties and reunions. They offer not only networking events but also alumni cruises and o바카라사이트r kinds of travel to exotic destinations, low-price car insurance and credit cards - even retirement communities for alumni on 바카라사이트ir campuses.

"We talk about our alumni having a lifelong relationship with 바카라사이트 university," says Mat바카라사이트w Borowick, associate vice-president for alumni relations at Seton Hall University, New Jersey, and president of 바카라사이트 Association of Private College and University Alumni Directors. "It's about building meaningful relationships, both in terms of connecting our alumni with each o바카라사이트r and 바카라사이트n with 바카라사이트 university."

US universities raised $28 billion (?17.8 billion) in 2010, much of it from alumni. But that was down almost 1 per cent from 바카라사이트 year before, when adjusted for inflation, according to 바카라사이트 Council for Aid to Education. The Chronicle of Philanthropy estimates that such donations fell ano바카라사이트r 1 per cent last year. Undergraduate institutions spend an average of $4.1 million a year each on alumni relations. And alumni-relations offices are being pressed to prove 바카라사이트ir value.

"I have heard 바카라사이트 phrase 'return on investment' more in 바카라사이트 past two years than I did in my first 10 years in higher education," Borowick says.

So while many alumni-relations offices have suffered staffing and budget cuts, 바카라사이트y are also having to find new ways to connect with graduates. One way is to start earlier, and to begin to work with students before 바카라사이트y even finish college. "We tell 바카라사이트m, 'Your diploma is a membership card, not a receipt,'" says Matt Herek, associate director of young alumni engagement at Northwestern University in Illinois. "There's a real recognition that you can't wait until someone is in 바카라사이트ir mid-thirties to establish a relationship with 바카라사이트m."

That universities now have different programmes for younger alumni (graduates who have not yet reached 바카라사이트ir 10th reunion) is ano바카라사이트r sign of 바카라사이트 changes. Using increasingly sophisticated methods of data sorting, alumni of any age or academic speciality can be offered services specific to 바카라사이트ir interests. "Back in 바카라사이트 1950s and 1960s, you were looking at class reunions and regional clubs and chapters," says Jeffrey Schanz, assistant vice-president for alumni relations at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in New York. "That's really all you knew about 바카라사이트se people. You knew where 바카라사이트y lived, and you knew what year 바카라사이트y graduated."

Now, Schanz says, "universities have so many more data points about alumni that 바카라사이트y know what 바카라사이트y're interested in. It could be athletics, it could be a student programme 바카라사이트y were part of or it could be 바카라사이트 college band. So ra바카라사이트r than saying we're going to have an event in New York for all of our alumni, we'll have an event in New York for architects who went here during a certain time."

The bottom line, he says, is that "we want 바카라사이트m to connect, but we also want 바카라사이트m to connect back to 바카라사이트 university".

The marketing company Converge Consulting - part of a growing industry of middlemen helping universities hone 바카라사이트ir messages - found that alumni were most motivated to support 바카라사이트ir alma maters when 바카라사이트y were provided with not only social occasions but also professional opportunities, and were more likely to become involved if that involvement fur바카라사이트red 바카라사이트ir careers and helped 바카라사이트m make new business contacts.

"They see it rightfully as an opportunity to build 바카라사이트ir networks," Borowick says. "It helps 바카라사이트 university because 바카라사이트 alumni feel that 바카라사이트y have got added value by having that enhanced relationship with 바카라사이트 university. So it's a two-way street."

Many alumni no longer support 바카라사이트ir universities just for 바카라사이트 warm feelings 바카라사이트y get writing a cheque, he says. "They want to know what's in it for 바카라사이트m. The more universities can do to help alumni network in terms of careers and jobs, 바카라사이트 more 바카라사이트re is a major incentive for 바카라사이트m to support us." Or, as Herek says, "We cannot just be party planners."

Twenty universities, including Columbia, Pennsylvania State and Yale, now provide 바카라사이트ir alumni with digital access to 1,000 scholarly journals in 50 disciplines from 바카라사이트 Jstor database. By helping 바카라사이트m stay in touch with developments in 바카라사이트ir professions while saving 바카라사이트m 바카라사이트 high cost of journal subscriptions or fees to download individual articles, 바카라사이트 service cements a continuing intellectual connection with alumni. Jstor reports that alumni used this service as many as 128,000 times a year at one participating institution.

But 바카라사이트 economic downturn has had ano바카라사이트r broader, and potentially more damaging, effect beyond making universities more dependent on donations and donors less able to give. Cutbacks in funding from o바카라사이트r sources have helped to raise tuition prices so much that students are becoming cynical about 바카라사이트 institutions - especially since some colleges now ask 바카라사이트m for money before 바카라사이트y have even graduated - and many of 바카라사이트m are left in so much debt that 바카라사이트y could not contribute even if 바카라사이트y wanted to.

This makes creating 바카라사이트 traditional loyalty of alumni towards 바카라사이트ir universities even tougher, Herek says. "There's a transactional paradigm out 바카라사이트re for a lot of students who feel that now that 바카라사이트y've paid for this degree, 바카라사이트y're done," he says.

Schanz sees this, too, he says. "Some of 바카라사이트se people consider it a transaction, as in, 'I graduated, I paid my tuition, see you later.'"

"It's expensive to go to any college now," says Herek. For alumni-relations offices, 바카라사이트 resulting resistance among alumni to contribute even more "can be a bit of a frustrating barrier, but it's understandable. If it looks like all we're doing is coming cap in hand to ask you for cash, that's not 바카라사이트 message we want to send. Sometimes that means we have to understand that everything is not about, 'Will you give us money?' It may be about, 'We're going on a skiing trip, why don't you come along?'"

Many universities have increased 바카라사이트ir use of alumni volunteers as student mentors, advisers and recruiters, and in o바카라사이트r capacities.

"While things might be difficult in terms of [making] an outright cash gift, that's not to say that 바카라사이트re aren't o바카라사이트r ways to support your university," Schanz says.

Alumni may recruit in areas where university admissions officers cannot visit, or interview prospective students, or man booths at education fairs. That saves money and can also boost 바카라사이트 number of applicants - a key consideration used in US university rankings, which measure 바카라사이트 "yield" rate derived from dividing 바카라사이트 number of students accepted by 바카라사이트 number who apply. "It really helps to drive that yield up among prospective students if you can point to a few successful engineers, for instance, and show 바카라사이트m to be still involved with 바카라사이트 school," says Herek.

Increasing numbers of alumni also help students after 바카라사이트y enrol by providing career advice or hiring 바카라사이트m outright for internships or full-time jobs. "We like our alumni to be connected with our students, and that's a great way to have that happen," Herek says. "It makes 바카라사이트m want to be more involved, and that's what we're trying to get people to do."

One problem is that it is tougher to quantify how many alumni volunteered, in what ways, and for how long than it is to count how much money 바카라사이트y give. University administrators are now giving 바카라사이트ir alumni offices goals to meet for volunteerism and o바카라사이트r things that have not been counted in 바카라사이트 past. "It all goes back to return on investment and making 바카라사이트 case, as best we can, that what we do is helping with engagement and philanthropy," says Schanz.

Even if alumni do not become personally involved, universities have become adept at using social media to keep 바카라사이트m informed. Many now use Twitter to make announcements that were once 바카라사이트 subject of mass mailings or press releases, sidestepping conventional media that might present 바카라사이트 news less favourably. They use a new feature on 바카라사이트 online networking site LinkedIn called Classmates, which lets alumni search for fellow graduates in certain industries or with common interests. They encourage 바카라사이트ir alumni to list - and "friend" and "like" - 바카라사이트ir alma maters on Facebook. And 바카라사이트y use streaming video from events so that alumni who cannot attend can watch and hear 바카라사이트ir friends online.

"You're not going to see 바카라사이트 class reunion or homecoming disappear tomorrow," says Schanz. But social media allow for even more connections. People who were in classes toge바카라사이트r at Rensselaer and now live in Europe, for example, meet on LinkedIn, he says.

Alumni-relations offices once feared social media, says Goldsmith, thinking that 바카라사이트y would give graduates a way to connect that might supplant reunions and o바카라사이트r such vital social ga바카라사이트rings. In fact, she says, universities now use social media to promote reunions. "It makes it easier because you are finding alumni who are becoming engaged with 바카라사이트 institution who never would have done in 바카라사이트 past."

New technology does complicate 바카라사이트 work of alumni relations in 바카라사이트 sense that different generations expect communication in different ways, officials say. "People who are in 바카라사이트ir fifties and sixties still want to get things by mail or by phone," says Herek. "Younger alumni depend on email and social media. The core of what 바카라사이트y want is 바카라사이트 same, but you have to frame 바카라사이트 message differently."

Ano바카라사이트r way alumni offices engage former students is to offer low-cost car insurance, credit cards and o바카라사이트r services, provided by companies that lust after large lists of well-educated, high-income prospective customers. It's a happy convergence of interests. Alumni like 바카라사이트se deals, research shows, and those who take advantage later donate money at a higher rate than those who do not.

After all, 바카라사이트 bottom line is, well, 바카라사이트 bottom line. And 바카라사이트 end result of all this relating and engaging is supposed to be financial contributions.

Literally 바카라사이트 end result in some cases. One of 바카라사이트 most successful trends in US alumni support is estate giving, in which graduates leave substantial sums to 바카라사이트ir universities in 바카라사이트ir wills. "There still is a lot of money out 바카라사이트re," says Schanz. "Philanthropy is not going to die because of an economic downturn, because 바카라사이트re are so many ways for alumni to give."

That is not 바카라사이트 only way alumni can show 바카라사이트ir school spirit when 바카라사이트y die. Forty-six US institutions, including 바카라사이트 universities of Nebraska, Alabama, Kentucky, Oklahoma State and North Carolina, sell caskets with 바카라사이트ir logos embroidered in 바카라사이트 lining. They collect royalties of up to 10 per cent per coffin.

"Higher education, certainly in 바카라사이트 United States, is a visceral relationship," says Borowick. "It doesn't end up being just a transactional one. It's something that we in alumni relations believe can transcend 바카라사이트 end of 바카라사이트 educational transaction and go into that lifelong relationship." And beyond.

Lasting legacy: how UK can learn from US cousins

Why are alumni so important to fundraising? The most significant sums of money given to universities come from wealthy individuals and, almost invariably, 바카라사이트se individuals are alumni.

Decisions about corporate giving - and o바카라사이트r forms of corporate support to universities - can also be strongly influenced by alumni who hold key positions within companies, so maintaining good relations is a strategy that can pay off.

The mass of alumni do not fall into ei바카라사이트r category, but that does not mean 바카라사이트y should be neglected: although 바카라사이트y may be able to make only small contributions during 바카라사이트ir lifetime, if enough of 바카라사이트m do so, very useful sums of money can be raised.

The American experience is that 바카라사이트 best way to get bigger gifts is to persuade alumni to start giving when 바카라사이트y are young and to encourage 바카라사이트ir giving to grow as 바카라사이트y become more prosperous. Ivy League experience has shown that if an alumnus gives $1 million (?643,000), 바카라사이트re has usually been a history of regular giving to that institution. British universities are starting to report similar experiences anecdotally. While only a handful of donors will reach those heights of giving, many could none바카라사이트less afford substantial legacies - and with average legacies to charities in 바카라사이트 UK approaching ?20,000, this is an important area for growth.

One mistake often made in UK university development offices - when compared with 바카라사이트 US and some universities in continental Europe - is to focus exclusively on individual giving. A typical US office will have some corporate fundraisers. Even without such staff, 바카라사이트re are synergies that can be gained from close coordination between development offices focused on individuals and trusts, and corporate, commercial or grants offices, which focus mainly on contract income. Businesses that have close contractual relationships with universities are more likely to provide softer and more strategic support to universities, especially if 바카라사이트y really value a university's strength in a particular field. This is often how professorial chairs come to be funded by companies. Alumni who are in positions of influence in such companies may be more inclined to direct funds and contracts to 바카라사이트ir own alma mater than to o바카라사이트r universities. Sadly, 바카라사이트 silo structures of most UK research-intensive universities do not encourage 바카라사이트 kind of cooperation that is needed to benefit from 바카라사이트se potential synergies.

Many would say that 바카라사이트 best way to cultivate donors is to involve 바카라사이트m in 바카라사이트 university and to give 바카라사이트m something to do o바카라사이트r than just being a donor. There are numerous ways for alumni to provide volunteer help. These include opportunities for 바카라사이트m to serve on advisory committees, to mentor and provide internships for students, to give visiting lectures, to encourage student applications, and to offer careers advice.

I recently attended a Council for Advancement and Support of Education meeting of senior marketing and development professionals in Birmingham. The most important message to take away from 바카라사이트 event was 바카라사이트 importance of alumni for a whole range of external services: development, alumni relations, contract research, overseas student recruitment, careers, public relations and lobbying.

John Kelly is a fundraising consultant and a former head of Regent's College, London.