Engagement is the currency of alumni relations, it can tell a powerful story about how alumni relate to your institution, and with the advent of the CASE AEM survey, it’s more important than ever. But do you know how engaged your alumni body is? Are they passionate? A little curious? Just Friends? Rejecters?! Join us as we showcase Oxford Alumni Office's approach to alumni engagement across the University. This session merges how-tos’ with a case study of our Alumni Engagement Framework, from its inception to current usage and our learnings along the way.

Investing in legacy fundraising will result in significant income growth. Legacy giving to the UK charity sector is predicted to reach £5bn by 2030. It’s true some legacy gifts materialise without an ask, but this only proves the enormous potential. This session will show how you have no choice but to promote Legacy giving to your supporters to be a part of what’s coming - the greatest inter-generational transfer of wealth in history. Join us to learn how easy it is to embed the legacy message and maximise your activity, no matter what area of fundraising you work in.

This session will explore the THE Global Reputation Survey data, which encompasses over 2.0 million academic reputation votes and includes responses from 100,000 academics surveyed. THE will provide valuable insights into current trends and best practices for building a robust reputation. Additionally, we will delve into the factors that contribute to the advancement of reputation in various regions.

At the University of Westminster, we’re on a mission to raise the visibility of alumni relations and weave alumni activity into the fabric of student and University life. In this session, we will dive into examples of how we’ve secured buy-in for alumni activity through creative branding, piloting innovative programmes and collaborating with students and academics to integrate alumni relations into the curriculum.

Engaging alumni abroad offers many benefits to the university and its communities. International alumni can play many roles in helping to establish and maintain institutional reputation and its brand worldwide. They can support many other institutional goals such as talent attraction, internships and jobs, universities and industry partnerships and many others. For many of us in international alumni relations, many times the main challenge is not in mobilizing our alumni to support institutional goals once those are clearly defined, but rather getting internal support and specifically engaging academics to understand how alumni relations can support their department’s goals. This interactive session includes a panel discussion that addresses the challenges and benefits of engaging internal stakeholders in building and maintaining international alumni relations. Who are the key stakeholders that can advance alumni engagement? Why are academics key to a successful strategy and what’s in it for them? These are the key questions to be discussed. The session will also include an opportunity for participants to ponder and discuss their challenges and innovative solutions in internal stakeholder engagement.

Let's celebrate getting things wrong! In homage to the popular 'How to Fail' podcast, join this interactive panel discussion to hear from a range of senior Alumni Relations professionals from different institutions. They'll reflect on personal and professional situations or projects they've been involved in, or decisions they've made, that haven't gone as expected - and how they've navigated that. So much can be learned from understanding why things haven't worked out, how this affects us, or recognising that sometimes the best courses of action are ones we didn't plan. We can all learn from each other - so come with your own questions or learnings to share.

The murder of George Floyd, in May 2020, triggered a worldwide response and boosted the momentum behind the Black Lives Matter movement. The HE sector has been held accountable to highlight its part in systemic racism and what can be done to be a truly anti-racist sector. Integrated advancement has a key role to play in anti-racism work. Do students and staff feel universities are moving in the right direction? Are universities still making public shows of solidarity with Black communities? Three years on, we’ll be looking at whether there has been any substantial change and what best practices can be shared.

Despite ongoing efforts to support staff and students, institutions are still facing challenges translating their EDI missions, policies, and guidance into subsequent actions in cultivating an environment that values diversity, embraces inclusion, and empowers all. In this session, Arish Mudra, EDI Consultant and Neuroscientist at the University of Edinburgh will delve into the strategies needed to transform well-meaning intentions into tangible actions that foster inclusivity across institutions. Hosted by Rob Henry, Vice President of People, Talent, and Culture at CASE, this thought-provoking discussion will review a standard ‘recipe’ for institutions to practically make the change from strategic planning to delivery. “Good intentions are not enough. They’ve never put an onion in the soup yet.” (Sonya Levien,1888-1960)

A networking opportunity for existing UMF members and anyone keen to learn more about how this group is supporting and advocating for marketing professionals in higher education.

Delegates from Northern Europe are invited to a networking opportunity hosted by members of the Continental Europe Cabinet.