Are you curious about how artificial intelligence could enhance your alumni relations and fundraising—but unsure where to start? This session is designed for those just starting their AI journey. We’ll break down simple, practical ways AI can support your everyday activities, share real-life examples from university advancement, and create a space to exchange ideas with peers. Leave feeling inspired, equipped with actionable steps, and ready to explore how AI can help you connect, communicate, and succeed in new ways!

In this session, LUT University (Finland) and Vilnius University (Lithuania) will share their experiences hosting two major alumni events: the LUT Homecoming Day and the VU Alumni Festival'24. The LUT Homecoming Day occurred on April 13, 2024, at the Lappeenranta campus and attracted over 2,000 alumni. This major alumni event was about showing our appreciation and fostering cooperation—to strengthen our alumni's role as active members of LUT University. This breakout session presents the story of our first Homecoming Day. The VU Alumni Festival'24 brings together over 2,000 Vilnius University alumni. It marked the first large-scale alumni gathering in years, with the primary goal of welcoming alumni back to the University, rekindling connections, and highlighting the importance of the alumni community to Vilnius University. During this session, we will delve into: • The goals and starting points set for each event • Practical strategies for marketing to alumni • Key elements of the on-campus experiences • Lessons learned and key takeaways from organizing large-scale events We will also share practical insights, including the do's and don'ts of planning major alumni events, best practices, and the challenges we faced along the way. Our aim is to provide valuable lessons from our successes and mistakes so that attendees can avoid common pitfalls and build even more successful alumni engagement initiatives. Join us to gain actionable insights and inspiration for creating impactful and memorable alumni experiences!

Collaboration across level in a university can already be in formal structures or you may need to develop the format our self. In this campfire session we will share best practices for how to organize the structure for the division of responsibility for task/activities between university, faculty and department levels.

Do we need CRM systems when we work with alumni and external relations? If we work with a CRM system we need a god practice to handle all the data. How do we handle GDPR? How do we structure data about alumni and external relations? How do we work with fundraising processes?. How do we integrate to student service systems and other systems? During the discussion we will look answers to all these and other related questions. We will share our experience and reporting good practices.

Creating, building and sustaining relationships with your alumni around the world is challenging, but can also be very rewarding. How much should be done at the individual level (i.e. contact with regional representatives, like an alumni ambassador programme) versus organised groups (aka “chapters”)? What are the pros and cons of each model? How much time should be invested, and what is the ROI? What communications prove to be most valuable and effective? What metrics are worth measuring (or possible to measure) in terms of engagement within international networks/groups? Does this vary from metrics for engagement at the national level? What are some future trends within this area?

Are you navigating alumni relations and fundraising with a small team? Do you have creative strategies or challenges to share? Join this interactive campfire discussion where we’ll explore AI as your team member, micro-communities, crowdsourcing engagement, gamification, subscription-based giving, alumni as influencers, reverse fundraising, guerrilla marketing, and corporate collaborations on a budget—all through a Nordic perspective. If you have experiences or insights on these topics, we’d love to hear from you! If you’re looking for inspiration, come listen, learn, and take away practical ideas to apply in your own work.

Development Offices usually work with limited resources and we have to prioritise daily. We often have to choose between handling stewardship to existing donors and to spend important time approaching new donors. Both tasks takes time, and we have to balance our efforts to have a good portfolio of donors in the long time perspective. In this Camp Fire session we will discuss how we can work more efficiently by partnering with stakeholders, for example Advisory Boards. We look forward to listen to your experiences and to have a discussion with a great learning and sharing moment!

We discuss how to bridge the gap between studies and work by using alumni as a resource in showing the relevance of the education. By showing our current students what our alumni works with, we give them concrete examples of how their competence can be applied in the work force.

Over the past decade, the importance of individual giving and donations has significantly increased in the Nordic university sector. Understanding the motivations and experiences of individual donors is becoming increasingly crucial. In this breakout session, we will present two case studies that shed light on this topic. In 2024, Nora Rahnasto explored ways to enhance the engagement and donor experience of major individual donors in higher education as part of her MBA thesis in Service Innovation and Design. The study identified four donor behavior archetypes and the different motivations of major individual donors, with Aalto University serving as the case study. Birgitta Rorsman from Chalmers will provide concrete and inspiring examples of Chalmers' alumni giving program and fundraising for international scholarships, illustrating successful strategies and practices in engaging alumni as donors. Join us to gain valuable insights into effectively designing donor experiences and fostering stronger relationships with private individuals.