Update for February 2014

Thanks to all members of this group, Let’s Build Bridges, for their information so far. I will now update you all on our progress.

Due to resourcing issues, I am told that it will not be possible to pursue Let’s Build Bridges in co-operation with Fixers as I had hoped. Therefore, from now on, this project will be a fully independent one, that is open to participation from all organisations. We will now develop an open forum, for discussion between all members, as to where student-Alumni networking has succeeded, and where it still needs improvement. Having spoken with my contact at Bright Futures UK, he has agreed to direct interested academics to this page, to share their ideas and experiences. We will be able to hear the success stories, from the people who founded the networks: and to hear first-hand, for where improvements will be needed.

The main challenge to student-Alumni relations so far, is inconsistency. It is not that students and Alumni do not network at all; but that some do and some do not. For example I have learned already that at my old university, the University of Birmingham, there is an excellent network for Engineering students and Alumni: but not one for Environmental Sciences. In the interests of equal opportunity, I say that all students must have access to the same basic networking resource, regardless of their field of study; where they study, or the curriculum of their university. And again, I am told that it is usually a handful of dedicated students from each school who network. But online networking with Alumni should be seen in exactly the same way as apprenticeships: as a logical process, leading from study, straight into the profession itself.

There are certain professions like television production, and directing in a theatre, where the career path may seem less well defined, and from the graduates' accounts of their profession, personal contacts are more useful than straightforward application. For these professions especially, more networks between students of those disciplines, and the Alumni in the business would be a clear help to all.

I understand that it is difficult to convince students that this is in their interest, but I will personally speak to any students, who may have doubts about networking with Alumni, and will tell them from 10 years of experience, exactly what they will gain. Another issue we face is of course, that each student is unique. Students of every college and school within a university have a unique learning experience: and the work of students from one campus may seem entirely different to those from another. Student-Alumni networks may not seem a one-size-fits-all solution. But we should still remember that students of every subject at every university or college must have access to the same basic learning resources: and in today’s increasingly competitive world, this should include direct access to the Alumni in their chosen profession.

So, I would like to hear the experiences from your contacts, who have helped student-Alumni relations. If you or anyone you know would like to comment on the issues involved, I am more than happy to make you Contributors to the blog, to write articles of interest. You are of course, welcome to comment on the Linkedin and Facebook pages as well. I will try to establish more links on Twitter, Instagram and other media, but would like to focus on the more obvious pages for now. It would also be good to have a wider range of participants involved, so if there is anyone you know who is interested in improving student-Alumni relations, then you are welcome to invite them to this page.

I am also waiting to hear back from a member of the Technology Strategy Board. The Board have pioneered many projects for knowledge transfer between businesses and academics themselves, and will hold useful information for networking projects from the Alumni point of view. I have given my contact the links to these pages and am waiting to discuss with him.

Eventually, I plan to use the arguments from interested parties, to determine where more student-Alumni networks are needed, and to take action to do this. The best solution so far, on the advice you have given, is to hold a competition between all schools of a university, for the most original innovation that academic year: and to encourage students and Alumni of every school, to work together to achieve this. That will ensure that any students or Alumni who are not already networking will be encouraged to do so. By working together, the students will get the mentoring and coaching from the Alumni: and the Alumni will get new ideas from the students that they can use in their professions. This will be a win-win solution, as all participants will gain something from such a competition: including the host university, who can take credit for the new innovations.

It is in everyone’s interests that students and Alumni of every profession are interconnected: to ensure mentoring and coaching of students to prepare them for a very competitive, global job market; and to give the Alumni new ideas, and innovations, to make their professional lives easier. Our efforts will go a long way to making sure that this happens.

Who You Know Not What You Know

Networks Not Application Forms

Have Your Say...

Thanks to James Gordanifar for his very good point about what would be in this project for Alumni. My answer to this can be found on this blog.

Apologies that I have taken a few days to respond. I have been building the Facebook page up for this project. There are now over 44 members and rising.

If you would like to join this page, just go to:

Facebook:

https://www.facebook.com/groups/419487984829959/

There is also a Linkedin Group you can join:

http://www.linkedin.com/groups/Lets-Build-Bridges-5133737?trk=myg_ugrp_ovr

I am ready to respond to your questions and ideas about this project. So to add to the comments so far, would you like to be next?

Here's The Example

What this project is all about is student-Alumni networking. And here's the prime example I'd like to show you. An online student-Alumni network that allows for mentoring of students and knowledge transfer to Alumni. This is exactly what students and Alumni of every profession should have at every place of higher education. If you don't already have this, then set one up! I will be glad to help you make it happen.

Here's the group:

http://www.linkedin.com/groups?gid=3450289&trk=groups_most_recent-0-b-shrttl

Simon Sinek's 'The Golden Circle' Talk, About the What, How, and Why of a Business

http://www.ted.com/talks/lang/en/simon_sinek_how_great_leaders_inspire_action.html

What, How and Why - My Responses to the Motivation Behind This Project

Hi James,

Thank you for your input. I also work in HR, and it is true that my admin experience helped as much as my qualifications to get the job. All the same, I’ll find out what qualifications my colleagues had to have for their positions. Although much of what we do is learned through training, there are still a great many subjects studied in higher education that we use. I’ll find out which are the favourites and get back to you on that.

I assume you’re referring to Simon’s so called ‘Golden Circle’ of ‘What? How? And Why?’ (see link)

So with that in mind, here is my response:

I believe that the true value and power of knowledge has not yet been unleashed. I believe that if it were, then virtually every challenge we face could be overcome by a combination of academic insight (the ‘thinking’ stage) and business acumen (the ‘doing’ stage). After all, we build world class industry right here in England and we can rebuild it. Human beings are as good now as they were in the 19th Century. Human nature does not change, even though our technology does. But the advantage we have now is the benefit of what our predecessors have given us from their learning experiences. If their knowledge and ours were used effectively, we could rebuild virtually everything we have lost in the Recession, from the wisdom of generations past and present.

We have this knowledge in the many books I have seen and read while studying at the University of Birmingham. In the Harding Law Library alone, for instance, I have read literature from centuries old texts. The knowledge held in these books could make profound changes in the legal affairs of virtually every institution, were its full potential to be unleashed. But just as human beings have not yet learned to access 100% of our brain, we have also not unleashed the true power of our knowledge and wisdom.

How we could do this is to bring both the academic and business sectors together, to ensure that every possible angle and insight into a product, service, and profession were considered and tried. If the students of a profession, the professionals in the field, and the retired veterans of each profession were around the same table discussing their issues, I believe this would guarantee that every single thought or piece of knowledge the members possess would be used to find solutions. In the past, think tanks, guilds and trades unions have done to great effect. And there is also clear evidence for this in the success of the U3A (or ‘University of the Third Age’) Programme, which has unlocked a lot of knowledge from the older generation, for the benefit of a great many people: and it has allowed retired professionals to feel valued in the knowledge they impart to others.

Similarly, in the UK, the Technology Strategy Board is working to effect knowledge transfer between universities and businesses, and I understand that the government has established regional centres to do this throughout the country. Again, there are many success stories that I have read about. For the student generation mentoring schemes and apprenticeships have been highly effective in allowing young people to learn about the culture of the workplaces they will enter, as well as bringing their own ideas and insight to the profession. And in every case, social media has had a profound effect on the ability of each generation and sector to impart knowledge to others. But the questions remains: how to organise this, to unleash the full potential of all generations in all professions?

So what I plan to do, is to ensure that students of each subject at a place of higher education, are connected to their (Alumni) counterparts in the profession (and retired), to allow knowledge transfer both ways. The knowledge transferred to the students by the Alumni will give them the mentoring, coaching and connections; and the knowledge transferred from the students to the Alumni will give them new ways of thinking and solutions to help them overcome challenges they face in their businesses and their profession. But we must be systematic, and think of the knowledge economy as one coherent whole:  every student, at every place of higher education should be connected with the Alumni who practise the profession they study for. As you say, I understand that some professions may not seem to have higher education degrees for them, but there are still connections that can be made.

For example, history students are known to go into different professions from their field of study. I’ve known some who studied history at our university, but who went on to practise law, professional acting and many different careers. But they could still be connected to practising archaeologists, archivists and museum curators, who use history degrees in their line of work. If we are stuck for whom to connect with whom, then the clue is in the application: what qualifications were necessary to apply for your job? It is the students of these subjects who should be connected to you. Even if your training was learned on the job, I am sure that a business qualification of some kind was required by your employer. In my case, my law degree was essential for work within local government: who use a lot of legal reasoning in their decision making. So for example, law students whose modules include public law could be connected with Alumni who work in local government.

Another part of the reason 'why' for this project, is that I believe that our mechanisms and systems should truly reflect the way we do business. We're often told that it's 'who you know, not what you know' that get you the career of your choice. My response to this is: ok then, if it's 'who you know,' then what we should have are networks at every school, college or university, that connect the students to the right people in their chosen industry. But from what I have heard so far, this is not always the case: and since networking is so crucial to getting the best jobs, it really should be.

To respond to the ‘What’s In It For Me?’ argument, here is what I say. For the older generation, Student-Alumni networking will allow retired professionals to impart their knowledge from years of experience. Some of the university professors who taught me were themselves, retired professionals. But there are a great many others I have come across, whose knowledge is not used. Some of the pensioners I have served in my past jobs were retired regional managers, wardens, and doctors, who had a lot of knowledge, but little contact with the outside world. Just like the U3A programme, student-Alumni networking could ensure these individuals were valued, and that their knowledge was passed on to student of their profession today.

For my generation, I understand that we are very busy, and that is why I recommend contact with students through social media, not face to face. Online networking will allow us to post comments at our convenience, at a time that does not disrupt our schedules. And more importantly, it will give us access to new ideas from the students, to solve the challenges we are currently facing. Each generation of students brings something new to the mix, that we can benefit from. For example, I am currently working with software than is in a transition phase, and a student at my university might have a bright idea that I hadn’t thought about, to transfer the information more efficiently. This would save me a lot of time and effort. My counterparts in smaller businesses especially would benefit from bright ideas, as they cannot afford the teams of experts available to multi-nationals.  So what’s in it for me as an Alumnus? New ideas from the students to make my working life easier, and the chance for me to feel valued, by teaching them about the cultural expectations of my workplace.

What do the rest of you think about this? I welcome your thoughts.