The traditional approach to employee departures is rapidly becoming outdated. Forward-thinking organizations are transforming exits from relationship terminations to relationship transitions by building robust alumni networks. Maintaining that connection can deliver measurable business value, like the opportunity for that talent to return as a boomerang hire or to provide useful referrals. A well-executed alumni strategy also sends powerful retention signals to your current workforce while positioning your organization as a destination employer that values growth.
Here’s the why and how of building an alumni network.
Your Alumni Network Can Become Boomerang Hires
According to ADP research, 35% of new hires between March 2024 and March 2025 were boomerang employees. When you bring back familiar faces, your organization sees several benefits. There are obvious time and cost savings because the hiring process is quicker, and the learning curve is also greatly reduced because that former employee already knows your business and culture.
By tapping into your alumni network to fill positions, you’ll learn organizational truths that employee engagement surveys miss. As you bring on returning talent, it’s important to track metrics like who returned, why they left, what they learned in subsequent positions and what triggered their return. If rehires are concentrated in certain departments, for example, this can tell you what your company does well. It can also reveal what needs improvement, if little to no boomerang hiring is occurring in other departments.
The patterns that emerge from boomerang data analysis can also be valuable in refining retention strategies. These hires validate your company’s culture and competitive advantage, which sends powerful cultural signals to current employees. They see that external experience is valued and that leadership is secure enough to welcome back talented people who chose to leave. The boomerang phenomenon also shows that the grass isn’t always greener with another employer, so capitalize on this narrative. When appropriate, share staff return stories in internal communications, highlighting what the employee learned externally and why they chose to return.
Your Alumni Network Brings You Referrals
You don’t have to rehire alumni to reap benefits from having a strong alumni network. It’s also a valuable resource for candidate referrals. Considering alumni have no financial incentive to send people your way, their willingness to facilitate these connections shows that they believe your organization was a good place to work. Your hiring team can also have greater confidence that the candidate would be a good fit since alumni know your culture.
Alumni can also be a source of new business. For example, they might refer your organization to their current employer or another entity that would benefit from doing business with you. Again, these are valuable introductions because alumni wouldn’t provide their endorsement unless they respected your organization and believed you would deliver good value to potential clients.
However, keep in mind that if you receive either candidate or client referrals, there may be an expectation to reciprocate and provide referrals to them at their current company. As we all know, one hand washes the other. Approach these situations with clarity and professionalism to maintain the integrity of the alumni relationship. Be transparent about what you can and cannot offer. By consistently providing value through your alumni platform and treating members with respect, most will understand that referrals are merit-based, not quid pro quo arrangements.
Building A Strong Alumni Network
If you want a strong alumni network, leadership must change its perception of departing employees. Rather than considering the relationship terminated, frame it as a transition in the nature of your relationship. This mindset shift is the foundation upon which all alumni initiatives must be built.
Many organizations still operate with an “us versus them” mentality with departing employees. When someone resigns, relationships go cold and, at times, there’s an unspoken sense of betrayal. This termination mindset creates a self-fulfilling prophecy where the organization loses any potential value from continuing that relationship. The transition mindset, meanwhile, recognizes that career journeys are fluid, and today’s departing employee could be tomorrow’s valuable partner, client or returning team member. It acknowledges that people leave for legitimate reasons and that it doesn’t diminish the value they brought or could bring again.
This shift influences every touchpoint in the employee life cycle. Leaders with a transition mindset design offboarding processes that honor contributions rather than expedite departures. They conduct exit interviews with genuine curiosity, rather than defensiveness. Beyond hearing about the employee’s experience and what they thought of the company, these interviews should include questions that look forward, like asking what would motivate the departing employee to return, discussing what skills they’re hoping to develop externally and gaining more insight into their career goals. The transition mindset also signals to current employees that the organization values people as individuals with evolving careers, not just as resources to be retained.
To stay in communication with alumni, you need to establish a viable platform. It could be a private LinkedIn group or a quarterly newsletter that highlights company wins, lists open positions, shares industry insights and celebrates alumni wins. Make the network feel like a professional community, with a consistent contact cadence and content that delivers value to the alumni. But these initiatives become hollow exercises if your organization’s underlying belief system about departures hasn’t changed. Former employees will sense inauthenticity, so you must approach this relationship with the long-term perspective those professionals deserve in today’s interconnected business world.
Building Relationships That Last Beyond Employment
In today’s dynamic talent market, the end of employment doesn’t have to mean the end of a valuable relationship. By investing in a thoughtful alumni network strategy, organizations can unlock significant benefits. Whether it’s gaining former employees who return with fresh skills and perspectives, receiving quality candidate referrals for open positions or cultivating business development opportunities, a well-maintained alumni network transforms departures into lasting professional partnerships. The companies that recognize alumni as extended members of their community will find themselves with a competitive advantage in attracting talent, building their brand and driving business growth—which ultimately benefits your bottom line.