Leadership and people management for Alumni associations: helping new office bearers work well with a small paid team
Alumni leaders are successful in their own careers but often new to leading a small paid team and a crowd of volunteers. A short orientation each term prevents confusion and keeps good staff.
Not sure what you need? Tell us about your business in six short steps and we will come to the first meeting prepared.
Share your requirementsWhy leadership and people management matters in alumni associations
A newly elected president is used to commanding a large team in a company. In the alumni office, there are two paid people and thirty volunteers who can walk away at any time. Instructions given at night by phone, last minute changes and public criticism of a staff member are normal in a corporate setting, but they cause quick exits here.
The orientation is short and practical. It explains who the staff are and what they do, how to make a request, how to give feedback, how to thank people and how to handle a disagreement with the institution. It also covers leading volunteers: asking for specific help, setting a date, following up kindly and ending a role gracefully.
How to set it up
1. Hold a half-day session after each election
Invite the new office bearers and batch leaders. Include a staff member who explains the work of the office and the pressure points of the year.
2. Explain how to make a request
Show the request form, the monthly meeting and the response time. Practise turning a vague idea into a clear ask with a date.
3. Practise feedback and thanks
Role play a conversation where a leader gives feedback to a staff member and to a volunteer. Include examples of public thanks that cost nothing.
4. Cover how to lead volunteers
Discuss specific asks, small tasks, reasonable deadlines and what to do when a volunteer goes silent. Agree how a role can end without offence.
5. Follow up after three months
Meet the leaders and the staff separately to ask what is working. Adjust the working arrangement and note anything for the next term.
Check these first
Before changing anything, find out what is true today. These take an afternoon and use your own records.
- Ask the staff whether instructions from volunteers arrived outside working hours in the last month.
- Check whether the last office bearers had any orientation and what it covered.
- See how many volunteer roles ended without a conversation or a thank you.
- Ask a past president what they wish they had known in the first month.
GullyHR can do this with you. Read how we approach leadership and people management in general, or share your requirements and we will tell you where to start.
Questions owners ask
A short orientation is enough, given they are not a conventional management team. It saves staff from mixed signals and helps leaders enjoy the role without burning out their volunteers.
Give specific tasks, say thank you in public, share the outcome and do not ask for more than they can give. Volunteers drift away when work is vague or unrecognised.
A trainer with experience of voluntary bodies, together with a senior staff member who knows the office. Include a past president if possible, because peer stories carry weight.