Turning Ithaca’s Alumni Event into a Worldwide Gathering
When Cornell first reached out about their annual Alumni Leadership Week, we couldn’t wait to get started! This is the big one for Cornell – a three-day whirlwind of talks, networking, and deep dives into leadership topics held on campus in Ithaca. But this year, they wanted to make it accessible to alumni all over the world. Because not everyone can just hop over to New York, right?
So, we rolled up our sleeves and got to work on making this hybrid vision a reality. The plan was to create a virtual experience that made online attendees feel as close to the action as the folks actually in the room. And we had our work cut out for us: live interactions, online Q&As, breakout sessions, and a whole four-week replay period to boot! Weekly check-ins with Cornell’s alumni team helped us iron out every last detail, and before we knew it, event day was around the corner.
We kicked things off by customising our platform just for Cornell. From alumni-only chat spaces to seamless registration (alumni reference IDs included!), we made sure this digital experience felt like Cornell through and through. And that wasn’t all. We set up everything the team would need to keep online and in-person audiences connected, like giving hosts live access to audience questions and comments so everyone could join the conversation.
Here’s how we kept engagement high and energy flowing over three packed days:
And wow, did Cornell’s alumni show up! With over 300 people in-person and 750 joining online, it was a global event in every sense. The platform buzzed with live talks, interactive sessions, and plenty of places for alumni to connect, bridging any physical distance between them.
A few highlights we’re pretty proud of:
Teaming up with Cornell to bring this hybrid experience to life reminded us just how powerful virtual events can be. Working closely with Cornell’s production team meant every talk, Q&A, and interactive session came off flawlessly, making for a memorable experience that everyone could appreciate.
When Suzanne and the Strathclyde Alumni team approached Forumm to review their social media interaction with their community we jumped at the opportunity. Strathclyde is one of those universities that we generally use as examples of best practice, but the team there were looking at ways to make content creation more sustainable.
New Beginnings, New Feeds, and a Dash of Island Charm
So, when the brand-new UHI North, West, and Hebrides team reached out to us, they had a pretty tall order: make a merged college’s digital presence feel like one, cohesive voice – something that would feel right at home in the remote yet vibrant communities of the Highlands and Islands.
When KAUST reached out with a big vision – creating a best-in-class reporting template and framework – we were in.
The goal? Build reports that make everyone’s lives easier, from the extremely busy executive team to detail-oriented data geeks, delivering insights that didn’t just sit on a page but inspired real action.
