Most of you know that I like to call the Columbia Alumni Association (CAA) a mature startup.
At only 10 years old, the CAA is young, but we have accomplished so much.
What’s next? How do we make sure our mature startup continues to build tradition while continuing to provide innovative ways to engage?
Solidifying the Foundation
We are solidifying the foundation of our mature startup through the creation of processes, procedures, and analyses to determine how we prioritize and how we work.
I look at our regional alumni clubs as an example. The clubs are working on building a model to engage our alumni based on a shared identity -- a structure with flexibility to include unique regional identity, but honoring our shared University connection with Columbia symbols such as Columbia Blue, the King’s Crown, the Sundial, and the Lion.
Defining Success
What does success mean? How do we find the balance of quantitative and qualitative measures of success?
We are evaluating all signature CAA programs for their strategic importance, looking beyond an event itself. We are planning to team up more with Development colleagues on planning and execution strategies, striving to maximize alumni engagement before a program and in the months following, and identify strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and threats (SWOTs).
The decision-making processes are so important here.
Digital as Programming
The CAA Marketing and Digital Initiatives team has been transitioning from implementing events to implementing programs -- a continuum of engagement. There has been a concentration on enhanced digital outreach as programmatic, not just messaging.
The team is leveraging social networks to increase our awareness of the tone of how our community wants to engage and where and how they are able to.
Volunteer Management
The CAA has increased its volunteer management efforts and are developing ways to empower our alumni to be leaders, community builders, and advocates. We are expanding the opportunities to participate in-person, virtually, and one time as well as on an ongoing basis. We need effective leadership and a pipeline to ensure the right and most effective volunteers are in place. 
Sustaining the Commitment
We need to continue to do what we have been doing, as well as maximize opportunities to partner with alumni for their time, talent, and treasure. Our amazing alumni have so much to offer.
Breaking down silos across the 16 schools is key, as well as creating clarity for our alumni.
Congratulations on a fantastic 10 years, and I look forward to all that our mature startup will accomplish in the next 10.
Check out this video for some highlights of the CAA's decade of leadership:
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Donna MacPhee '89CC, P: '17CC is the vice president for Columbia Alumni Relations and president of the CAA.