‘Beautiful things happen’
It all started with an initiative by alumnus Daniel Gaspersz, only just after he graduated from RSM’s MSc Management of Innovation in 2013. Daniel, who is now product marketing manager for Google, said ‘beautiful things happen’ when generations collide and share experiences.
RSM’s award-winning mentoring platform now engages more than 5,000 users, connecting RSM students and graduates with alumni who have offered their time to give support and advice face to face or remotely – over the phone or a video chat.
“Our alumni are like family” says Sue Martin, director of corporate and alumni relations for RSM. “They were the driving force behind this project, which has helped thousands of students and graduates to get one-on-one advice. We’re so proud of what we can achieve together.”
Meaningful engagement
CASE (the Council for Advancement and Support of Education) is an international organisation that supports higher and further education institutions. The Silver award for RSM was in the ‘alumni relations: volunteer engagement’ category.
CASE’s judges said RSM identified a real problem and has appeared to solve it with thorough research and clear goals with actionable items. “RSM created meaningful engagement opportunities between students and alumni. Their training materials are well thought-out and engaging. Recognizing user engagements through live events and regular communication was a good addition.”
Success story of a committed community
The RSM MentorMe programme has become a school-wide project spearheaded by the Alumni Relations Office, and the changes implemented have made it a success story. The mentoring platform has also proved vital during the global coronavirus pandemic, booking more than 1,000 extra consultations taking place since the first few weeks of March 2020.
“RSM MentorMe shows the true value of a committed community, especially in times of crisis” says Juan Maldonado, alumni relations manager at RSM. “From the start of the lockdown we saw more people asking for help our alumni have stepped up to help others”
Alumni and students can sign up and connect via www.rsm.nl/mentorme.
Rotterdam School of Management, Erasmus University (RSM) is one of Europe’s top-ranked business schools. RSM provides ground-breaking research and education furthering excellence in all aspects of management and is based in the international port city of Rotterdam – a vital nexus of business, logistics and trade. RSM’s primary focus is on developing business leaders with international careers who can become a force for positive change by carrying their innovative mindset into a sustainable future. Our first-class range of bachelor, master, MBA, PhD and executive programmes encourage them to become critical, creative, caring and collaborative thinkers and doers. Study information and activities for future students, executives and alumni are also organised from the RSM office in Chengdu, China. www.rsm.nl
For more information about RSM or this release, please contact Marianne Schouten, communications manager for RSM, on +31 10 408 2877 or by email at mschouten@rsm.nl.
