Alumnify

Alumnify operated as an engagement platform designed to help universities and organizations connect with their alumni. Founded in 2013 by AJ Agrawal, Eghosa Aihie, and Michael Greenberg, the company was based in San Diego, California. The founding team's journey began when college colleagues AJ Agrawal and Eghosa Aihie decided to pivot from a previous venture, a social media platform called CampusPull, based on customer feedback. Agrawal, who served as CEO, and Aihie, the Head of Business, both graduated from the University of San Diego. Their firsthand experience as students and alumni informed the company's direction. Aihie's background in business development and accounting, including an internship with Ernst & Young, and Agrawal's drive, which led him to learn coding to build the initial product, were instrumental in the company's early stages.

The core of Alumnify's business was a mobile-first platform that provided real-time data on alumni's professional careers and personal interests. The service aimed to solve the problem of universities struggling to engage with recent graduates. By using features like geolocation and tracking affinity and career interests, the platform facilitated networking, the creation of new university communities, and job opportunities for graduates. For universities, the platform offered tools to track, analyze, and improve alumni engagement. The business model was primarily business-to-consumer (B2C), providing information services and social software to universities. An early iteration also included a feature for crowdfunding, allowing students and clubs to raise money from alumni for specific campaigns.

Throughout its operation, Alumnify achieved several milestones. The company participated in the 500 Startups accelerator program as part of Batch 13 and Columbia's startup accelerator, Tminus6. It successfully raised over $100,000 in funding and secured 8 university clients early on. A significant achievement was winning the grand prize of $40,000 at the University of San Diego's V2 Pitch competition. The company raised a total of $1.42 million over its lifetime. PitchBook data indicates the company ceased operations as of January 27, 2017. Another source lists the company as deadpooled.

Interestingly, the brand 'Alumnify' has been revitalized with a different focus. The current Alumnify (alumnify.co), co-founded by James O'Grady, now specializes in alumni-driven international student recruitment. This newer entity recruits and manages alumni to act as on-the-ground representatives for their former universities in strategic global markets, assisting with lead generation, nurturing, and offer conversion campaigns. This service aims to provide an authentic voice for universities, helping them to build their brand and increase enrollment without the high costs of establishing a physical presence.

Keywords: alumni engagement, university relations, alumni networking, higher education technology, edtech, mobile engagement, alumni data, student recruitment, donor relations, professional networking, AJ Agrawal, Eghosa Aihie, 500 Startups, university fundraising, alumni community, career services, social platform, San Diego startup, V2 Pitch competition, alumni analytics, lead generation, international student recruitment, alumni advocacy