Four Steps to a World-Class Internship Program

Four Steps to a World- Class Internship Program Signature Advice From Companies That Are Getting it Right The Webinar Will Begin Shortly If you cannot hear music, or the presenter to today's webinar, please use our toll-free call in number. Number: 888-469-1348 Pass code: 2940000 Presented By: Emily Bennington

Why do we need interns anyway?

The Breakeven Point Source: Michael Watkins, The First 90 Days

Companies need people who can hit the ground running from day one.

The BUSINESS CASE for Internships
Constant pipeline of new talent.
Audition new staff without too many strings attached.
Former interns “break even” faster.

World-Class Internship Tip #1: Be a Freak About Structure

When it comes to focus… … some companies really get it. … some companies sort of get it.

..and some companies DON’T get it!

The difference is in the planning.

Create Success Metrics
These could include:
# of FTEs (Conversion rate)
# of interns needed and admission requirements (e.g. minimum GPA, extracurricular activities, etc.)
# of projects completed / learning objectives
# of Campus Ambassadors
# of articles written (PR coverage)
# of community service initiatives
# of potential hires in the pipeline (e.g. creating the “bench”)

“ You have to keep going back to those original metrics. Otherwise, how will you know if your program is succeeding?”
John Flato
President, Campus Strategic Partners

“ Aim small. Miss small.”

Give Them REAL Work

“ In the past, I think businesses were less strategic about their interns. But for us it’s never been about bringing a bunch of college kids in to make copies and coffee. We consider the program an 8-week job interview.”
Rick Slater
Managing Member, Dixon Hughes

Yes, all internships have grunt work, but…

If your interns are on full-time copy and coffee duty, how can you evaluate their true potential?

Even if you don’t trust interns with clients yet, you still need to find ways to gauge their ability to think critically.

Assign someone in your office the role of “internship manager”
Build in a few social activities
Consider a volunteer project
Introduce them to your clients
Obtain evaluations from multiple supervisors
Require a Friday Update
STRUCTURE: Additional Best Practices

World-Class Internship Tip #2 Be Super Smart About Recruiting

No one likes to make a bad hire...

You can trust me, I promise. … and it’s hard to get an idea of a candidate’s “fit” from a 20-minute interview.

Bad hires are bad for business.

So, How Do You Find Good Hires?

When it comes to recruiting.. You can get with this. And you can get with that.

I know people who know people who know people.

We Career Fairs

“ Giving students job descriptions has been a very powerful recruiting tool because it allows them to make internship decisions based on the actual work they will be doing.”
Jim McGrath
Manager of Global Staffing/University Relations
Cisco Systems

Also, bring recruits to your office to interview with additional staff members. “ I’m Teresa.” “ I’m John.” “ I’m Rich.” “ I’m Mike.” “ I’m Ellen.”

Use Current Interns in Your Recruiting

World-Class Internship Tip #3 ONBOARD!

What’s the first thing that comes to mind when I say orientation ?

“ The best and brightest give weight… to the company’s plan for them during their first year on the job and beyond. Even during hard times, these recruits are thinking beyond the first 30 days and focusing instead on what employers can do to address their long-term aspirations.”
Mark A. Stein and Lilith Christiansen
Kaiser Associates

You’ve got a lot invested in recruiting, so don’t stop short of the goal!

Meet Carly
On her first day as an intern at Widgets, Inc., Carly received:
A parking pass
A cup of coffee
An elevator badge
A tour of the office
Free reign of the supply closet
A laptop
A “brain dump” from a host of colleagues on everything from last year’s sales to this year’s holiday party.
A partridge in a pear tree. (Well, not really .)

AFTER THAT, THEY LEFT HER ALONE TO FIGURE EVERYTHING ELSE OUT FOR HERSELF!

Sound familiar? So why are we surprised when the US Bureau of Labor Statistics estimates the average worker will have between 10–15 jobs in a lifetime?!?!

Train your people, people!

(Very funny.)

Let’s talk about onboarding.

Onboarding vs. Orientation Onboarding Orientation Highest levels of leadership Single department only Strategic Compliant Dialogue Monologue Ongoing One-shot System of accountability No follow-up Addresses employee’s career planning needs Addresses company needs only

Ideas to make onboarding fun
Icebreakers
Professionalism 101 training / role play
Q&A with top leadership at your company
Q&A with top clients
Make THEM give a presentation
Find ways for them to “experience” what you do
End with dinner or other social outing. No business allowed!

Onboarding Resources OnboardingMargin.com Emily Bennington, College to Career Expert

“ Only take on interns if you are fully willing to invest the amount of time it takes to welcome, train, assist, mentor, teach, and evaluate them to make the experience valuable, rewarding, and positive.”
Monster College survey participant

World-Class Internship Tip #4 Keep In Touch!

Surveys / Exit Interviews

Exit Survey Success: Qualcomm
Software giant Qualcomm found that housing was a huge issue for interns since finding short-term residence can be expensive and problematic.
Their Solution?
Pay 100% of intern housing costs!

Eureka!

“ From 2007-2008, we had a 41% increase in intern rollovers resulting in 100 new grads that came from our intern program rather than on-campus recruiting. This increased conversion saved the company $550,000 after factoring in the costs of the housing program.”
Adam Ward
Recruiting Director, Qualcomm

Ideas to Stay Engaged
SEND “Finals Week” care packages
ASSIGN a key member of your staff to keep in touch
INVITE recruits to company parties / activities
MAIL them your newsletters and announcements
REACH out to them over Facebook, Twitter, and LinkedIn

Stay connected or risk losing key recruits to other companies!

Key Takeaways 1. Know your BENCHMARKS If you aim at nothing you’ll hit it every time. 2. Give interns REAL work to do. “It doesn’t scare me to have interns making coffee. What scares me is when that’s all they do.” – Lauren Berger, Intern Queen 3. Recruit with PURPOSE. 4. GET familiar with ONBOARDING. 5. Keep in TOUCH.

Oh yeah, DO NOT turn your internship program into a competition!

“ We take for granted that students should know how to dress and behave at work. But, like it or not, this is often the experience that will teach them to know better.”
Ross Herosian
SIRUS XM
Final Thoughts….

ProfessionalStudio365.com
@EmilyBennington
[email_address]

http://www.monsterthinking.com	665
http://translate.googleusercontent.com	6
http://webcache.googleusercontent.com	1

Four Steps to a World-Class Internship Program

by Monster.com on Aug 18, 2010

Accessibility

Tags

Upload Details

Usage Rights

3 Embeds 672

Statistics

Four Steps to a World-Class Internship Program — Presentation Transcript