Presentation delivered by Kara Yarnot of SAIC on 12/7/2011 at The George Washington University at the FedCollege recruiting conference co-organized by RECSOLU and CollegeRecruiter.com.

1. Creating & Executing an Effective Intern
Conference
FedCollege Corporate Conference
Kara Yarnot, SAIC
ENERGY & ENVIRONMENT • NATIONAL SECURITY • HEALTH • CYBERSECURITY
© SAIC. All rights reserved.

2. About Me
@klyarnot
S AI C . c o m
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3. Agenda
• Goals of Intern Program
• What is an Intern Conference?
• Key Components and Best Practices
• Execution Tips
• Questions
S AI C . c o m
© SAIC. All rights reserved.

4. Goals of Intern Program
Grad
Students
NSBE
Students Top
Students
Juniors
Branding Accountin
g Majors
Former
Interns
Top Talent
Pipeline
Experience
S AI C . c o m
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5. What is an Intern Conference?
• An intern conference can take many forms. Some examples:
– Traditional conference style with general and breakout sessions
– Experiential learning opportunity
– Professional development and networking opportunity
– Teambuilding opportunity
– Executive interaction
– Large- or small-scale event
• Best Practice: Find the right balance of all forms that is appropriate for your audience
S AI C . c o m
© SAIC. All rights reserved.

6. Key Components and Best Practices/Ideas
•Key Note speech
• Executive involvement •Lunches
•Competition judging
•Assign interns to ‘teams’ for entire event, create
points system, award prizes
•Create contest/competition related to company
• Community/Team Building technology or product
•Social event – monument tours, field day event,
beach party, bowling
•Facility tours
• Exposure to company products / services •Hands-on experience with product /technology
•Workshops with senior staff
•Networking
•Resume Reviews/Mock Interviews
• Professional Development/Seminars •Presentation Skills
•Reverse career fair
S AI C . c o m
© SAIC. All rights reserved.

7. Execution Tips/Lessons Learned
• Location
– Space should include rooms for general sessions/meals and breakout sessions
– Consider using company facilities, if possible
– One conference for all interns at headquarters vs. regional conferences?
• Travel/Lodging
– To reduce costs, schedule events to allow day-of travel
– Consider having local interns stay at hotel with non-local interns
– Arrange early check-in or baggage storage at hotel
• Intern Manager Commitment
– Brief intern managers on conference agenda and goals
– Include managers in breakout sessions, networking
• Leverage your conference to improve branding
– One large, unique logo item is appreciated more than several small logo items
– Distribute Flip Cameras to some interns and put footage on your career site
– Invite execs/managers skeptical about intern program to attend a portion of the conference
S AI C . c o m
© SAIC. All rights reserved.

8. Questions?
S AI C . c o m
© SAIC. All rights reserved.