The Future is Limitless

Today’s college graduates are anxious. According to a recent Handshake Class of 2024 study , students are concerned with how they’ll cover basic expenses once they enter the workforce, their future job fulfillment and career advancement. These are powerful stressors for young job candidates just beginning their careers. We have a tremendous opportunity to help reduce these anxieties by offering robust internship programs that develop students’ professional capabilities, build their confidence, and put them on a positive trajectory to rewarding careers.

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Northwestern Mutual Chicago’s internship program helps students build the framework they need to be successful financial professionals. Our internship program allows students to excel beyond the classroom through an intensive 12-week program. Our goal is to provide college interns with an exceptional workplace experience so they feel enthusiastic – and prepared – to enter the workforce. As Managing Partner of the Chicago office, I’d like to share some of my tenets for success with an internship program.

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Internal support from all levels

First and foremost, I believe any internship program must have internal support from all levels of the organization for it to be successful. Our entire team is “in it to win it” – fully invested in our interns’ growth and development. The internship experience should encourage daily interactions with team members of all levels to ensure students develop a broad base of knowledge. Our entire team helps our interns to stay on track and achieve their program goals.

Northwestern Mutual Chicago is focused on producing top-of-the-line thinkers who are enabled to build a foundation for their own client base and a successful financial planning practice. At the core of our program is the development of mission-driven individuals who want to positively impact people’s lives.

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Careful vetting of prospective interns

The vital second step in the internship process is to execute a selection process that reflects our high expectations of individuals participating in our program, allows candidates to fully understand the unique opportunity our internship provides, and ultimately results in selecting individuals who are the right fit.

Carrie Merritt , director of internship and new career development at our Northwestern Mutual Chicago office, often talks about six key attributes she looks for in students seeking an internship. These include:

Background – What choices has the student made to broad their experiences and what did they learn about themselves in the process? This can help in discussing career choices.

Tenacity – Does the student show drive and determination? Students need to ‘want’ the internship.

Curiosity – Does the student possess an innate desire to know more – about people, the profession, and how they can be successful?

Listening – Do they actively listen more than they speak? Listening is vital for understanding – especially when trying to learn and understand client needs.

Communication – Many college students entering today’s internship programs attended school from home due to the COVID-19 pandemic and didn’t have much communication with their peers. It’s essential to seek strong communicators who can successfully engage with others.

Motivation – Are students self-starters who can dive into assigned tasks without much prompting?

Through our internship program, students learn all the ins and outs of financial planning from seasoned professionals. Doing so enables students to jumpstart their careers by gaining first-hand knowledge from skilled advisors who can guide them in the nuances of a financial advisory career. But more importantly, everything they learn sets them up for a lifetime of good financial habits – and puts them on a path towards greater financial security.?

I’m proud of the financial acumen we are passing along to our interns, but our internships provide skills that go beyond the financial arena. Three values can help students achieve their full potential and realize future professional success: Time, education and authenticity. I believe they should be part of any sustainable internship program.

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Time is a precious commodity and essential for business and professional success. I strongly encourage our interns to create a winning calendar for themselves, allocating the time needed to act in the direction of their vision. A winning calendar gives precedence to the vital priorities that will help them accomplish their vision – with time slots noted for each of these priorities. Only through effective time allocation can everyone win. Our company uses a variety of time management programs and educates our interns on how to use them and best practices for effective scheduling. That way, everyone can begin their day with a clear understanding of their objectives.

We have a distinctive two-fold approach to managing time called the Microscope & Telescope method. The microscope is the ‘micro’ detail – what specific things need to be accomplished each day. This helps everyone understand that to set their course for success, they must complete their daily responsibilities. The second component of this approach is the telescope, where everyone takes a broad look at their daily, weekly and monthly goals to plan out how they will successfully achieve them.

Time management is a lifetime skill, transferrable to anyone’s work and personal life – and something that should be encouraged by other organizational internship programs. A winning calendar lets students understand the impact of distractions and ensures they can minimize them by effectively scheduling their daily activities. This also lets everyone comfortably leave at the end of the day knowing they don’t have an accumulation of unresolved tasks.

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Education is vital to achieve one’s full potential. I truly believe the better educated you can be, the better resource you will be. As part of our educational commitment, Northwestern Mutual Chicago pays for our interns’ continuing education, licensing and certifications. I encourage other leaders to offer educational opportunities and resources, such as professional organizations, that complement their internship programs and provide a boost to students when they begin searching for employment.

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Encourage students to be their authentic selves. At Northwestern Mutual Chicago, we are focused on inspiring a culture where everyone feels like they can be their authentic selves—no matter their background or experience. It’s vital to let students' unique personalities and conversation styles shine. When interns feel supported and able to be themselves, they can accomplish more because they feel valued.

With the right tools and guidance, internship programs can be a launching pad for a student’s professional success. This year alone, our office is helping 13 interns reach new heights as financial professionals, and we look forward to bringing even more students aboard in 2024.

Internships offer an exciting opportunity for students to challenge themselves while making a meaningful difference. If you are interested in situating yourself for long-term success through a rewarding career of helping people on their financial journeys, let’s talk!

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