Interns: Your Workforce in Waiting

One of the main advantages of hiring an intern is that typically they are able to take on a variety of tasks and responsibilities. Depending on the company, industry, and specific internship program, interns can perform a range of tasks in support of any enterprise.?

Companies are sometimes reluctant to hire interns simply because they are not sure what type of tasks to assign or perhaps feel that training and monitoring the intern would take up valuable resources.?

At Intern Circle, we view things differently. Interns are generally very smart, competent and driven young professionals. They do not need constant monitoring and feedback. That is why they have chosen to work (often without compensation) in an industry that they are committed to. Companies can benefit hugely from hiring interns if they define clearly the tasks and outcomes that are required, and ensure that the intern is set up for success from the beginning.?

This means giving interns clear explanations of the tasks required, clarifying what they should do if they require further explanations or support, and monitoring them as needed while they work. Below we outline some of the tasks which we think interns can perform very well in any company.?

Research: Interns can be assigned to conduct new or ongoing research on various topics relevant to the company's projects, market trends, competitors, or industry developments.

Data Entry and Analysis: Interns may assist in data entry and analysis tasks, helping to organise and analyse data sets to support decision-making processes.

Administrative Support: Interns are well-equipped to handle administrative tasks such as scheduling meetings, managing emails, handling phone calls, and organising documents. Far from being mundane, for graduates with little working experience, there is plenty to learn from administrative support tasks.

Social Media Management: Social media platforms are the playground of modern graduates. They use platforms such as TikTok, Instagram instinctively and have no problem developing original User Generated Content (UGC). They also know instinctively what appeals to young adults. Interns are a great asset when it comes to managing social media accounts, creating content, scheduling posts, and engaging with the audience.

Content Creation: As with social media platforms, interns might be involved in content creation, including writing blog posts, creating marketing materials, designing graphics, or producing videos.

Assisting with Events: At some point during the year, most companies find themselves organising on-site or off-site events. Interns are excellent at helping to??organise and coordinate events such as workshops, product launches or conferences - either in-person and virtual.

Customer Support: Interns can be assigned to providing customer support, answering inquiries, and assisting customers with their concerns.

Market Research: Interns perform very well when they are given tasks related to??market research, helping to identify potential clients or target markets. These are very focused tasks with clearly identifiable objectives which are ideal for interns working virtually or on a fixed-term engagement with your company.

Software Development: For technical internships, interns are perfect when it comes to working on software development projects, coding, testing, or debugging existing software. Technical internships such as this can be done effectively in-person or virtually.

Product Testing: Interns might be assigned to test products or software, providing feedback and helping to identify bugs or issues.

Conducting Surveys: Interns might be involved in designing and conducting surveys to gather information from existing or potential customers or employees.

Market Analysis: Interns may be tasked with analysing market trends, competitor products, or consumer behaviour. As with many other tasks, interns can perform the assigned duties either in-person or virtually. As long as the deliverables are as required, it really does not matter where the intern is based.

Language and Translation services:?Interns living and studying overseas can work very effectively for any company. Where companies are looking to explore a new market, the language and communications skills of an overseas intern can open up new possibilities for business.?

It's important to note that the tasks given to interns should be meaningful and provide a valuable learning experience. Internships are designed to offer practical exposure to the professional environment and help interns develop skills and knowledge relevant to their field of study or interest.

If your organisation is thinking of hiring an intern, connect with us and we will help you to develop an Internship Programme that will benefit you, your staff and your company as a whole.?