Why Internship Programs Are So Important

Interns are great. Everyone loves the idea of having their own minion for the summer to do the things they have been pushing off for months. But internships are so much more than that. Beyond getting us coffee, it gives us a chance to connect with another person, maybe even another generation for a brief period of time. This can give us insight to what is up and coming as far as interests, technology and how these things are being used. It can bring creativity and new ideas of how to do business, complete projects or even lead to altering the products we produce.

From a recruiting standpoints, internships can be a great pathway to find talent because it gives companies a chance to “try before you buy.” As more and more millennials enter the workforce, companies will be flooded with choice. For most, it is easier to make a decision on someone they have already seen work rather than to take a chance on the unknown.

It also gives us a chance to help shape the future. The mentoring that happens between the manager and intern helps them to learn the norms of being in the business world and shapes how they interact with people in a professional setting. It better prepares them for when they are finally ready to join the “real world” permanently.

Without internships, we see many graduating students out looking for jobs and finding it hard – not just because of the information they learned during their internship, but because those with intern experience already know what to expect to a certain degree. This is why internships are so important and why companies should offer as many internship opportunities as they can. If you haven’t had an internship program at your company before, here are a few tips to get you started:

Start off small. Creating one meaningful internship per year is better than none and still helps contribute to helping the future.

Make sure you have a plan. This should be a worthwhile and fulfilling experience for the intern as well as the manager. Ideally, a project or series of small projects would be assigned to the intern for them to take ownership. This will help them when they join the “real world” because they will be able to speak highly of both the projects they worked on and the company that provided the opportunity.

Have activities outside of work. It is just as important for interns to know how to interact with people at work as well as outside of work. This also helps build team skills. Arrange fun activities like mini golf with managers and interns to create this environment. If you only have one intern or others don’t want to participate, work with other businesses with interns to get together as a group.

From the interactions we have with interns – the things we learn, the things they learn – it truly is a win-win for everyone.