Benefits of Having an Internship Program

If you don’t know already, small and medium sized businesses have been reaping the benefits of internship programs for years. These programs have the potential to be a win-win relationship for both the intern themselves and the company for which the intern is working. So, is your company taking advantage of these rewards?  Let’s take a closer look at the advantages of developing a successful internship program for your business.

If your business is contemplating starting an internship program realize that while there are definite obligations and responsibilities, there are also a multitude of advantages for both the intern and company hosting the program.

For the Company: 

• New Perspective – Many businesses have a natural routine and organization to them. Using an intern can mean a new perspective on the “old grind”. Having a younger member of the team who is fresh and optimistic may mean that they question why something is done a certain way or have a fresh perspective on how something within your product or service can be done more efficiently or can better serve the customer.
• Knowledge of Technology – Let’s face it, interns tend to be better in touch with the latest and greatest on the technology front especially social media, and the most recent gadgets. Using that knowledge can give a boost to your company.
• FREE Labor – While interns do take considerable effort to mentor, they also are free labor which means your employees can be freed up from the more mundane aspects of their job to do more meaningful work.
• Future Workforce – Close to 68% of interns are offered some sort of position in a company post internship. That means that the time during an internship is a great opportunity for employers to see the talents and skills that can be added to their company – very much like a test drive before buying.

For the Intern: 

• Exposure and Experience – Two of the main reasons why college age students pursue an internship is to gain valuable experience and exposure to a given field that they otherwise would not gleam through regular studies. This resume building experience makes it just that much easier to get a job post graduation.

• Marketability – Students who have completed an internship tend to get jobs faster.

  On average, only 30% of graduating seniors have job offers before graduation; however, after completing an internship, that figure rises to 58%. 

• Contacts – Even if an intern is not offered the dream position in the company in which they interned for, they have had ample opportunity to build a strong list of contacts.

Categorised in: Blog, employee issues