Contributed by: Jaclyn Jackson
As you are wrapping up your business’ year end numbers and planning next year’s budget, consider adding “internship” as a line item. Offering an internship is a budget friendly way to lighten heavy workloads, tackle projects, and bring youthful enthusiasm to your team. Still on the fence?
These reasons may convince you to seriously consider starting an internship program.
Leverage Time – Let’s get the most obvious out of the way. An intern can make two hands four and turn twenty four hours into forty eight. Simply stated, interns can take routine or odd tasks off your plate, so you can actually get through your to-do list.
Power Through Projects – If you’re like most, there are usually one or two projects on the backburner that you don’t have the time, experience, or manpower complete. Why not hire an intern to get those projects in motion? Take advantage of the opportunity to temporarily hire someone with a specific skillset that may not be needed permanently. For example, if you are implementing a new technology, it may be more appropriate to hire an intern studying information technology than one studying a topic related to your field. Perhaps there are operational or logistical projects, marketing or media projects, etc. than an intern can develop and train you/others to maintain.
Trial Hire - Hiring an intern gives you time to discern whether someone is a good fit for your office. You can evaluate one’s ability to manage responsibilities or see how well an individual blends with your current team. Additionally, internships can help you refine a new hire role. Through the internship, you can explore the specific needs and responsibilities most helpful to taking your business to the next level as well as determine if a seasonal, part-time, or full time employee is necessary.
Save Money – If your business is small or just starting, hiring a full time employee can be quite expensive. With interns, you don’t have to worry about the overhead costs associated with a full-time employee. Furthermore, if you decided to hire an intern fulltime, you save time and money on recruiting efforts.
Move Forward – Interns can ignite forward thinking. Since most interns are college age/young adults, they are likely familiar with and comfortable using new technologies. They may assist you in identifying where you can be more productive with the use of technology. Moreover, many interns dabble in related but different fields as they endeavor to find which they’d like to pursue professionally. If you work with someone who’s had multiple internships, they can also offer insight as to how other businesses solve the problems your business is currently facing. In other words, they can provide a unique perspective that may help you maintain competitiveness with industry peers or surpass them with out of the box (outside industry) thinking.
Jaclyn Jackson is a Portfolio Administrator and Financial Associate at Center for Financial Planning, Inc.®