Four Ways Internships Boost Employee Engagement

From an intern’s perspective, the benefits of an internship are obvious. However, with internships being mutually beneficial relationships, let us not forget what organizations can reap from the opportunity.

Welcoming interns into your workplace, whether during the summer or throughout the year, breathes new life into the office.Click To Tweet

It helps improve work that has become stale and complacent. And it can give a much-needed boost in employee engagement, especially around these four areas:

Culture – Bringing fresh faces into the mix switches things up and helps lift spirits by adding a new element to the culture. Be open minded to interns impacting the culture by encouraging them to share their thoughts and ideas. They can offer a new perspective on a project that your employees are too close to.

Workload – Students and new grads are not only bringing new ideas to the table and helping shake things up, they can offer reprieve for employees who are overworked. Having the extra hands around the office goes a long way with your employees and their very full plates. Giving some of your hard workers a much-needed reprieve can help keep your valued employees happy.

Talent Acquisition/New Hires – There’s nothing worse than making a bad new hire. Bringing interns in is like test driving a car – you’re trying them out and likewise, they’re trying out your organization. By getting to know the interns’ skills and workstyle, you can determine if they’re the right fit for the role, risk free. Hiring and engaging interns is a great way to identify and recruit new talent.

Management/Growth – Employees focused on growth and moving to the next step in their career need opportunities. Along with hiring interns comes the responsibilities for managing them. Staff management is a great growth opportunity for junior-level staff that has not yet had the opportunity to supervise individuals. Offering that supervisory experience is invaluable for not only that person’s development, but for the development of the organization.

In what ways has hiring interns impacted your workforce?

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