Employers‘ Guide: 6 Rules For A Successful Internship

In light of this need, The Department for Business Innovation and Skills (BIS) teamed up with The Gateways to the Professions Collaborative Forum in July this year to create a Common Best Practice Code for High-Quality Internships. The Forum is an ad-hoc advisory body run on a voluntary basis in order to support and enhance professional development, particularly for non-university routes.

While the code won’t force companies into adapting these regulations, it serves as guidance for them by shedding a light on what are the implications of hiring an intern.

If you're a company looking for more info, here's what you'll get from the code of practice:

1. A better definition of an internship, making a distinction between it and the compulsory module that a student has to take in order to graduate or other forms of voluntary work.
2. When is payment a requirement: companies offering a placement of six weeks or more should pay the national minimum wage (NMW) – currently £6.08 for those aged 21 and over, £4.98 for 18-20s, £3.68 - the 16-17 rate and £2.60 - the apprentice rate, for apprentices under 19 or 19 or over and in the first year of their apprenticeship. Fair enough!
3. A step-by-step guide - on how to organise your internship. If you've never had an intern before the information below should be a blessing from the sky. Read on.

Despite the fact each industry will have to customize them according to their specific needs, this provides an excellent framework to get everyone start. So, in timely order:

 1.       Preparation

This first step includes the pre-recruitment phase, in which the employer has to research into their company’s needs and create an agenda for the prospective intern. Does your company have:

• the need and/or capacity to hire an intern
• an idea of the skills and experience interns are required
• a plan: projects and teams the intern has to work with

These types of issues have to be addressed before posting an internship offer to make sure the employer has a very clear idea of who they are looking for and how to go through the process of finding the right person for the job.

2.       Recruitment

Interns’ recruitment should follow the same guidelines as when looking for any other type of employee. Just because an intern doesn’t necessarily have to stay with the firm for a long period of time doesn’t mean that they shouldn’t be given the same attention.

On the contrary, organising a rigorous recruitment phase will be beneficial for both parts: the candidates probably don’t have much experience in terms of how to behave at a job interview or how to write a fantastic cover letter so being forced to impress will definitely improve their employability in time; on the other hand, employers will also improve their headhunting skills, ending up hiring the best candidates.

3.       Induction

This step of the process is usually left out, either because of lack of time or interest. Still, familiarising the intern with the firm should be the first item to cross off the agenda. While surely the candidate has done his/her own research on the company, it is very important for them to hear first-hand information from the insider perspective.

What is more, starting a job can be quite a scary experience for recent graduates and so introducing them to the existing employees will ease their way in and make them feel like a valuable team member. The more at home they feel, the more their interest and productivity increase as well.

 4.       Treatment

While keeping in mind that most probably the interns will not have a lot of experience, it is important that the firm gives them the same attention as any other employee. Although they are there to learn more than anything, they will also give back plenty of work. In fact, they are even more motivated to give their best and deserve at least an equally thoughtful care.

It’s really important to make them feel useful and not just throw them any little job that everyone else hates to do. Diverse work that gives them some responsibility will prevent them from feeling like they’re extras which will also benefit the company in the long term. A happy and healthy working environment leads to increased performance.

 5.       Supervision and Mentoring

Any new employer will need some kind of mentoring when they’ve just started a new job. They need some time to adjust to the company’s codes of practice, in-house style, and day-to-day workflow. Extra attention has to be given to an intern because they are less experienced and probably too shy to throw questions all the time.

The supervisor has to be there in order to guide the intern with his work, provide ongoing support and feedback and generally make sure they are getting what they want out of the internship. Communication is really important and my personal tip is to keep an open and friendly relationship with the interns so as to let them feel comfortable to freely speak their mind.

 6.       Certification, reference and feedback

A great internship experience can lose its usefulness if it doesn’t get a follow-up. At the end of the placement every employer should write a reference letter detailing the work the intern has done, how they have employed and improved their skills, new skills acquired and so on. A more informal feedback should also be given to the intern, with tips and advice for future jobs.

I also recommend the supervisor and the intern to keep in touch with each other - you never know when you are going to need each other’s services in the future!

All I knew about internships was that at some point in my student life I will have to do tedious work for no money in order to have something down for my CV’s work experience section. Little did I know that there is or could be much more to that: so far the two internships I have done since I graduated have both been amazing experiences from which I learned more than I ever expected. I can positively confirm my interning experience has fallen under all principles mentioned above, and the feedback I received from my supervisors led me to believe they are really happy with the work I have done as well.

Which gives me, other students and graduates out there, and companies looking for interns reassurance that internships, whether paid or not, are not only worth-while but can also lead to fruitful and innovative collaborations that lay at the heart of economic and professional well-being.

Tags: Advice for Startups, Internships