What all managers should know before working with interns
Working with interns requires valuing their contributions, nurturing their growth, and integrating them into the team culture to ensure a fruitful experience for both parties.
My company recently hired an intern to help me and other colleagues.
This got me thinking on the many occasions when I was at the bottom of the corporate ladder. And it prompted me to give a short run-down of what it is to be an intern, and what more senior colleagues should do when working with undergraduates or out-of-school staff members.
We all made it through an internship. I did two since I arrived in the Brussels bubble. But BEING a good intern is fundamentally different to MANAGING one. So here are a few points to keep in mind when working with interns or junior colleagues.
Interns are not here to stay — but they shouldn’t be left aside from the company either. I see a tendency to separate interns from the rest of the staff when it comes to team building activities, special benefits, etc. This is great for cohesion. Interns do a lot of important work, and they should be considered as full staff member. After all, a six-month internship might turn into a five-year contract, and an otherwise open-ended contract employee might leave after five months. Don’t exclude your interns. They’re part of the business.
Interns are cheap — but that’s no reason to delegate them low-value tasks only. There are parts in businesses that demand huge efforts and yield small benefits. Don’t just give them to interns. Instead, find ways to automate these tasks or drop them all together. Give high-value tasks to your interns, as you would your staff.
Interns are here to learn — let them make mistakes. You can’t expect a young employee to do the job of someone with ten years of experience. And in a sense, that’s the deal with internships: you don’t pay only in cash, but also in skills. Make sure your interns leave your organisation as fully skilled junior employees. That’s your responsibility as a manager.
Have regular catch-up meetings with your interns. I can’t thank my earlier managers enough for the precious time they dedicated to me each week. They had deadlines, crushing work, yet they systematically made it a priority to meet 30 minutes to an hour every week. There’s no other way to bring a junior up to speed. If you don’t have a catch-up with your intern, schedule one right away.
Interns won’t do your job as well as you do. That’s not a reason for not giving them a try. Your company gives you resources to help you do more and better. Use it. Delegate tasks to your intern that will allow you to achieve more. Don’t try to do it all yourself.
Don’t forget your interns are entitled to a personal life too. I know many a lobbyist who work early in the morning, late in the evening, sometimes on weekends, and always keep their professional phones at hand on holidays. While this is extremely detrimental to your mental health (don’t get me started, I can go on forever on this topic), try not to impose this lifestyle on your interns. I would argue that you should sometimes remind interns to respect the working schedule and to close their computers when the time has come.
Keep your interns informed. If they are involved in a project, let them know of all relevant development. Invite them to attend meetings even if they won’t contribute. This is for them to get acquainted with the tasks at hand and, in the end, help you achieve more.
This is by no means an exhaustive list. But these are elements that I think are important when working with interns, both for their sake and the organisation’s.
I’m always curious to hear from you, so don’t hesitate to comment on it.