How Interns can be a game changer

This is the full post from StartupDigest: Hiring Hacks for Founders. Organized by StartupDigest University, the insider’s guide to the startup world.

Nathan Parcells, Founder at InternMatch

About Nathan:

• Nathan graduated Summa Cum Laude from the University of Pennsylvania where he double-majored in Economics and International Relations.
• Nathan gained experience in marketing while working at Arnold Worldwide and in the environmental community after completing internships at both the National Audubon Society and the National Parks Conservation Association.
• Seeking adventure and the outdoors, Nathan spent his summer before graduation sailing the Labrador coast of NE Canada in a crew of six and with no prior sailing experience. This trip furthered Nathan’s interest in the environment, confronting challenges, and learning in new situations.
• Currently Nathan enjoys working on InternMatch and meeting new people as the platform grows.

The presentation notes:

1. How interns add value

Interns can be experienced – especially in the current economy there is a lot of highly skilled individuals both young and senior. Some benefits of hiring an intern include:

• It’s a back door of hiring top talent.
• Get part-time help at a discount.
• Fill in gaps on the founding team.
• Gain early evangelists.
• Hear an outside perspective.

2. How to Recruit top interns

Places to look:

• Internship sites like InternMatch.com.
• Direct from colleagues.
• Craigslist – however you wont find the upper echelon there.

Pitching:

• Pitch what you do well – sell the vision of the company.
• Promote your investors, press coverage and the team talent to illustrate a great environment.
• Let the intern know what they will learn especially the stuff that they cannot from a school.

3. Tips and tricks for intern management

• Assign a dedicated manager to the intern.
• Grab coffee with them once a week.
• Explain the intern’s work in the context of the bigger company picture.
• Give really clear deadlines on projects like at school eg. iterations with feedback.
• Use Non-Monetary Rewards to motivate them. 99% of them are not there for the money. They are there for the culture, experience, networking and knowledge to set them apart in the marketplace.

Other StartupDigest Seminars covered by Ernest Semerda: StartupDigest (3/3): Hiring Hacks for Founders StartupDigest (2/3): Top 5 HR Mistakes & Compensation 101 StartupDigest (1/3): Attracting, Hiring and Retaining the Best People

~ Ernest

Linked mentioned in this post

• StartupDigest: http://startupdigest.com/
• Internship | Find Intern Jobs and Paid Internships | InternMatch: http://www.internmatch.com/