If you’re just starting out in your business and your company is still tight for money, hiring an intern might be a huge benefit for you.
You can find an intern for just about any role, a marketer, copy writer, engineer, accountant … and the list goes on. There are times when talented interns can even fill two roles!
I remember working for a start-up company as an intern and I thoroughly enjoyed the job. Despite the salary being on the lower end of the market rate, I was keen on signing up for the role to experience a different aspect of the media industry.
The company did not hire interns prior to me, yet they constructed a productive internship programme that allowed me to dapple in several job roles. While I was hired a content writer, I got the chance to explore production, interviewing clients, social media managing and more!
As an intern, I benefited from this programme because I got the chance to pick up new skills for my resume. The company equally benefited from hiring me because they had an extra staff to help them out in their daily tasks. Considering that this was a small team, they needed as much help as they could get.
In this sense, having an intern was mutually beneficial for both me and the company. If you’ve thought about hiring an intern but haven’t made the choice yet, here are some benefits you should keep in mind.
1. Higher Businesses Productivity
Interns are usually keen on taking up new tasks and building up their experience. Act on this pro-activeness by giving them meaningful work that can help your company run smoother and more efficiently.
When I was an intern, I was given more content writing tasks for the company’s social media website. Delegating these tasks to me allowed the full-time staff to concentrate their efforts into churning out more videos and finding more talents for production. Since building the company’s production aspect was their priority at that time, having an intern allowed them to pour the resources and time needed to grow in that area.
Interns are a great add on to your current team without having to commit to a full-time salary from the get-go. Everyone could use an additional helping hand in their company, right?
2. New Perspectives
The best part about hiring interns is that they are a pool of young, talented and fresh graduates. They can bring new ideas to the table that your full-time staff might not even have thought of yet. Interns can add a valuable new perspective on issues that your company is facing and can expand your target audience to their age-group as well.
When I worked for that media company as an intern, I brought in a set of new ideas that the company had not expanded on yet. I suggested that they take their company across several social media websites for better exposure and to gain a higher following. I also suggested certain tweaks to the social media management of the company to better their audience retention. While the company did not immediately act on these steps, they applauded the contribution and worked towards adding these new perspectives to the current organizational structure.
In this sense, hiring interns is like having a breath of fresh air. They can detect loopholes in your system that you’ve previously looked over and can suggest adjustments to your company structure based on the knowledge that they’ve picked up fresh from school.
3. Transform Them into Employees
Interns are like a piece of fresh paper; they can be molded to become whoever you want them to be. Train your interns to work efficiently and productively in your team. They absorb information like a sponge and are keen on creating an impact in the working world. Expand on this interest by giving your interns opportunities to show their capabilities and talents. If your intern displays outstanding performance, it could be the perfect opportunity to gain a new employee.
I had a friend, Gina who worked as an intern in a magazine. Gina was highly capable in her job because she understood the ins and outs of the company. She was very motivated and often stayed overtime on her own accord to ensure that the work she was submitting was top-notch. When her employers saw her outstanding performance, they hired her at the end of the internship. She ended up working for the company for 5 years, before she left to continue her studies. Her employer’s investments proved to be worth it.
While not all your interns might have the caliber to be converted into full-time staff, there is a high chance that you’ll find a diamond in the haystack. Even if you don’t have the capabilities to hire a new staff, you can always extend a freelance contract to your intern or add them to your professional network.
If you’re looking for interns, Bridge.com.sg is the perfect place to start. Sign up as an employer and post your job listings for an intern. Alternatively, make full use of our lead generation system to find talented individuals to complete any assignment you require. Lead generation and the posting of banner ads are extremely affordable (from as low as $2!) and efficient on our website.