How to Find Awesome Interns

When it comes to summer internships, an internship at Google is pretty much at the top of the totem pole. Google interns get nearly everything that full-time employees get, e.g. free cafes, a gym, a basketball court, recreational classes in yoga and salsa dancing, etc.

Being an intern at Microsoft isn’t bad either: free pizza and clothing, a Cirque du Soleil show, an engraved Zume digital media player, and a complimentary Windows 7 phone.

How do smaller businesses and entrepreneurs such as financial advisory practices compete with these glittering heavyweights?

Pretty good article from Nathan Parcells of Internmatch.com provides some insight. His #1 tip is to be proactive. Go directly to local colleges and universities. Get to know department heads and the career guidance office. Make your pitch at entrepreneurship classes and networking events. Above all else, find your “campus evangelists” who can refer peers and classmates.

There’s some more good information on the Financial Planning Association website. Author and mover-and-shaker Deena Katz advises that if you plan to use an intern as a go-fer doing grunt work, you risk creating a disillusioned young employee who may be forever turned-off with the financial services industry. Know exactly what you are interviewing for. If it’s a career path, or a summer internship only, let the intern know exactly the kind of experience that they’ll receive.

Also, you get what you pay for. If you expect professional ethics, professional dress, and expect the intern to take the job seriously, you'll need to compensate them accordingly. Depending upon their skill-set and where you are located geographically, a range of $12-20 per hour should be anticipated.

Finally, appreciate the subtle difference of working the Millennial generation. Millennials (born between 1980-2000) generally expect structure, guidance, and leadership…as well as continual challenges. Nice article here that offers 11 Tips for Managing Millennials.

Hope these tips help in finding a great summer intern.

Who needs some lame Microsoft t-shirt anyway?

by Chris Holman