Jeanne Achille decided it was time to hire a new college intern
for her small PR firm in Shrewsbury, New Jersey. Little did she
know she was hiring the intern from hell.
His first morning on the job, the intern said he expected to
deal directly with CEOs. He made unapproved phone calls as well as
computer mistakes. The final straw came when he started telling
full-time employees how to do their jobs. The company let him go
after only one day.
The experience happened a few years ago, but the memory is still
fresh. "By 11 a.m., people were getting upset," says
Achille, president and CEO of The Devon Group, which has annual sales
surpassing $2 million. "It was a disaster."
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Internship programs provide a cheap labor source and are a handy
recruiting tool. But as Achille, 47, and others have learned, some
interns can be more trouble than they're worth-especially when
they don't show up for work, refuse assignments or have the
interpersonal skills of a 2-year-old. Handling the carnage bad
interns leave behind creates headaches for company leaders who
choose to grin and bear it.
"You usually have to mess up badly and frequently to get
fired as an intern," says Steven Rothberg, founder and
president of Minneapolis-based career site CollegeRecruiter.com.
Instead of firing an intern on the spot, he adds, "companies
tend to say '[The intern's] done in three
weeks.'"
Hire Right
Alex Ramsey is CEO of LodeStar Universal, a management consulting and
marketing firm in Dallas with annual sales of about $1 million.
While most interns have been assets, a few have been challenging,
like the intern who dressed inappropriately and chewed gum all day.
Ramsey asked the intern to stop chewing gum and offered pointers
for making her wardrobe businesslike. The intern took her advice,
but the experience left Ramsey, 51, scratching her head. "I
was shocked it didn't occur to her that this [behavior] was
unprofessional," she says.
It's easy to focus on the cost savings interns provide, but
don't forget the hidden costs. "Too many entrepreneurs
relax when hiring interns," Rothberg says. Interview interns
the same way you would anyone applying for a permanent job. Check
references, ask for school transcripts and hold competitive
interviews so applicants know you mean business. Avoid interns who
are unrealistic or unsure about their career goals, can't
provide at least two professional references, and lack basic
manners, says Larina Kase, president of Performance
and Success Coaching LLC in Philadelphia.
Now, Achille asks to see finished school projects when she
interviews potential interns. She also meets the professors
responsible for college internship programs to see what's
expected of the student and the employer. "I can't
over-emphasize this enough: There's basic paperwork you may not
be aware of," she says. "And you gain a better
understanding of the students you might get."
Ramsey asks interns to sign a "letter of agreement"
that lists up to 10 duties the intern will have. They go over the
list together, and it puts expectations in check. They also talk
about how they'll be upfront with each other if things
don't seem to be working out. "Good communication is a
good idea," Ramsey says. "Start with the end in
mind."
Getting in Sync
Like any employee, interns want to learn and grow. Make sure
managers and employees see interns as an investment instead of a
burden, and create an orientation process followed by day-to-day
managing, coaching and mentoring. A manager should spend five to 10
minutes every day going over things with the intern, and there
should be a formal progress review once a month that includes
feedback from co-workers. "Entrepreneurs need to take a look
at what they're trying to achieve with interns," Achille
says.
Give interns clear goals and a few perks to keep them motivated,
depending on their interests. Designate a point person in the
company they can go to whenever they feel lost. Achille and Ramsey
pay interns, something they both feel is important to morale and to
teaching young people about the working world.
If an intern upsets employees or customers, decide whether the
mistake merits a second chance. Discuss the problem as soon as
possible with the intern, and keep in mind that this person is
there to learn. The pivotal question is whether the intern is
willing to correct his or her behavior so the mistake doesn't
happen again. If not, then maybe it's time to let the intern
go.
An internship program can pay off, but you'll need to have
some patience to handle rough patches. "Once you fine-tune
your [internship] program," says Achille, "it can be a
positive experience."
Chris Penttila is
a freelance journalist in the Chapel Hill, North Carolina,
area.