Business Intelligence: June 2022

Summer internships can be very beneficial to both students and employers, but they are not the easiest things to manage. What is one lesson you have learned about how to successfully manage an internship program?

Kathy Humm
Director of Human Resources
Harkins Builders

Our internship program has evolved into three parts — two-day orientation, two-month project/department assignment, and a presentation to the executive team at the end of the internship. Orientation has been a great way for the interns to bond with each other, learn about our culture, and get to know Harkins team members. They receive Procore and safety training and have access to our full training catalog throughout the summer. The key to a successful internship is ongoing communication from the site/department teams and human resources. The interns are encouraged to utilize the plethora of resources we offer and really stretch themselves beyond their expectations.  Our interns return to school feeling like that they were a valuable contributor to the project/department team.

Amanda Pizza
Project Manager
MK Consulting Engineers

Interns have the desire to work, to learn, and to do what everyone else in the office is doing.  No more coffee runs and copying, let them get their hands dirty in what we do every day.  Exposing them to every aspect of the engineering field is critical to getting the most out of them, and them providing you the most benefit.  Attending meetings and drafting minutes, gathering related pieces for reports, and designing in CAD; at MK, we strive to introduce the interns to people, projects, in-office and out-of-office tasks, allowing them to explore the different career paths and market segments that encompass the engineering field.

Jonathan Goetz
Senior Project Manager
Oak Contracting

As a Construction Manager, we are responsible for everything that occurs on a construction site. Our philosophy when hiring an intern is expose them to as much as we can in the short amount of time we have them. In our minds, the best way to do that is to assign them to a project and have them work onsite with the project team. We feel this will allow them to learn the responsibilities of each member of the project team and a sense of how the building is built.

Kevin Taylor
Senior Project Manager
Baltimore Fabrication

Preparation is key to success. It is easy to think interns will come in and be a part of the team and engaged from the beginning. But we have learned that it is important to engage with the interns well before they come to the office and ensure that you communicate with them these important aspects of the internship: the company’s expectations for their time within the organization; their schedule for the summer; and provide an opportunity to see as much of the organization as possible. The interns need to know what is expected of them from day one. They need a set schedule for their time within the company so they know what they will be doing, and they really want to get a taste of everything during their experience. It is important to think about these things while recruiting and hiring interns.