The benefits of internships for employers

Businesses offering internship programmes stand to benefit in a variety of ways. One of the more significant advantages is the opportunity to identify and develop future talent for your business.

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Businesses offering internship programmes stand to benefit in a variety of ways. One of the more significant advantages is the opportunity to identify and develop future talent for your business. Interns can bring fresh ideas, new thinking, and provide additional capacity within your business when you need it most.

When surveyed employers listed the following benefits of internships:

  • bring in additional resources which can help boost capacity
  • open the recruitment pool to a broader range of talent
  • introduce in fresh ideas and a different ways of thinking
  • provide resource for special projects which might not otherwise happen
  • develop relations with local colleges and universities.

Internships can provide employers with an opportunity to identify future talent. Many businesses go on to employ those who have previously worked for them as interns as full-time staff. Taking on someone who has already demonstrated their abilities and understands the business removes some of the risk and expense of recruiting new staff.

Internships are also a good way of forming links with local colleges and universities, which can help raise the profile of a business and help it attract future talent. These links can also help to ensure that colleges and universities have a better understanding of type of skills that employers look for.

 

IN FOCUS: INTERNSHIPS IN THE UK

Around one-third of UK businesses have employed an intern1. Many businesses, however, do not, meaning that a large number of employers of all sizes could be missing out on the benefits potentially offered through opening internship opportunities.

London has the highest proportion of businesses taking on interns. Around one-half of businesses in the capital either employ or have employed an intern. Wales currently has the lowest proportion of businesses offering internship opportunities with less than one in ten employing interns.

 

AN EMPLOYER’S PERSPECTIVE 

'Taking on an intern gave us a great opportunity to get to know the potential employee without forming contractual commitments on day 1. The result was that we were able to assess a whole range of skills that simply cannot be determined at interview stage.

‘Happily, the employee surpassed expectation and we backdated a contract to the point at which she joined and that was the start of a successful 10-year relationship. I would urge anyone to give someone a chance to showcase their skills for longer than the usual work experience periods, you never know what you might find!’

Paul Bithrey FCCA ACA

1 Based on a YouGov poll of over 1,000 UK businesses undertaken on behalf of Intern Aware