How interns can work for your business

In times of economic uncertainty, it can be hard to hire adequate staff or expand due to growing (or hopeful) business needs. Internships can provide positive return on investment for your business as well as tangible job experience for those in an intern position.

Earlier this year, I decided to hire two interns at my company. Knowing that my own time was limited (someone was going to have to manage these two individuals) I chose two part-time interns.

Make it worth everyone's while

You don't want to be managing a coffee fetcher any more than your intern wants to ask "one lump or two?" Create a list of tasks for your intern and a system in which your intern will update you on completed jobs. Weekly meetings, email updates and status reports are all ways to monitor tasks assigned to interns.

Think about your needs

Maybe you run a clothing store and would love it if someone did the staff schedule. Maybe you just made the social media leap and find you have no time to make updates to your channels. Make a list of the items you would love to do if you had more time in the day and categorize the ones that might be intern-worthy.

Not just for students anymore

Individuals who have lost jobs or are looking for a career change are just as interested in internship positions. Think outside the box to offer positions (and gain help) in areas of business management, marketing, staffing, community engagement, PR, etc. Use jobs sites such as salary.com to compare job titles and duties.

You have options

If you need to, start small. Try one part-time intern for three months and see how it works. Maybe you want to try an unpaid position at first to test the waters and move to a stipend or paid internship position. Do what works for your needs.