Interns inject new ideas and perspectives into established workflows. They also prompt companies to reassess and enrich their corporate culture. The symbiotic relationship between interns and companies fosters an environment of growth, innovation, and diversity.

Two OMEP clients, Streimer and Summit Truck Body, illustrate just how impactful interns can be.

Streimer Gains Efficiencies with Intern George Riera

George Riera, a Portland State University student and general go-getter, is a testament to the impact of a well-structured internship. Although he had finished his junior year of college and had much of the experience needed for the job, he lacked confidence. 

Tasked with designing a fixture to lift machinery, George navigated the entire design process under the guidance and mentorship of Streimer’s manufacturing engineering team. The result was a successful product that can be deployed in the field to help deliver on jobs throughout the area.

Here are a few key takeaways: 

• The Streimer team maximized their benefits with a project that was well-defined with deliverables, metrics, and a budget.  
• George learned that slower is sometimes faster. He came into the internship having a brief description of the project and had spent a great deal of time coming up with big ideas. He dove in full speed ahead. He learned that he needed to slow down and get more information and talk to others before coming up with concepts. He learned how to prioritize tasks, set realistic deadlines, and create schedules.
• He also learned the importance of tolerancing. He jokingly said he started by ‘measuring once and swearing twice.’ His mistakes on measurements created rework, waste, and cost to the company, and this was a big learning to double check measurements and his work before it’s manufactured.

The project was multifaceted and he was able to pull from his knowledge as well as learn on the job. He said it was fun to bring together the education and hands-on learning. He gained confidence in his abilities. 

After the internship, OMEP was asked to help Streimer create an Internship Guide to use as they bring in more interns in other parts of the company. They see this is a great opportunity to introduce students to manufacturing and give them industry work experience.  

Summit Truck Body Freshens Up their Social with Intern Maria Prestidge

University of Oregon student Maria Prestidge’s tenure at Summit was marked by her significant contributions to their marketing. 

Maria Prestidge worked on marketing videos and collateral for Summit’s website and socials, and came up with content that was fresher and more attention-getting with the younger audience they were targeting.  As a result, they gained more and different applicants in their job pool. 

Here are some of the key takeaways:

• Maria added to the diversity of the company. She was young, college educated, and demographically different from the type of person they typically hire. This was a decidedly significant benefit to Summit.
• As was Streimer, Summit Truck Body was prepared. Their goal was to make the internship a good learning experience so they spent some time setting expectations, thinking about ways to give the intern exposure to interesting projects, and incorporated them into the culture rapidly.
• The end result was they got the best work and engagement from Maria, and after the initial internship, Summit hired Maria part-time until she returned to the University of Oregon this Fall.

OMEP Can Help you Set the Stage for Interns and Employees that Will Pay Dividends for Years

The benefits go far beyond what the interns bring to the table. The preparation and specification of employees roles and responsibilities is exactly what we advocate that companies do to get engaged workers who understand their contributions. 

• Creative Contributions: Interns bring fresh ideas that resonate with diverse audiences.
• Enhanced Company Culture: The presence of interns encourages companies to reassess and improve their corporate culture, making it more inclusive and dynamic. It’s easy to say you’re going to revamp your culture. But when you’re entrusted with a young person and want to give them a good experience, it creates more urgency.
• Mentorship and Growth: The interns benefited from the mentorship they received. The experience also contributed to the personal and professional growth of their mentors and teams.
• Long-Term Impact: The experiences and relationships formed during the internships have lasting effects, both for the interns’ career prospects and the companies’ approach to talent and diversity.

Interns like George and Maria augment our capacity and challenge us to think differently. Both companies came away with a broadened idea of the type of people who may be a good fit for their company culture, as well as contributing fresh ideas and perspectives. 

Interested in learning more about the benefits of creating an internship program? 

Request your no-cost assessment today.