Great Article!! I am a Dad of two boys, I share my precious moments with my BabySpot profile. Security features are #1 for me! I built BabySpot.com strictly for my boys and to be able to share those moments with family and friends without placing those pics/videos on myspace or facebook….Its all about my boys! That’s how I use my BabySpot. I am sorry if this sounds like an ad..lol but I am really excited about be able to offer parents in the digital age a BabySpot Profile!
Awesome that you found this blog post! I like what you wrote in your comment regarding having a designated place to share content that’s NOT on Facebook. Given the recent hoopla surrounding the Terms of Service, I make it a point to be very careful in terms of what I post and don’t post on Facebook. As an end-user, you’re really limited in your ability to protect how your content is shared. Great to hear that you’ve taken that into account when thinking about Babyspot.com.
I didn’t say this in my post, but as much as I’m thankful that my parents didn’t use Web 2.0 to share my childhood photos and videos, part of me does appreciate parents today who do. While some might feel slightly violated, I do know that they will appreciate seeing the happiness and love that’s embedded in that content.
Thanks for the shout out Alexa. This has been a topic that’s been on my mind for a while and I do what I can to minimize my (and my family’s) exposure. What I’m sure of is my kids will have a very good understanding of how to navigate the myriad ToS and permission structures when it comes time for them to start sharing in the digital world.
As a parent of a 3-year-old whose life I occasionally chronicle online, I too have concerns about what’s appropriate to post. For example when our daughter was 18-months-old we had a very cute picture of her but she was jay-bird and my wife was adamant about not putting it on our blog for a variety of valid reasons.
Of course some of what I see people sharing on Facebook is far too TMI. When I was in college all the same embarrassing pictures were taken but their half-life was measured in months and the circle of viewers was smaller – and didn’t include parents or potential employers/clients. Does Web 2.0 mean that people will change behaviors or that new transparency will lessen hypocrisy?
Thom – great to see you on here Thanks for reading and good to meet you the other day.
I don’t think Web 2.0 is going to change behaviors at all because individuals drive the technology. Even though the tools and mediums for communication might evolve, we’re still going to see similar patterns of human behavior. The difference is our willingness to give up privacy for the sake of transparency.
I had someone tell me the other day, “You kids have no respect for privacy. You’re all a bunch of voyeurs and attention seekers.” This may be true, but I’d rather see this than a generation that’s dishonest, anti-social, and selfish.
Congrats on choosing a course for your next adventure! I’m sure you’ll do well and please reach out if there’s anything I can do to help. Change is good!
I’m sad to see one of my fellow Gen Ys go, but I’m super excited to see one of us take the risk and do what they are most passionate above. Go carry the torch for our generation
You are going to change the world Alexa – don’t forget that you can. There is great power that comes from proactively pursuing your own interests. Can’t wait to hear more about your plans! Best of luck embracing all the changes and let me know how I can help.
@SaraFowler – I’ll shoot you an email. Curious about your plans and the big move you’re making.
Jim, Rachel, Matt S, and Matt C – So lucky to have you as part of my Mzinga experience. The best part of my job was working with a great group of people. It wasn’t easy to leave New York, but having a supportive team and community made Boston and Burlington feel like home.
Congrats on your decision– very proud of you. I’m glad to see you’re keeping it real & am sure you’re going to do very well. Life is all about pursuing your passions– never doubt it for a minute….Looking forward to staying in touch & let me know if there’s anything I can do for you!
It is a horrible and often unfortunate generalization to assume college students looking for internships already have their basic needs paid for. I put myself through school and had to pay tuition, rent, insurance, groceries, etc. myself. I actually did it without loans because I was able to make $12.50 an hour at several intern-type jobs (and was able to gain valuable experience so I was qualified for more than an entry-level position after graduation).
Many friends of mine in similar situations, however, were forced to work waitressing or retail jobs to pay the bills, missing out on the awesome networking and experience the privileged kids who could take free internships got. The kids willing to work their butts off to put themselves through school are the ones far more likely to be valuable to your company both during and after the internship; make the investment and pay them *something*.
Though there are of course exceptions, internships by definition favor the rich and privileged. How else could one work for free, often full time, in a city like New York or LA? Sure, some non-privileged people can make it work through all sorts of tricks, but generally speaking if you can work for free for that long, you have a safety net or background financing that most people simply don’t enjoy.
Internships should for this reason be illegal. They’re how privileged people often get their foot in the door – to a company, or for a given career – and for that reason overwhelmingly favor those who, ironically, don’t need the extra help. Even worse – (I went to a college with a dramatically wealthy student body) – the people who do get those internships never realize how instrumental they were to the launching of their careers. In fact, they barely think about it, and are generally completely unaware of the restrictions preventing most people from pursuing them. In their humble opinion, it was all them. They worked hard, they deserve it, and the playing field, as far as they can tell, is as flat as can be.
@sarah – I look at recent graduates our age and I find the ones who are most competent when it comes to handling life’s challenges, are the ones who have had to be more independent as students. It’s really so unfortunate when I hear words like “selfish” and “coddled” thrown around during conversations about Millennials. It completely dismisses all of the hard work that many individuals put in to get to where they are.
@jon – Thanks for reading. Having gone to a school with a pretty wealthy student body myself, I can completely attest to having the same experience. A lot of the kids who got those prized paid internships or those foot-in-the-door experiences didn’t necessarily get them out of merit. And wouldn’t you agree that most of the internships that are paid tend to be the ones in finance?
While I agree with you conceptually and was in a very similar position during and after college – I gave up certain internships and jobs (I wanted to work on Capitol Hill but couldn’t afford to live off of $13k a year even with a second job) – it is unfortunately just not the way the world works. There will always be young men and women that can afford to not take a salary and because of that, there will always be organizations looking for free talent.
Other than legislation which is unlikely, I don’t know that it is solvable. Nor is it a new problem – in D.C. I was uncompetitive for some unpaid internships because I didn’t have a Masters or Ph.D. degree if you can believe it.
In my case I participated in a mix of things. I had some retail/waitressing/campus jobs, I did some shorter unpaid internships while working other jobs, I was lucky enough to have some paid internships, and I took a low paying job out of college that I had to supplement with a second job.
My intention here is not to be cynical but just to throw a dose of reality into the conversation. The reality is that we don’t all have the same reserves growing up – and we don’t start careers at the same place. My grandparents were farmers and 2 of them didn’t have high school degrees. It took the hard work and persistence of a couple of generations to get me to where I am today. That has always been the American story of prosperity but it takes a while…and there are a lot of bumps along the way.
Alexa, I agree with you completely that unpaid internships are unacceptable, however; I still think that students should have the right to work for free. There are situations in which an intern is not worth taking unless unpaid, but for the most part any real business that takes on interns should pay at least minimum wage. My Dad is an architect and his professional organization (the AIA) requires that all members pay interns, but he always says, “if you can’t make more than 10 bucks an hour off of an intern, then you shouldn’t be in business.” I think that’s about right.
I help a lot of college students find internships (paid and unpaid), but I’m not sure how to initiate change that will lead to more companies paying their interns. The laws are already pretty strict about unpaid internships, they’re just not enforce. I wrote an article about it here:
The best answer is probably to create a business case showing that paid interns are of higher talent and perform better than unpaid interns. Is that true? I don’t know, but I’d bet it is.
I agree wholeheartedly. If companies really want the best interns, and if they hope to convert those interns to successful employees who are willing to work diligently for them, they should show us, the members of Gen Y, that they actually understand how valuable our skill set is. Most people over 30 cannot even begin to fathom how in-depth and dynamic our experience is in interpersonal communication and new media processes.
Great post! Let’s hope it actually awakens people into realizing that the best way to insure company growth is to reinvest in your people.
Alexa – Thanks for a thoughtful post. Forgive me… I’m catching up in Reader after being largely “off the grid” for a couple weeks in Japan.
I’ve hired a lot of college interns over the years and always felt the right thing to do was pay them a “living wage” (often $10-12/hour). I wasn’t really seeing this as leveling the playing field between the haves and have nots, it just seemed like the right thing to do.
Just because you CAN in business, doesn’t always mean you SHOULD. Whether it’s not paying interns or squeezing vendors in tough times, I don’t think it’s the best way to build a healthy company (or society). While I’m as much a capitalist as the next guy, I want my team and partners to feel good about working for/doing business with me. If paying interns a small stipend to buy beers over the weekend gives them the flexibility to not take on another job, that’s good for me and my company.
With that said, I agree with Rachel in that most medium/large companies don’t take this approach. It’s their choice and if an applicant doesn’t want to play that game (or have the wherewithal to), I don’t think we should attempt to force change.
We all make choices in our career and whether it’s suffering for a period of time to take the unpaid internship that’s going to open doors in the future or taking a job that offers the flexibility for you to pursue a personal passion on the side, it’s our choice. Have a career game plan and then do what it takes to get you there. Unpaid internships may be part of the journey depending on what you choose.
Thanks again for throwing this out there for discussion. It got me thinking about decisions I’ve made it my career and how I want to grow my business moving forward. Both are top of mind these days.
This is a well timed discussion as many organizations are looking at their summer internship programs. I agree that it is good business sense to pay an intern for their work in some way. I would agree with Jim and others that a nominal wage of 10-12 an hour depending on the Metro area is appropriate. Other ways to compensate might be to pay for the course the internship is providing credits to or to make an in kind donation to the alma mater the student is attending.
I think the best way to think about it is… if this were my child, grandchild, nephew, god child etc. Would I pay them? If the answer is yes, than do it for everyone! You get what you PAY for in life.
I graduated in an economic downturn when it was an achievement to gett a job with benefits. I feel for the class of 2009.
I love all the feedback in this post! When I wrote it, I was hoping that it would provoke a lot of this type of feedback. I’m finding that people are really passionate about talking about jobs, money, and careers these days (surprise, surprise) and what I’m trying to bring to the forefront are the implications that this has on the next generation of workers down the road.
Rachel, Jim, and Willy – Completely understand that change isn’t easy and that the world is the way it is. People will always have competitive advantages over others. It’s my hope that we can be a bit more proactive in leveling the playing field by setting some standards when it comes to worker compensation at the student level. I think that the more conscious we are as a society, the more companies will be inclined to adjust their attitudes/policies.
Shawn – You touched on something that I think is the core of what will resonate most with businesses – talent management. If companies can identify talent within an intern and convert them to an employee, it’s a long-term win.
Pauline – “If this were my child…” I love that phrase because I think companies need to realize that the professional world should no longer function based on *their* needs. As gen-y matures in the workplace, we’ll essentially adopt the value systems that we’ve been taught. All businesses need to do today is ask themselves if they’re managing Millennials in the same way they want us to manage their grandkids.
Bravo, Alexa. Our personalities will shift over time (especially those of us who are up and coming) but fortunately I think I’ve tried to communicate this through my blog and my commenting style. It’s open ended and up for observation/criticism.
My digital history is easy to track. I’ve been online constantly since 1996 and have participated in a wide range of social networking activities within that time frame. Arguably to many… But you do get an idea of how I’ve grown as a person and I think that may be the most important aspect of our online path.
You don’t even mention the newest phenomenon of students paying for the priviledge of having an internship. I always had to work in school and had to turn down several unpaid internship opportunities because I would have had no way to make rent or eat. If a company is going to offer an internship that is meaningful to both the company and the intern – i.e. the intern will be doing actual work – then that internship should be paid at least minimum wage if not more.
Hi Alexa,
I would like to clarify something, I did not state “sometimes you don’t have to pay for interns, gen y will throw themselves at you.” I was attending an event in West Point Nebraska, and Caleb Pollard was speaking. Caleb said that, would you please update your post to reflect that?
Again to follow up on our conversation at the Puma event.
When I first came to the US from the UK in 1992, I was very surprised that people would work for free doing internships. A concept unknown I think in the UK at the time. Over time I began to see the value to both employers and interns for this sort of non-financial relationship.
I’ve also hired several interns at several previous companies. Backbone Media, and 48hourprint.com. Not only did those non-paid interns get to do some great work. Two of my interns at backbone Media were involved in two major blogging studies and were credited on the studies, but both eventually were hired by my company. Another intern, a person in their 40’s, was getting back into the marketing workforce, and the experience at 48hourprint.com helped them get up to speed with the current state of internet marketing. They eventually got a job at 48hourprint.com and they have gone onto a successful career as a director of marketing.
I think internships give small companies a chance to get to know people, and interns the opportunity to do the same as well as get some great experience.
I do agree with you that my preference would be to pay people, but if you don’t have the budget to do that, and there are people who would genuinely gain value from the experience I think it is a good strategy to follow.
Hi Alexa,
I would like to clarify something, I did not state “sometimes you don’t have to pay for interns, gen y will throw themselves at you.” I was attending an event in West Point Nebraska, and Caleb Pollard was speaking. Caleb said that, would you please update your post to reflect that?
Again to follow up on our conversation at the Puma event.
When I first came to the US from the UK in 1992, I was very surprised that people would work for free doing internships. A concept unknown I think in the UK at the time. Over time I began to see the value to both employers and interns for this sort of non-financial relationship.
I’ve also hired several interns at several previous companies. Backbone Media, and 48hourprint.com. Not only did those non-paid interns get to do some great work. Two of my interns at backbone Media were involved in two major blogging studies and were credited on the studies, but both eventually were hired by my company. Another intern, a person in their 40’s, was getting back into the marketing workforce, and the experience at 48hourprint.com helped them get up to speed with the current state of internet marketing. They eventually got a job at 48hourprint.com and they have gone onto a successful career as a director of marketing.
I think internships give small companies a chance to get to know people, and interns the opportunity to do the same as well as get some great experience.
I do agree with you that my preference would be to pay people, but if you don’t have the budget to do that, and there are people who would genuinely gain value from the experience I think it is a good strategy to follow.
Hi Alexa – Thanks for the shout-out(s)! Rachel and I are having a lot of fun building The Community Roundtable, but I think it might have me slipping into a new type of blogger…
The Dinosaur: Someone who used to blog somewhat frequently, but seems to have gone extinct.
I’ll drag myself out of the tar pits and do my best to get “my motor running” again on the blog.
You’re right – personal branding will be a distinctly different challenge for a generation learning to establish themselves on the Web at the same time that they navigate their changing personal identity. I think that the transition could be looked at as something similar to a celebrity, constantly evolving to try to stay current and popular. Similarly, Millennials who care about personal branding will have to do so in the public eye. Hopefully, we won’t suffer the same backlash when there’s an “Oops!” moment but I’m not holding my breath.
Nowadays, it is so hard to find a decent job after graduation even internship because there are some got unpaid. And due to the crisis right now, I found out about bloodbanker.com which they have all the information all of the Blood center in the United States where you can get paid $50/hour to donate blood!. This is really helpful even if it’s just a part time job and the bottom line of this is to save lives. As we all know, Blood bank shortages kill tons of people all the time and it is time to spread the word about blood donation and give blood, you will never know when You might need blood.
By the way do you have a twitter or facebook account so that I can folow you.. I found your topic interesting.. thanks
Despite how “generation fail” and other labels anger me, it never ceases to amuse me, too.
–30 seconds later I’ve become a statistic; I opened the mentioned link, read a bit, and spaced on my planned comment! Ha.
[...] two shared the story of how they met (“The ROI of an Email”) and became friends through, well, a good pitch by Alexa- and how Alexa found her job through [...]
92 Comments
Great Article!! I am a Dad of two boys, I share my precious moments with my BabySpot profile. Security features are #1 for me! I built BabySpot.com strictly for my boys and to be able to share those moments with family and friends without placing those pics/videos on myspace or facebook….Its all about my boys! That’s how I use my BabySpot. I am sorry if this sounds like an ad..lol but I am really excited about be able to offer parents in the digital age a BabySpot Profile!
Nice Blog by the way!
Thanks
James
Co-Founder of BabySpot.com
Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/jamesatbabyspot
James,
Awesome that you found this blog post! I like what you wrote in your comment regarding having a designated place to share content that’s NOT on Facebook. Given the recent hoopla surrounding the Terms of Service, I make it a point to be very careful in terms of what I post and don’t post on Facebook. As an end-user, you’re really limited in your ability to protect how your content is shared. Great to hear that you’ve taken that into account when thinking about Babyspot.com.
I didn’t say this in my post, but as much as I’m thankful that my parents didn’t use Web 2.0 to share my childhood photos and videos, part of me does appreciate parents today who do. While some might feel slightly violated, I do know that they will appreciate seeing the happiness and love that’s embedded in that content.
Thanks for reading,
Alexa
Thanks for the shout out Alexa. This has been a topic that’s been on my mind for a while and I do what I can to minimize my (and my family’s) exposure. What I’m sure of is my kids will have a very good understanding of how to navigate the myriad ToS and permission structures when it comes time for them to start sharing in the digital world.
Jim | @jimstorer
As a parent of a 3-year-old whose life I occasionally chronicle online, I too have concerns about what’s appropriate to post. For example when our daughter was 18-months-old we had a very cute picture of her but she was jay-bird and my wife was adamant about not putting it on our blog for a variety of valid reasons.
Of course some of what I see people sharing on Facebook is far too TMI. When I was in college all the same embarrassing pictures were taken but their half-life was measured in months and the circle of viewers was smaller – and didn’t include parents or potential employers/clients. Does Web 2.0 mean that people will change behaviors or that new transparency will lessen hypocrisy?
Congratulations, that’s so exciting!
Actually, I’m doing the same thing (and we’re the same age). I’m really excited! Best wishes
Thom – great to see you on here
Thanks for reading and good to meet you the other day.
I don’t think Web 2.0 is going to change behaviors at all because individuals drive the technology. Even though the tools and mediums for communication might evolve, we’re still going to see similar patterns of human behavior. The difference is our willingness to give up privacy for the sake of transparency.
I had someone tell me the other day, “You kids have no respect for privacy. You’re all a bunch of voyeurs and attention seekers.” This may be true, but I’d rather see this than a generation that’s dishonest, anti-social, and selfish.
Congrats on choosing a course for your next adventure! I’m sure you’ll do well and please reach out if there’s anything I can do to help. Change is good!
Jim | @jimstorer
I’m sad to see one of my fellow Gen Ys go, but I’m super excited to see one of us take the risk and do what they are most passionate above. Go carry the torch for our generation
- Matt
You are going to change the world Alexa – don’t forget that you can. There is great power that comes from proactively pursuing your own interests. Can’t wait to hear more about your plans! Best of luck embracing all the changes and let me know how I can help.
It was great working with you Alexa. Best of luck!
Awww, thanks everyone for the well wishes
@SaraFowler – I’ll shoot you an email. Curious about your plans and the big move you’re making.
Jim, Rachel, Matt S, and Matt C – So lucky to have you as part of my Mzinga experience. The best part of my job was working with a great group of people. It wasn’t easy to leave New York, but having a supportive team and community made Boston and Burlington feel like home.
How is the roommate taking the news? Good luck, congrats, and (hopefully) see you Monday at coffee with the Strout-meister.
Go get ‘em!
Looking forward to seeing the fruits of your labor.
Dave
Congrats on your decision– very proud of you. I’m glad to see you’re keeping it real & am sure you’re going to do very well. Life is all about pursuing your passions– never doubt it for a minute….Looking forward to staying in touch & let me know if there’s anything I can do for you!
You have a passion about the social space and will be very successful in anything you choose.
-Rick
Alexa
you will do great, especically given all that we have learned together.
Barry
Choose your own course now, and you set a great example for yourself– Writing it down now– I knew you when…
Best of luck Alexa!
Your mission is beautiful! You’ll do good. Not well-good.
It is a horrible and often unfortunate generalization to assume college students looking for internships already have their basic needs paid for. I put myself through school and had to pay tuition, rent, insurance, groceries, etc. myself. I actually did it without loans because I was able to make $12.50 an hour at several intern-type jobs (and was able to gain valuable experience so I was qualified for more than an entry-level position after graduation).
Many friends of mine in similar situations, however, were forced to work waitressing or retail jobs to pay the bills, missing out on the awesome networking and experience the privileged kids who could take free internships got. The kids willing to work their butts off to put themselves through school are the ones far more likely to be valuable to your company both during and after the internship; make the investment and pay them *something*.
Though there are of course exceptions, internships by definition favor the rich and privileged. How else could one work for free, often full time, in a city like New York or LA? Sure, some non-privileged people can make it work through all sorts of tricks, but generally speaking if you can work for free for that long, you have a safety net or background financing that most people simply don’t enjoy.
Internships should for this reason be illegal. They’re how privileged people often get their foot in the door – to a company, or for a given career – and for that reason overwhelmingly favor those who, ironically, don’t need the extra help. Even worse – (I went to a college with a dramatically wealthy student body) – the people who do get those internships never realize how instrumental they were to the launching of their careers. In fact, they barely think about it, and are generally completely unaware of the restrictions preventing most people from pursuing them. In their humble opinion, it was all them. They worked hard, they deserve it, and the playing field, as far as they can tell, is as flat as can be.
@sarah – I look at recent graduates our age and I find the ones who are most competent when it comes to handling life’s challenges, are the ones who have had to be more independent as students. It’s really so unfortunate when I hear words like “selfish” and “coddled” thrown around during conversations about Millennials. It completely dismisses all of the hard work that many individuals put in to get to where they are.
@jon – Thanks for reading. Having gone to a school with a pretty wealthy student body myself, I can completely attest to having the same experience. A lot of the kids who got those prized paid internships or those foot-in-the-door experiences didn’t necessarily get them out of merit. And wouldn’t you agree that most of the internships that are paid tend to be the ones in finance?
Hi Alexa -
While I agree with you conceptually and was in a very similar position during and after college – I gave up certain internships and jobs (I wanted to work on Capitol Hill but couldn’t afford to live off of $13k a year even with a second job) – it is unfortunately just not the way the world works. There will always be young men and women that can afford to not take a salary and because of that, there will always be organizations looking for free talent.
Other than legislation which is unlikely, I don’t know that it is solvable. Nor is it a new problem – in D.C. I was uncompetitive for some unpaid internships because I didn’t have a Masters or Ph.D. degree if you can believe it.
In my case I participated in a mix of things. I had some retail/waitressing/campus jobs, I did some shorter unpaid internships while working other jobs, I was lucky enough to have some paid internships, and I took a low paying job out of college that I had to supplement with a second job.
My intention here is not to be cynical but just to throw a dose of reality into the conversation. The reality is that we don’t all have the same reserves growing up – and we don’t start careers at the same place. My grandparents were farmers and 2 of them didn’t have high school degrees. It took the hard work and persistence of a couple of generations to get me to where I am today. That has always been the American story of prosperity but it takes a while…and there are a lot of bumps along the way.
Alexa, I agree with you completely that unpaid internships are unacceptable, however; I still think that students should have the right to work for free. There are situations in which an intern is not worth taking unless unpaid, but for the most part any real business that takes on interns should pay at least minimum wage. My Dad is an architect and his professional organization (the AIA) requires that all members pay interns, but he always says, “if you can’t make more than 10 bucks an hour off of an intern, then you shouldn’t be in business.” I think that’s about right.
I help a lot of college students find internships (paid and unpaid), but I’m not sure how to initiate change that will lead to more companies paying their interns. The laws are already pretty strict about unpaid internships, they’re just not enforce. I wrote an article about it here:
http://www.onedayoneinternship.com/blog/are-unpaid-internships-illegal/
The best answer is probably to create a business case showing that paid interns are of higher talent and perform better than unpaid interns. Is that true? I don’t know, but I’d bet it is.
Alexa,
I agree wholeheartedly. If companies really want the best interns, and if they hope to convert those interns to successful employees who are willing to work diligently for them, they should show us, the members of Gen Y, that they actually understand how valuable our skill set is. Most people over 30 cannot even begin to fathom how in-depth and dynamic our experience is in interpersonal communication and new media processes.
Great post! Let’s hope it actually awakens people into realizing that the best way to insure company growth is to reinvest in your people.
Alexa – Thanks for a thoughtful post. Forgive me… I’m catching up in Reader after being largely “off the grid” for a couple weeks in Japan.
I’ve hired a lot of college interns over the years and always felt the right thing to do was pay them a “living wage” (often $10-12/hour). I wasn’t really seeing this as leveling the playing field between the haves and have nots, it just seemed like the right thing to do.
Just because you CAN in business, doesn’t always mean you SHOULD. Whether it’s not paying interns or squeezing vendors in tough times, I don’t think it’s the best way to build a healthy company (or society). While I’m as much a capitalist as the next guy, I want my team and partners to feel good about working for/doing business with me. If paying interns a small stipend to buy beers over the weekend gives them the flexibility to not take on another job, that’s good for me and my company.
With that said, I agree with Rachel in that most medium/large companies don’t take this approach. It’s their choice and if an applicant doesn’t want to play that game (or have the wherewithal to), I don’t think we should attempt to force change.
We all make choices in our career and whether it’s suffering for a period of time to take the unpaid internship that’s going to open doors in the future or taking a job that offers the flexibility for you to pursue a personal passion on the side, it’s our choice. Have a career game plan and then do what it takes to get you there. Unpaid internships may be part of the journey depending on what you choose.
Thanks again for throwing this out there for discussion. It got me thinking about decisions I’ve made it my career and how I want to grow my business moving forward. Both are top of mind these days.
Jim | @jstorerj
Alexa -
This is a well timed discussion as many organizations are looking at their summer internship programs. I agree that it is good business sense to pay an intern for their work in some way. I would agree with Jim and others that a nominal wage of 10-12 an hour depending on the Metro area is appropriate. Other ways to compensate might be to pay for the course the internship is providing credits to or to make an in kind donation to the alma mater the student is attending.
I think the best way to think about it is… if this were my child, grandchild, nephew, god child etc. Would I pay them? If the answer is yes, than do it for everyone! You get what you PAY for in life.
I graduated in an economic downturn when it was an achievement to gett a job with benefits. I feel for the class of 2009.
Pauline
@pbrannigan
I love all the feedback in this post! When I wrote it, I was hoping that it would provoke a lot of this type of feedback. I’m finding that people are really passionate about talking about jobs, money, and careers these days (surprise, surprise) and what I’m trying to bring to the forefront are the implications that this has on the next generation of workers down the road.
Rachel, Jim, and Willy – Completely understand that change isn’t easy and that the world is the way it is. People will always have competitive advantages over others. It’s my hope that we can be a bit more proactive in leveling the playing field by setting some standards when it comes to worker compensation at the student level. I think that the more conscious we are as a society, the more companies will be inclined to adjust their attitudes/policies.
Shawn – You touched on something that I think is the core of what will resonate most with businesses – talent management. If companies can identify talent within an intern and convert them to an employee, it’s a long-term win.
Pauline – “If this were my child…” I love that phrase because I think companies need to realize that the professional world should no longer function based on *their* needs. As gen-y matures in the workplace, we’ll essentially adopt the value systems that we’ve been taught. All businesses need to do today is ask themselves if they’re managing Millennials in the same way they want us to manage their grandkids.
Great content, stumbled upon purely through serendipity. I have been meaning to blog and started looking for tips today. Thanks and good luck!
Bravo, Alexa. Our personalities will shift over time (especially those of us who are up and coming) but fortunately I think I’ve tried to communicate this through my blog and my commenting style. It’s open ended and up for observation/criticism.
My digital history is easy to track. I’ve been online constantly since 1996 and have participated in a wide range of social networking activities within that time frame. Arguably to many… But you do get an idea of how I’ve grown as a person and I think that may be the most important aspect of our online path.
You don’t even mention the newest phenomenon of students paying for the priviledge of having an internship. I always had to work in school and had to turn down several unpaid internship opportunities because I would have had no way to make rent or eat. If a company is going to offer an internship that is meaningful to both the company and the intern – i.e. the intern will be doing actual work – then that internship should be paid at least minimum wage if not more.
More on the pay-for-internship @ http://blogs.wsj.com/juggle/2009/01/28/should-you-pay-for-your-kids-job-internship/
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Hi Alexa,
I would like to clarify something, I did not state “sometimes you don’t have to pay for interns, gen y will throw themselves at you.” I was attending an event in West Point Nebraska, and Caleb Pollard was speaking. Caleb said that, would you please update your post to reflect that?
Again to follow up on our conversation at the Puma event.
When I first came to the US from the UK in 1992, I was very surprised that people would work for free doing internships. A concept unknown I think in the UK at the time. Over time I began to see the value to both employers and interns for this sort of non-financial relationship.
I’ve also hired several interns at several previous companies. Backbone Media, and 48hourprint.com. Not only did those non-paid interns get to do some great work. Two of my interns at backbone Media were involved in two major blogging studies and were credited on the studies, but both eventually were hired by my company. Another intern, a person in their 40’s, was getting back into the marketing workforce, and the experience at 48hourprint.com helped them get up to speed with the current state of internet marketing. They eventually got a job at 48hourprint.com and they have gone onto a successful career as a director of marketing.
I think internships give small companies a chance to get to know people, and interns the opportunity to do the same as well as get some great experience.
I do agree with you that my preference would be to pay people, but if you don’t have the budget to do that, and there are people who would genuinely gain value from the experience I think it is a good strategy to follow.
Hi Alexa,
I would like to clarify something, I did not state “sometimes you don’t have to pay for interns, gen y will throw themselves at you.” I was attending an event in West Point Nebraska, and Caleb Pollard was speaking. Caleb said that, would you please update your post to reflect that?
Again to follow up on our conversation at the Puma event.
When I first came to the US from the UK in 1992, I was very surprised that people would work for free doing internships. A concept unknown I think in the UK at the time. Over time I began to see the value to both employers and interns for this sort of non-financial relationship.
I’ve also hired several interns at several previous companies. Backbone Media, and 48hourprint.com. Not only did those non-paid interns get to do some great work. Two of my interns at backbone Media were involved in two major blogging studies and were credited on the studies, but both eventually were hired by my company. Another intern, a person in their 40’s, was getting back into the marketing workforce, and the experience at 48hourprint.com helped them get up to speed with the current state of internet marketing. They eventually got a job at 48hourprint.com and they have gone onto a successful career as a director of marketing.
I think internships give small companies a chance to get to know people, and interns the opportunity to do the same as well as get some great experience.
I do agree with you that my preference would be to pay people, but if you don’t have the budget to do that, and there are people who would genuinely gain value from the experience I think it is a good strategy to follow.
Hi Alexa – Thanks for the shout-out(s)! Rachel and I are having a lot of fun building The Community Roundtable, but I think it might have me slipping into a new type of blogger…
The Dinosaur: Someone who used to blog somewhat frequently, but seems to have gone extinct.
I’ll drag myself out of the tar pits and do my best to get “my motor running” again on the blog.
Jim
You’re right – personal branding will be a distinctly different challenge for a generation learning to establish themselves on the Web at the same time that they navigate their changing personal identity. I think that the transition could be looked at as something similar to a celebrity, constantly evolving to try to stay current and popular. Similarly, Millennials who care about personal branding will have to do so in the public eye. Hopefully, we won’t suffer the same backlash when there’s an “Oops!” moment but I’m not holding my breath.
You know what this post made me question? Why the heck am I not subscribed to your blog?!
Fabulously well written and really got me thinking.
Thanks to Leslie Poston for sharing.
Great post Alexa, we’re in the same boat
Nowadays, it is so hard to find a decent job after graduation even internship because there are some got unpaid. And due to the crisis right now, I found out about bloodbanker.com which they have all the information all of the Blood center in the United States where you can get paid $50/hour to donate blood!. This is really helpful even if it’s just a part time job and the bottom line of this is to save lives. As we all know, Blood bank shortages kill tons of people all the time and it is time to spread the word about blood donation and give blood, you will never know when You might need blood.
By the way do you have a twitter or facebook account so that I can folow you.. I found your topic interesting.. thanks
Despite how “generation fail” and other labels anger me, it never ceases to amuse me, too.
–30 seconds later I’ve become a statistic; I opened the mentioned link, read a bit, and spaced on my planned comment! Ha.
Girl, you sound good!
Haha, thanks Shey!
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