Who get's who?
How great internship companies focus on understanding instead of being understood.
At one of my favorite shops in my hometown of Haarlem, I struck up a conversation with the owner. He’s a great guy who enjoys thinking along with everyone who visits his two-story men's fashion paradise on the main shopping street.
I can’t remember how we got onto the topic, but as I paid for my set of t-shirts, he explained why he does what he does.
“Of course, I just enjoy it,” he said.
“But I also like to show that I understand the customer.”
“That feeling is important. Because a customer who feels understood will come back.”
“I want the customer to always think, ‘That store gets me, I’ll go there.’”
As we went through the usual “Thanks-You didn’t want a bag, right?-No, I live nearby-The receipt is in the bag-Nice of you to come by-Have a great day-Say hi at home” conversation, I realized on my way home that the same applies to interns.
Building a rock-solid reputation as a company that offers great internships isn’t something you slap together on a drizzly Tuesday afternoon.
It’s not about a process heavy on Excel with ten million forms, schedules, and diagrams for a student to wade through.
If you want to build a fantastic image with the talent you want to attract, it’s not about the intern understanding what happens at your company.
That’s the content of the internship: the learning objectives, the competencies the student needs to develop.
The content is important, don’t get me wrong.
But it’s not what makes the difference if you want interns to flock to you.
Many companies focus on the question, “Does the student understand what I’m conveying?”
Great internship companies focus on the question, “Does the student feel understood?”