Interns are digital natives. Are you ready to attract them and hire the best?
For today’s interns, every phone has been smart. They’ve grown up in a digital, real-time-communication world and (largely) expect app-like tech experiences in the workplace.
According to Pew Research Center, cellphones have reached total saturation in the 18-29-year-old demographic with 100 percent owning some type of wireless phone; 92-96 percent of those phones are smart.
The future is digital, and it impacts your future leaders.
As we noted in our 2017 year-end blog, leadership teams leverage technology to keep the lines of communication open for real-time evaluations, feedback, and high-fives. Those communication lines need to reach the fingertips of the employees you seek. Without this connection, filling positions from internships to executives may be difficult, time-consuming, and unsatisfying for HR teams and employees.
New employees are searching and researching your company for open opportunities. The positions you offer through smart digital channels including laptops, tablets, and phones will put (and keep) talented contributors on your radar screen.
The war on resources—yes, for interns as well.
There is a war on resources, and it extends to interns and early career contributors. These groups have more choices than ever, and your ability to attract, engage, and retain them will largely depend on how you approach your digital HR footprint. While on-campus recruiting is still in solid first-place as the “in person” touchpoint for college and university students to make a career connection, 66-75 percent of these future rock stars are researching their internship options and narrowing down their short lists on-line long before the initial on-campus meeting.
According to Vault, nearly 3 in 4 early career job seekers leveraged digital channels to research internships and narrow their list of target employers. Early career team members use technology differently than their predecessors. Millennials and Generation Z team members expect to have the same kind of experience at work that they do in their personal lives. This expectation is so high that more than 60 percent of millennials say they will only work for an organization that offers them the freedom and flexibility of a digital workspace.
Are you ready for a digital workforce?
Finding, developing, and retaining top talent is more complex and challenging than ever and ensuring you’re staying competitive may mean a technology check-up is due.
Forward-looking organizations are reinvesting in internship and early career management solutions. These advanced software solutions help companies stay ahead of their competition and meet growth objectives. Solutions also help leadership teams identify, engage, and retain top early career talent.
Our latest infographic, How an All-Digital Generation Researches and Finds Employment, offers a deeper look at trends driving real-time communication and examines how your future stars find and engage with potential employers. Check it out to see if you’re laying the proper digital foundation to keep employee engagement high on the resource battlefield, in the trenches, and in the winner’s circle.
Learn more about new employee integration and internship program management. If you’d like more information about taking your digital outreach and internship management to the next level, we’d love to help you. We can walk you through a demo, share customer success stories and case studies, and give you the resources you need to choose the right solution for your organization. We’re ready to help, just visit the vi website for more information or connect with us on Twitter and LinkedIn.