Happy National Intern Day

Finally, the day is here!
Today marks National Intern Day, and is the first year that I have cause to celebrate!

Some of you may already know, but our business grew in lockdown. In fact we have doubled in size in the last 18 months and we are committed that we will continue to provide outstanding customer service. We’ve built our reputation on it and we’ve won multiple industry awards because of our approach to customer service.

As any business grows, it puts pressure on all areas. Now, we know that we need to scale and outsource, but it’s hard to find the “right” person and when you’re a small and growing business the financial commitment of taking on a new employee can be overwhelming.

Also working in the building industry and specifically Block Management isn’t for everyone. It’s an interesting combination of building work and building regulation, with property management, a lot of legal knowledge and compliance, excellent administrative systems and an outstanding approach to customer service. I could be up ladders with my hard hat one day and liaising on property law matters the next!

So when a friend came knocking asking whether we had any intern opportunities, it seemed like perfect timing and an opportunity for us both to not miss out on .

He lives locally to one of our significant blocks in Stroud, just graduated from Bath university with a business and finance degree and is keen to gain some experience in the building industry. With such a varied range of responsibilities and the need for training and expertise – block management seems perfect!

We’ve discussed the opportunity a couple of times on zoom, agreed a way forward, key responsibilities, boundaries, everyone’s expectations and discussed reward and remuneration.

Although this is my first time having an internship, I am not new to having people work for me. My 15+ years in business has seen me manage large teams of people, so I went out and spoke with friends and colleagues who had experience of working with interns, and who had had good and bad experiences, and I chatted to a few friends who had recently been interns.

These are the highlights and the approach I’ll be taking…