You may think that it’s too early to start thinking about summer internships in the cold of winter, but the competition for placement is already heating up. Companies have already begun accepting applications for summer, so students vying for top spots need to start preparing now. This can be easier said than done—students have more choices but also greater competition.
For this installment of “Diverse Conversations,” I interviewed L.J. Brock, vice president of Talent Acquisition and People Infrastructure at Red Hat. L.J. and I discussed Red Hat’s internship program and the five questions he says all interns should ask to increase their options and make sure they secure the best opportunity.
Q: How has today’s young workforce changed from the workforce of, for example, 10 years ago?
A: The workforce of today, as a whole, has the same attitude that the startup workforce had 10 years ago. There’s a lot of confidence and willingness to take chances. People want to make their marks at a company and be recognized for the amount of work they put in, and I think jobseekers are looking for a job they care about, doing work that excites them, at a company whose mission they can believe in. It’s really competitive, especially in the technology industry. The stigma of moving from job to job is gone, and people don’t feel they have to pay their dues in order to move up. Everyone is looking for, and finding, what they want, now.
Q: Is there any particular type of environment that college graduates expect when they enter the workforce? For example, do they expect companies to be open to their ideas or is it just a matter of “come in and do your job?”
A: The main things that attract people, including college graduates, to Red Hat are our environment and culture. The ability to make an impact and see that impact on day one is paramount, and I think a lot of these jobseekers are over the idea of “just doing a job” and going home. They want to influence. They want to be recognized. And they want to do this on a grand scale, no matter their title and time in the job. Red Hat has always operated as a meritocracy—your ideas really matter here and the best ideas will rise to the top. It’s how we work in developing software and it’s how our company moves forward—through our people, their hard work, and their ideas.
Q: What should the ultimate goal of the internship be? Gain knowledge? Get a better idea of what the working world is like? Get a job at the company you’re interning at?
