Am I Ready to Host an Intern?

I recently had a great phone call with a business owner in Northern NJ, whose business had experienced stable growth over the past few years. He was interested in discussing what hosting an intern would look like for him. Rather than launching into the exhaustive checklist that I've accumulated over the years (does the intern have space, is there a clear employee manual/handbook to follow, have you considered what termination looks like at the end of the internship, etc.) I asked him to respond to a simple prompt: "Can you describe an ideal intern?"

After a long, reflective pause, he said: "I probably shouldn't say this, but I want to make sure I'm not missing any new things in the industry." While he thought that this response was selfish, it really showed me that he was excited at the prospect of bringing new talent into the organization that could propel his company forward. Oversimplifying this, he thought of the skills and vision of an intern as a part of his company's promising future.

Before you consider if you have space or time to host an intern, you should consider if you have the ability to put trust and faith into a budding professional. People quickly realize whether they are an exciting addition to your team or a burden to the organization and those in charge. Exploring the feasibility of hosting an intern should begin with this philosophical question: "Am I open to having a person with fresh ideas (and perhaps little work experience) have an input on my organization's future?" If the answer is yes, then let's talk about the nuts and bolts of a good internship program...

A question for you: If you have had a great internship in the past, what were the elements that made it great?