Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Political Economy of Internships
This week, I would like you to dig deep in trying to recognize the purpose of internships. Who benefits from internships? How do organizations benefit? How do you benefit? Who is marginalized through the institutionalization of internships? Do internships grant opportunities or take them away? Should internships be paid? Think critically about the role of internships in society. Internships do not only happen in sport, but are a key component of sport organizations ability to maximize profit. What do you think maximizing profit does to the individual?
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Internships are a two way street of benefits, for the most part. In the sports industry, much of the events and promotions that are done must be done with the help of interns. In essence, us interns are volunteers. I am in a Human Resources class right now and from what i have learned about the sports industry, it does not have enough money to function without the help of interns and volunteers. Interns benefit by gaining some for of experience in the field of their choice. Organizations definitely benefit way more because they have a person who is willing to do pretty much anything for recognition, and its all for free. What a deal!
ReplyDeleteI do think though that internships can also be negative. The fact that they are not paid can really set some people back who see no other outlet to reach their goals. I think that internships without a doubt should have some sort of compensation, if not an actual pay rate, maybe some sort of monthly compensation. I work hard with Seminole Sports Marketing and at the end of the day, sometimes i have nothing but a tired body and mind to show for it.
Maximizing profit is great for the company but in terms of being an intern, it is almost a slap in the face and being told that your value to the company is just the work youll put in for free, nothing more. It is a hard distinction to make but one over the other seems unfair.
"Israel" by the way.
DeleteInternships are a key factor in the way students can learn about the organization that they are interested in. Not only is it students who benefit from these opportunities, but other people as well who have an interest in getting their foot in the door. The organization benefits from this help because they do not have to pay for these people to come and work for them. All they have to do is allow them to experience the position that they desire. The way I have benefited from my experience is by forming relationships with the actual staff members and being able to see this side of sport that is normally kept behind the scenes. It would be hard to say that internships take away opportunities because they only help that individual further their knowledge of that institution and allow them to branch out to see if it is really what they want to do. Depending on the internship is where I think it should be paid or not. Maybe if the organization promised that for a certain time period that the individual stayed on with them that after 6 months or so they would soon be receiving some kind of incentive. By allowing these individuals to obtain these opportunities, they can then benefit the company by maximizing profit. The further that person goes within the company, or at least learns something from them; they will then be able to help the company out with revenue. Having this be done by the individual then gives that person confidence that they have made a difference in that organization and will then lead them to believe that there actions have been recognized.
ReplyDeleteI think the purpose of internships is to truly find out what you want to do and what you don't want to do in life. Internships give you on the job experience while figuring out your career goals. I think internships serve as a great purpose to network and get your foot in the door. But also, the company or organization benefits from the internship by either getting free work or work for cheap. This also helps build someone up to maybe get trained for a full time position. Obviously, I think both sides of the internship benefit. The intern gets a great experience and the employer gets work and maybe a new employee out of it.
ReplyDeleteI benefit from my internship because it is giving experience that I couldn't get anywhere else. I am learning great customer service skills, calling skills, selling skills, and ticketing software knowledge. I am also getting networks out of this internship that will hopefully lead to future opportunities for me.
I do believe though that sometimes the intern can be marginalized. I think it depends on the internship you get if the internship gives you an opportunity or takes one away. I believe for the most part they should give you an opportunity. I don't think that they would take away opportunities, but they may not be rewarding. I believe that internships should be paid in some way. I think it is crazy for an intern to work 40 hours a week without getting some kind of pay. I believe when interns are not getting paid they are getting taken advantage of.
Maximizing profits only help the company not the intern. I think the company is smart to start off interns and move them through the company. I also think it is smart for companies to get interns so that is one less person to pay which helps to maximize profits. Either way the companies that are trying to maximize profits should look to interns for help. I think interns may feel taken advantage of when companies do this which is why companies should focus on rewarding and recognizing their interns.
Organizations and Individuals can benefit from internships. However, this is not always the case. Sometimes an organization will benefit and individuals will not or vice versa. I have been lucky because I am benefiting greatly from my internship and I believe the organization I am interning with is benefiting as well. Organizations benefit because internships are either unpaid or not very high pay. I hear a lot of people refer to them as free help or cheap labor. Those terms however do not tell of the advantages internships have for individuals. Individuals benefit from internships because they get to experience how an organization is run. Most internships make individuals learn on the fly and challenge themselves to help an organization that they may or may not work for in the future. For me, my internship has been great! I am learning many new creative ways to market the teams and also ways to set up and run a tournament. The intern is definitely the one who is marginalized through the institutionalization of internships. However this is only the case because they are the low man on the totem pole and are easiest to cut ties with. Internships definitely grant you opportunities because in most cases after you complete an internship you are experienced and hopefully have made contacts that can help move you forward in your career. Internships don’t necessarily have to be paid and I think it depends on the type of organization you are with and the distance an intern must travel to complete the internship. I believe that an organization that is trying to maximize profit can forget about the little guy and all the work he is doing to help that organization. If an organization makes a huge profit and that intern has played a pivotal role in obtaining that profit he should be compensated. On the other hand if the intern played a small role and did more background work then they do not necessarily deserve to be paid. Whether you are being paid or not for an internship I do believe that you and the organization you are interning for will benefit.
ReplyDeleteI think the purpose of internships is to give young people trying to get into the field experience, while at the same time giving the organization a hard worker for cheap or free. I think I gain experience, knowledge, as well as references for furthering my advancement in the field. The organization gains someone willing to do whatever to help out. I don't think anyone is marginalized, unless the organization uses interns and no entry level employees. Internships definitely grant opportunities by giving experience to interns, we gain knowledge, and its a beneficial relationship between the two. I believe interns should be paid. Some organizations can't afford to pay which is understandable, but ones that can should. Interns put in a lot of hours and do the "dirty work". I think maximizing profit should be the goal of all organizations. When an organization does maximize profit, I believe it creates internships and the opportunities we receive
ReplyDeleteI think that internships are mutually beneficial between the organization and the intern. The organization benefits by providing an opportunity for students to gain knowledge and experience to take with them in to the heir future careers. I benefit from my internship by learning about all that goes on behind the game. I provide extra hands and I also have a new perspective on things. Also, by having an internship it allows me to get my foot in the door which will hopefully lead to a career in the future. I feel that the intern who is not given any opportunity to prove them self or given any real responsibility other than making copies and getting coffee are marginalized. I feel that internships grant opportunities that I would not have been able to learn in the classroom. Also, by having an internship you can see what really goes in to a job in that field and decide from there if you want to continue in that direction. Internships allow students to meet and learn from professionals in that business. I feel that internships that follow a traditional 40 hour work week should be paid. Part time internships, like the one I currently have should not be paid. By an organization maximizing profits through the hiring of interns allows the amount taken in at the end of the season to be greater. By having larger revenue it allows the organization the opportunity to consider other spending options that they may not have had in the past. The intern is then getting paid in experience and first hand learning that you cannot learn in a classroom.
ReplyDeleteInternships are 70% for the business and 30% for the intern; at least it seems in my case. Although the majority of the interns are not paid, they are still receiving awesome experience and the chance to make life long, career impacting, connections. Businesses benefit very much from the grunt work that the interns perform. Much of the intern work I have experienced is organizational help inside and outside of the office. Whether it is 10 page excel sheets or reorganizing the office, interns perform tasks that make the lives of the employees easier. My internship has allowed me to meet people, like NBA legend Dominique Wilkins, which otherwise I would probably have never met. On the flip side, internships do take away some portion of the “college experience.” I am forfeiting my senior semester at FSU to gain real world experience in Atlanta, but it was my choice. Internships are not forced upon students; therefore they are not necessarily being withheld from any opportunity.
ReplyDeleteI wholeheartedly believe interns should be paid SOME amount. My job gives me free tickets to every home game, but I work every home game so I do not get to use them myself. I also receive discounts to some merchandise and food/beverage. However, a monthly stipend would be very helpful. The company does not assist with housing, food, gas, clothing, unless its company wide freebees. $200 a month would be reasonable or even $100; any amount would help. Concerning maximizing profit, I think interns make it possible for the organization to reach a wider range of people. Interns tie all the loose ends and the behind the scenes work that sometimes may be too tedious for employees to fit into their daily schedule. For the amount of time and effort an intern devotes toward an organization for no pay at all, the organization is very fortunate to have those free extra hands. Although I do believe interns are used by some employees as a simple way to be lazy. However, I hope this use is very uncommon.
Internships are all about gaining experience and opportunites. I think that the organization and the worker both benefit from an internship. The organization is usaully getting a hard worker and someone that is trying to prove themselves. The intern is getting experience and finding out if that job is what they want to do in life. I have benefitted by creating relationships with my superiors. Whenever I graduate they might be able to help me get a job somewhere. I think internships give opportunities to people. The intern gets to have free experience and gets to network with important people in their industry. The only way they could take away opportunities is if another position opens up and you cannot take that position. Usually someone interns in the field they want to work. To me internships only create opportunities for people. I think internships should be paid, but only a small amount. Something that at least pays the gas to get to the internship. I think that would also help the production of the interns. Maximizing profits by having interns is very smart. The companies get hard workers for free and then they get more money. I think that if the intern is actually doing a job and not just sitting around then they will feel good about the companies success. When you create a good atmosphere with your employees then they will continue to get your company free workers.
ReplyDeleteI feel that I benefit from the internship mostly, but I also feel Gold’s Gym does as well. I feel they benefit since I am such a great marketer and build customer relationships. I strongly feel that internships grant opportunities rather than take them away. First, they give us experience in the field even if it’s not what we want to do or make a career of. Additionally, it allows us to network in our field, by meeting so many people and making connections that could help us later on for other opportunities. I also feel that internships give us the opportunity to see if we need to change our major, if we cant handle or we’re not interested or don’t like or even love for that matter the internship we’re in, I highly suggest you change your major. I feel that if the organization is able to offer an internship, then that’s great; if they’re fortunate enough to offer a paid internship then that’s awesome. I don’t really disagree or agree on if internships should be paid. I definitely agree that internships are a key component of sport organizations ability to maximize profit because they can offer us an opportunity for little or no pay and in-turn we will be working at these organizations at little or no cost to them. I know that businesses are all about money and it all revolves around money, but I ultimately feel it’s a win-win situation. Maximizing profit affects the individual by maybe not giving us the utmost respect because of our position. Other than that, I feel between organizations to individual its win-win. The truth is we are desperate to get our foot in the door no matter how little the pay or work required, and they want to use us; its an endless cycle.
ReplyDeleteThe purpose of an internship is an excellent way to gain experience and learn in a business environment. Hopefully it is the old saying, “getting your foot in the door,” to show what you can do and to make contacts to add to your network within the industry. Think about if you were in a position to hire an individual, would you hire someone who just recently completed an internship that did a decent job for you or someone off the street with a suspect resume? The answer is obvious. The employer will hire someone who completed an internship and learned the system. Sure doing an internship is not a mandatory requirement but it is highly recommended. I believe that both parties benefit being the organization and the individual. But it all comes down to what you make of it and how you are employed. Some organizations have no clue how to utilize interns, whereas others take full advantage of interns. Organizations benefit from the free labor if it is an unpaid position. If the position is paid the amount is less than hiring someone to fill that position. The individual benefits from the opportunities to develop the skills, abilities, and experience gained by doing an internship. A student can sit in a classroom for years and try to learn a new skill but until you get out and experience that skill and take a hands on approach to whatever you are trying to accomplish, i.e. an practicum, internship, or apprenticeship it makes a world of difference. Yes, internships grant opportunities for students. But you have to be willing to put forth the effort and responsibility. If the organization is not utilizing you effectively then take it upon yourself to ask for more responsibilities. Get something out of the internship, make it happen, and the best thing to do is to find a mentor that will help you navigate through the experience. Don’t just be a number; make a name for yourself and who knows what doors it will open. As far as internships being paid or unpaid, I believe it is what you signed up for. If you are competing the internship for academic credit then it should not be paid but if the internship is paid then expect minimum wage. Consider the internship to be a long job interview because you never know who is observing you.
ReplyDeleteIn my opinion an internship benefits both the intern (in certain situations) and the organization. The intern benefits in getting much needed experience, which is practically a requirement for the entertainment industry. But there are quite few internships where the intern does not do anything but file papers. In those instances the intern is marginalized they are not reaping any benefits from the so-called “internship”. The organization benefits because they getting an individual that is enthusiastic about the opportunity that they are given and are willing to do pretty much anything just to get some credit. Being that a number of internships are unpaid the organization benefits in saving funds, basically maximizing their profits.
ReplyDeleteI have benefited from my internship, in getting to countless number in the sport industry. I also, benefited in getting the opportunity to find out if working in sports something really want do. And that is another benefit of being intern.
Whether or not, an intern should be paid depends on the type of internship and the number of hours that individual work per day. For instance, if an intern is logging in 40+ hours a week they definitely deserve to be compensated for their time.
An individual maximizes their profits from an internship by gaining knowledge and experience they would not typically get in a classroom.