Building Product Managers @ Carnegie Mellon | Executive Director | Product Management | Program Management | Operational Excellence | Engineering | Toyota Way | Design Thinking | Cultural Transformation
Managers- 100% of your interns have a secret right now. It's a secret pain. A worry. It's easy to fix. Now, and throughout summer, your interns are anxious about whether to ask about the prospect for full-time employment after graduation. Even the most engaged, competent, and assertive interns struggle with the dilemma of whether to initiate the discussion for fear of appearing too aggressive. "Am I being too pushy? When are decisions made? Am I even doing a good enough job? Will it anger the boss or ruin my chances if I ask?" It is easy for even the best and most empathetic managers to be unaware because it has been so long since many of us were in those shoes. Help them out. Initiate. Shed light on the process, timing, and expectations. If business conditions are unclear or unstable, all the more reason to be transparent about expectations. Don't delay. If you're an outlier who covers all of this on day 1, then feel free to pat yourself on the back. Interns- This is a very common dilemma. Your best course of action depends heavily on your personal situation. #management #productmanagement #internship #leadership #empathy
Product Manager at Meta
6moQuick tip: as an intern set the expectations that you have from the internship with your managers early. Mention one of your goals as getting a full-time offer. Another way is you approach it with curiosity. Ask your manager what skills and performance will land someone a full time role. Understand from them who are the stakeholders that will make the decision on the full time offer and key steps to land one. Most (if not all) of the managers want you to succeed. They want you to get the most ot of your internship. Don’t hesitate to initiate the conversation. Do it early, do it welll :)