This past summer, Flagship offered its intensive Internship Program for the second year. Spearheaded in 2022 by Talent Acquisition Manager Gina Gervais, Flagship’s Internship Program aims to promote career development in the auto finance industry while investing in the next generation of associates.

During our ten-week program, interns had the opportunity to network with others, shadow professionals, and deepen their skill sets. To qualify, interns had to be current or recently graduated college students. Once accepted, they started the onboarding process as a group to learn about our culture and job expectations, and to prepare for the weeks ahead. Individuals were placed in departments they had interviewed for, complementing their current college majors and future career goals.

Some of the specific areas of development that our 2023 Intern Program focused on were:

• Effective Communication with the use of DiSC
• Leadership and Leading without a Title
• Resumé and LinkedIn Profile Design
• National Intern Day Celebration
• Final Capstone Presentations

This season, we welcomed interns in various departments, such as People Operations, Treasury, Accounting, Info Security, and I.T. Support. As an organization, our goal in hosting an Internship Program has been to assimilate associates with an understanding of Flagship’s culture. This allows us to assess their skills and abilities before considering them for a permanent position.

On July 27th, we celebrated Internship Day with the People Operations team to recognize the exceptional interns who have brought new ideas and energy to our teams. Flagship’s Organizational Manager, Lisa Gallagher, led an informative learning session for the interns, which included a full day of work sessions. The interns particularly enjoyed the career planning session, sharing that it helped them visualize their strengths and identify next steps in building their careers. At the close of their time at Flagship as interns, they interviewed for our Fast 5 Series. A few of our favorite quotes from this series are below.

There was a lot of ‘I want to see this, and I would like to learn this, teach me this’, and I think that was something very important, and I would say it was a major theme during my internship, said Abigail, Treasury Intern.

Bryce, I.T. Support Intern, stated, A lot of what we do in I.T. involves being a student first and then becoming a teacher. It’s about being thrown into a situation, handling it, and either learning from it or seeking help from your teammates. It’s a great experience, and you can learn a lot from having a team around you.

To complete the Internship Program, interns were required to give a formal presentation on their experience to a group of associates and leaders. During their presentations, they chronicled what they had learned, how they had improved their interpersonal skills, and their future career goals. Some of the highlights shared by the interns were that they enjoyed the experience and learned a lot about themselves, including their communication styles and ways to improve. The program also provided them with opportunities for self-reflection and personal growth.

We are thrilled to announce that two of our interns were offered full-time and part-time positions in the People Operations and I.T. Support departments. We express our gratitude to all the departments and teams that took part in the Internship Program and provided support to our interns throughout their journey. As an organization, we are confident that our interns have gained valuable knowledge and skills from this learning experience. We wish them all the best in their future careers and look forward to hosting our next intern cohort to continue growing the program.