Rockford Area Employers

Rockford Area Employer Career Sites

Updated 11/20/09

Retain Employees, Save Money

Employees who are happy perform better at their jobs.  More productive employees means you can do more with less. And an employee who enjoys working for a particular company may stay at the company longer, saving recruiting and training dollars.

So how do you make your employees happy and retain them at your company? The following Chicago Tribune article gives some great ideas on how attract, retain, and motivate your employees.

http://www.chicagotribune.com/business/columnists/chi-mon-minding-perks-1026oct26,0,400399.column

Here are some of those ideas that are especially appealing to Gen Y workers:

•  Opportunities for advancement
• Generous vacation time
• Telecommuting options
• Flextime
• Free lunches on Fridays
• Tuition reimbursement
• Bonuses for exceeding sales projections
• Evidence of social responsibility

While many employers are cutting all of these things and more; the companies who can provide employees with some of these benefits can increase productivity and actually cut costs.  Think about the long-term impact before you cut employee benefits.

Is your company a progressive company?

Did you know 4.0-Shift Happens Video

This completely new Fall 2009 version includes facts and stats focusing on the changing media landscape, including convergence and technology, and was developed in partnership with The Economist.

Steps to Setting up an Internship Program

Steps to Setting up an Internship Program:

 

1. 1.      Identify Significant Internship Projects

• Special Projects.  If you are like most employers, you have a long list of special projects that need to be done but don’t have the personnel to organize and implement them.  Because of the nature of academic schedules, students often look for internship opportunities that are temporary in nature, so employers find interns to be an ideal solution to this problem.  Interns can be assigned to organize research projects, plan special events, develop special promotional campaigns, or design web pages.  When developing an internship around a special project, you should identify goals, timelines, and outcomes so that everyone understands the purpose and expectations.

 

• On-Going Operations.  Some organizations routinely experience peak periods where additional staff is needed.  Others may operate under very limited budgets and need more help throughout the year.  Again, interns may solve these problems.  Interns may serve as facilitators for youth groups, HR support staff, PR or marketing associates, or website developers.  Remember, students are looking for internships that provide them with professional experience and the opportunity to learn.

 

Key to a successful internship: Provide challenging and productive work assignments.  UI students are intelligent and highly motivated; they take a great deal of pride in their work and generally perform beyond the employer’s expectation. They want to learn from real-world experience, to work with professionals in their field, and to make a meaningful contribution to your organization.  Assigning significant projects will benefit your intern and maximizes the return on your intern investment.

 

1. 2.      Determine the Length of the Internship

• The duration of your internship can be as flexible as is necessary to accommodate the mutual needs of both the student and the employer.
• How long will the internship last?  How much time it will take to accomplish your goals for the internship?  Generally, students are available for a semester (15 weeks) or a summer (Mid-May through Mid-August); some may consider longer internships. 
• Summer Internships.  This is the most popular time for students to participate in an internship.  Students begin looking for full-time summer internships as early as October.
• Continuing Full-Time Internships.  Full-time internships extending beyond a semester can be created if a student chooses to temporarily “stop out” from school.  In a continuing full-time internship, students assume full responsibility for stopping out.  
  • Academic credit for internships is available if pre-arranged by the student and their academic department or CAPP.
  • Students who seek these longer internships prefer a summer/fall or spring/summer internship.  These internships should coincide with the UI semester system.
  •  Continuing Part-Time Internships.  For students who are currently enrolled in classes, internships can be part-time (10-20 hours per week) for one or more semesters.  Transportation may be a concern; part-time internship generally should be within commuting distance from the UI campus.

 

1. 3.      Establish the Necessary Organizational Support

• Designate a mentor/supervisor.  The best supervisor is someone who is interested in teaching others, understands you organization and its operating procedures, and can develop quality work assignments for students.  Good supervisors not only help interns learn, they also help your organization learn about the intern as a potential full-time hire.
• Decide whether your intern will work in one department or several.
• Determine the type of orientation and training your intern will need.
• Provide safe working facilities.  Make available equipment, supplies, and work space necessary for the student to perform his/her duties.

 

1. 4.      Write a Position Description. Include the following:

• Brief organization description of your organization and website address
• Position title
• Skills and qualifications required/preferred
• Duties and responsibilities
• Pay rate (or indicate that it is unpaid)
• Hours per week
• Location (city, state)
• Start and end dates of the internship
• Application instructions and deadline

 

1. 5.      Advertise and Hire an Intern.  CAPP can help!

• Internship announcements.  Post your internship on Vandal CareerConnection (VCC), UI’s on-line job/internship database (www.capp.uidaho.edu).  Having difficulty?  Contact our Employer Relations team for help.
• On-campus interviews.  Our qualified staff will coordinate your on-campus interview schedule to maximize your visit and allow you to meet with as many candidates as possible.  To arrange your on-campus interviews, please contact our Employer Relations team. Please contact us 6-8 weeks prior to your visit to allow adequate time to promote your internship opportunity and interview date.
• Report your hire.  When you hire a UI student or alumnus, let us know!  At the end of the recruiting season, we will send you a placement survey to help us learn where our students were hired.  You can also send an e-mail to capp@uidaho.edu at any time with hiring information.

 

 

Other Important Information

 

Liability Concerns:

Medical Insurance:  Students are responsible for obtaining their own medical insurance in order to enroll in classes at the University of Idaho.  UI’s Student Health Services has student medical insurance available; the student may be listed on their parents’ insurance; or the student can obtain insurance through a local vender.

Workers Compensation:  If a student is paid in an employment capacity, the student should be covered by the employer’s workers’ compensation policy.  If a student is unpaid or receives a stipend, it is highly advisable for an employer to obtain a rider to its existing workers’ compensation policy to cover the intern.

Wage Issues:

While some interns are willing to work with an employer on an unpaid basis in order to gain valuable career-building experience, the pool of interested students will likely be much larger and of higher quality if you provide financial compensation for the work performed by the intern.

Intern Salaries: To calculate a fair hourly wage for your intern, first identify the entry-level starting salary for a similar position at your organization, then multiply it by a percentage to determine the intern’s salary.  This percentage varies depending on the intern’s education level and experience, and is broken down as follows:

Unpaid or Stipend Internships:  If you do not have the resources to pay an intern an hourly wage, according to the Fair Labor Standards Act and U.S. Dept. of Labor’s Trainee/Learner guidelines, if you wish to have an unpaid or stipend intern, your internship must meet these six factors:

1. The training is similar to that which would be given in a vocational school.
2. The training is for the benefit of the students.
3. The students do not displace regular employees.
4. The employer derives little immediate advantage from the activities of students.
5. The students are not entitled to a job at the end of the training period.
6. The employer and the student understand that the student is not entitled to wages.

Featured Grad

Name:  Maurice A. West II

Address:  6353 Sawgrass Drive  

City, State:  Rockford, Illinois

Zip:  61114

Phone #:  312-848-1031

Email:  maurice_west37@yahoo.com
College/ University:  The Chicago School of Professional Psychology
Degree:  Master of Arts
Major:  Industrial and Organizational Psychology
Graduation date:  May 2009

What are your career goals?

My passion is organizational development; whether it is through training and development or professional coaching.  I am currently looking for a job in the Rockford area where I can utilize those skills.

What types of activities, groups, clubs, boards are you active in?

I am a member of the Society of Industrial and Organizational Psychologist (SIOP).  I am also a mentor for Urban Future Leaders of the World (uFLOW).  In Rockford, I participated in Starlight Theater at Rock Valley College and Artist’s Ensemble.  Once I find a job I would like to get involved in IGNITE.

Where are you from originally?

I was born in Elgin, IL and moved to Rockford when I was five.

What do you like about the Rockford Area?

The passion for improvement.  The Metro Centre is looking great so far!

What is something that people are surprised to learn about you?

I played basketball in high school and college but I do not watch it.  I won’t be able to hold a conversation about the game with anyone. 

What do you do for fun?

I play the piano, drums, and alto saxophone; so in my spare time I practice.  I also stay active by working out and playing basketball.

What do you wish you could change about the Rockford Area?

Our downtown area.  Develop the area to attract businesses into the Rockford area.

Have some extra time? Find the Volunteer Center…

For the fortunate ones of us, work or school is enough to keep us busy on a daily basis.  For many of us though, due to the ever increasing market insecurity, we may have only part-time work or no job at all.  While you may be out job searching or enhancing your career options with higher education, there is a constructive activity and networking opportunity that you may not have already considered…

Volunteering to aid both your community, upgrade your resume and the value of contacts you will make within your community.

Performing volunteer work, depending on the depth of the experience, may enhance your resume if you don’t have much work experience.  This is a common concern of high school and college students who feel overwhelmed by the resume creation process, feeling that they do not have much to put down in terms of work experience.  It is also a great opportunity if you are currently out of work and have extra time.   Taking on a charitable activity, or performing your regular job function for free in some way shows both strong initiative and compassion. 

Volunteering opportunities, depending on their level of professionalism and relation to the job you are applying for, may be addition to a somewhat short resume.  Additionally, you may list the accomplishments and tasks performed in the volunteer position much like you would for past work experience on a resume.

In addition to resume building advantages, building contacts is essential when knowing what work opportunities are available to you locally.  By aiding your community with various projects ranging from food pantry help, building maintenance, tutoring, special event help, and even yard work you are giving yourself the chance to meet new people whom you will volunteer with that may have important connections that you didn’t realize.

Recently, the United Way of Rock River Valley has upgraded their Volunteer Center with a new webpage and method of coordinating volunteers with charitable opportunities within the community.  If you have ever considered volunteer work as a meaningful and even career enhancing option, the Volunteer Center is an excellent and easy-to-use resource at your fingertips.  Anyone may register at their website www.wevolunteer.org  and begin searching volunteering opportunities easily; and can also be contacted at 815.986.4806.  You may search by days of the week, times of day, types of opportunities and particular organizations that may fit your desired goal and availability. 

Please take advantage of this resource as it is an excellent way to raise awareness not only of the needs of the community, but to enhance your career and character goals as well…