April 23, 2008 — Innovative Communications is looking for Virgin Islanders close to graduating from college to work as paid summer interns as part of its new Innovative Leadership Development Internship Program.
"We are recruiting students locally and Virgin Islands students studying on the mainland," said Zenzi Hodge, Innovative's vice president of Human Resources
Her office is coordinating and managing the internship program.
"The idea is to give them a preview of the company," she said. "They will see the work we do here and we will be developing potential leadership candidates. Some will segue to permanent employment and onto our management track."
The 10-week paid summer internship program is designed for undergraduate and graduate-level students who are within one year of graduation.
About a dozen high-caliber students will get an opportunity to perform challenging work linked both to the student's educational discipline and the company's business goals.
Preference will be given to current Innovative scholarship recipients. They can be students at the University of the Virgin Islands or Virgin Islanders going to school elsewhere.
To qualify, candidates must be pursuing graduate degrees (MBA, MS, MA) or undergraduate degrees emphasizing business, finance, human resources, information technology, engineering or other technical disciplines. They should have experience holding some office in extracurricular organizations or some work experience in leading peers, delegating tasks and resolving conflicts. And candidates have to have a minimum grade point average of 3.0 on a 4-point scale. They must also be within one year of graduation and be a U.S. citizen or permanent resident.
"The whole idea behind the program is, as they are in that final year, it allows them to be able to perform at the optimal level," Hodge said. "They have gone through the pedagogy, now they can look at the practical application."
The program pairs each student with a manager committed to providing developmental experiences designed to grow individual leadership skills. Students will have site visits, training and development courses and some networking events.
Each intern will have a personal project related to his or her area of work and will have to present his or her project at the close of the program. And the class as a whole will develop and execute a community-service project on behalf of Innovative Communications.
Although Innovative has had other types of internships in the past, this is the first time around for a program quite like this, Hodge said. Innovative needs new, young, highly qualified, career-oriented people on its workforce, she said.
"As we look at our more senior workforce, we are going to begin needing younger people to come in to sustain us," she said. "Longevity and sustainability are paramount."
Applicants will have to supply resumes, transcripts and a written essay. The deadline is April 30. Applications can be submitted to Innovative's Sunny Isle offices on St. Croix or its offices in Tutu Park on St. Thomas. For more information send an email or call Zenzi Hodge at (340) 714-2001.
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