Companies urged to consider interns to reduce employee turnover

UAE-based portal InternsME.com is urging companies in the UAE to consider rolling out internships as a way of reducing workforce issues and regional unemployment.

By taking a “trialling before hiring” approach to employment, Jean-Michel Gauthier, CEO of InternsME.com, says organisations in the UAE who hire interns could avoid the common issues associated with employee turnover by offering both the employer and employee a “try before you buy arrangement”.

“The idea of traineeships and internships is still in its infancy in the Middle East and soon companies will need to realise that these programmes are integral to solving crippling workforce issues like high turnover, lack of loyalty, reduced productivity, depleted corporate culture and talent deficiency,” says Gauthier. “Employee turnover is a big, and expensive, problem for many companies. For start-ups and SMEs especially, hiring and firing can be an expensive process. To avoid recruiting unsuitable employees, internships ultimately help businesses get it right first time.”

The CEO says internships are a great temp-to-perm solution that not only has the power to turn interns into employees, but instill a company’s values, culture and expectations along the way. “This can only lead to a stronger talent pool,” adds Gauthier.

The aim of InternsME is to connect students and graduates with employees for internships, traineeships, part-time and full-time work. The process for companies looking to hire is simple: post your job online and get access to over 50,000 screened candidates – 60 per cent of which are based in the UAE. All the employer has to do is filter their selection of applicants and hire the individuals they feel are most suited to the job at hand.

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Since its launch in 2012, the site has helped place over 1,500 interns in 500 companies, with some interns being placed within days of InternsME receiving an employer’s request.

Philip Bahoshy, Founder of MAGNiTT, says he was able to “interview and recruit within three days”, while InternsME was able to provide Thomson Reuters with the necessary interns “on an urgent time-frame basis”, says Salahuddin Shaik, Thomson Reuters Recruitment Manager for MENA.

“The hiring process for a full-time employee often takes time, with delays a possibility due to various reasons – such as multiple interviews, notice periods and company competition clauses,” says Gauthier. “The speed at which an intern can be placed within an organisation is more often than not faster – and cheaper – than hiring.”