Why do interns get retained without proper procedure?

Shouldn’t companies have HR policies on retaining interns? In my company, people never leave after their internship, and there are no clear explanations on how they get retained. Ben

Dear Ben,
Internship programmes are crutial for organisations’ quest for talent resourcing. I have written on this page that internship is a period when a student or graduate from university, irrespective of the course they are pursuing, is introduced to the world of work, which is very different from student life. The student in addition, acquires practical work skills in the process but the major intention for the universities is to ensure students learn how people behave in a workplace.
However, several organisations, especially accounting firms, deliberately organise career fairs at universities aimed at attracting graduates or finalists to be recruited as graduate interns. They are exposed and trained to release their potential and abilities before they are finally appointed or confirmed as employees. Most companies refer to them as graduate/management trainees and, this tutelage period usually takes two years.
Organisations that employ interns have clear HR guidelines that specify the kind of people to resource, the detailed training and exposure programme and, after appointment or confirmation, the career progression and tracking mechanism for the graduates.
These graduate programmes are costly given the investments organisations sink into these young people to bring them up to speed. It is, therefore, foolhardy to lose them immediately after training without them giving back their value in productivity to their employers.

Moses Ssesanga
Head Human Resource
Monitor Publications Limited
[email protected]