Although many summer plans may be canceled due to COVID-19, the ComEd summer internship program continues on. To make this happen, meeting rooms and offices have been replaced with video conferences and laptops as all 170 ComEd summer interns go virtual for the first time.
Amanda Gerros, ComEd associate recruiter, has been working countless hours with her team to transform 500 immersive Exelon internships into a remote work experience.
“Exelon, ComEd parent company, cares about its interns, the community, and future talent and wanted to maintain its commitment to the students we offered internship opportunities to,” Gerros said. “The interns definitely help power our future, so we did not want to take away this important learning opportunity.”
However, this virtual transition was no easy task.
“The biggest challenge was finding ways to transition everything that would normally be done in-person, to remote,” she said. “Everything from the pre-employment process to first day details.”
All hands were on deck to make the transition possible, including the IT department.
“The internship program was also dependent on each intern’s access to their laptops, internet and the company network which is why working with IT was crucial,” Gerros said.
Despite the challenges, this new reality offers interns an opportunity for professional independence.
“Being virtual allows the interns to grow in this experience as professionals,” she said.
More than ever before, the Exelon interns are accountable for shaping their own workday and, so far, Gerros has been excited to see the interns rise to the occasion.
