Employer Toolkit

Summer 2016

Preparing Tomorrow’s Workforce Today! STEP-UP Achieve employers provide internships for 6-10 weeks at 15-40 hours per week. Our 2016 internship program dates are June 20 to August 19, but are flexible to meet your needs. Positions must pay at least $9.00 per hour.

Here’s how the process works:

Employers identify potential summer work opportunities. STEP-UP Achieve recruits and trains Minneapolis youth to

prepare them for professional internships. STEP-UP Achieve matches candidates with positions based on

their career interests and skills. Employers interview the youth candidate and make the final

hiring decision. STEP-UP Achieve provides ongoing support to youth and

supervisors to ensure success.

STEP-UP Achieve benefits:

Your Business

STEP-UP Achieve recruits talented and highly-motivated youth and trains them with the requisite skills that enable them to positively contribute to your organization. Your business will demonstrate community leadership and diversify its workforce by becoming a STEP-UP Achieve employer. Your staff will also appreciate the extra help and opportunity to make a meaningful impact on a young person. Our interns bring energy and creativity to your workplace. 96% of supervisors say the program was a success at their company and their interns made a valuable contribution to their workplace.

Minneapolis Youth

A meaningful summer job provides new skills and opportunities, inspiring the pursuit of education and career goals. 97% of participants say their summer job was a valuable learning experience. Many keep in touch with their supervisors throughout college and use them as job references.

Our Community

Employing Minneapolis youth is a powerful investment in our region’s vitality and future workforce.

STEP-UP Achieve connects businesses with the next generation of talented and diverse workers, provides critical job training and hands-on experience for young people, and builds a stronger Twin Cities workforce for our knowledge-based global economy. STEP-UP Achieve is operated by AchieveMpls and is part of the City of Minneapolis STEP-UP Program, which has provided over 21,000 internships since 2004. Last year, STEP-UP Achieve placed over 700 young peo-ple in internships with over 150 leading local employers.

STEP-UP Achieve Employer Toolkit 2016 • page 1

STEP-UP Achieve Hiring Process

Submit a Job Pledge Form with the number of interns your

company intends to hire in Summer 2016.

Complete one Job Description Form for each distinct position by

April 15.

Review and sign the Worksite Agreement Form and return via fax

or email.

STEP-UP Achieve will review job description/s and make one to

one matches of interns to jobs based on their skills, interests and

experience, and your needs as an employer.

In May you will receive the resume/s and contact information of

your intern/s, and we ask that you contact them within one week

to schedule an interview.

We will provide contact information for the STEP-UP Achieve Job

Coach who will assist your company and your intern/s throughout

the summer. If you are unable to reach your candidate, please in-

form the Job Coach and we will attempt to contact them on your

behalf. If the intern match is unsuccessful, we will send you the

resume of another well-suited candidate to contact.

After hiring your intern, please send the student an official letter

acknowledging employment. The letter should include:

Job title

Hourly wage

Name of employer and location

Department, supervisor’s name, phone and email

Job description

Date and time of first day of work

If the student paired with your organization is not the right match,

please call your STEP-UP Achieve Job Coach and we will assign

another intern to your workplace.

STEP-UP Achieve Employer Toolkit 2016 • page 2

June 20: Official first day of work for interns

Ongoing support and site visits from STEP-UP Achieve staff

Interns can attend additional STEP-UP Achieve career

development and enrichment opportunities

STEP-UP Celebration for supervisors and interns (August

date and location TBD)

August 19: Official last day of work

DECEMBER

DECEMBER—FEBRUARY

MARCH—APRIL

MAY

JUNE—AUGUST

Employer and Program Timeline

Recruitment of internship candidates begins in schools

and throughout Minneapolis.

Employers and STEP-UP Achieve staff work together to

identify job opportunities

Organizations submit a Job Pledge Form identifying the

number of opportunities available

February 2: Employers are celebrated at STEP-UP

Partners Breakfast at Target Field

February 5: Youth applications due

February 20—March 30: Students participate in work-

readiness training and mock interviews

April 11 — April 14: Consider volunteering with students

in STEP-UP Achieve mock interviews

April 15: Job Description Forms and Worksite Agreement

Forms are due to STEP-UP Achieve

STEP-UP Achieve staff match interns to each employer

position

Intern contact information and resume/s provided to

employers for each opening

Employers interview and hire interns

Replacement internship candidates referred as needed

Supervisor Orientations (details will be provided to your

company/supervisors)

STEP-UP Achieve Employer Toolkit 2016 • page 3

How does STEP-UP Achieve place participants in appropriate jobs? We match participants in positions based on the alignment of their interests, skills and experience with the position’s requirements. In May, employers receive one resume for each position they submit. Employers then contact the youth directly to set up an interview. If your company determines that the candidate is ill-suited for the position, we will quickly refer another candidate for you to interview.

How do young people become involved in STEP-UP Achieve? STEP-UP Achieve recruits young people through schools and community partners in Minneapolis. To qualify, applicants must be between the ages of 16-21, live in Minneapolis and meet income eligibility guidelines. All participants must also complete a competitive application and work-readiness training.

What is the work-readiness training program? Our 9-hour training program is certified by the Minneapolis Regional Chamber of Commerce and customized with insights from local businesses. Interns learn critical skills necessary for today’s workplace, including interviewing skills, workplace communication and etiquette, networking and résumé building. The end result is that interns are more confident and better prepared for their summer jobs and future careers.

What does STEP-UP Achieve do to support supervisors at each organization? Our Job Coaches offer supervisor orientations and a handbook with helpful hints for managing youth in the workplace. Job Coaches stay in contact with interns and employers, providing ongoing guidance throughout the course of the internship and addressing any questions or concerns.

How much do the jobs pay and how long do they last? STEP-UP Achieve employers pay at least $9.00 per hour and provide employment for 15-40 hours per week for 6-10 weeks. Our Summer 2016 internships run June 20 to August 19, but are flexible to meet your needs.

What do I do if I have a problem with my STEP-UP Achieve intern? Each company is assigned to a STEP-UP Achieve Job Coach, who is available to work with you and the intern to resolve any issues that arise. If a problem should persist, you may terminate employment at any time.

For more information

Jeremiah Brown, Director of STEP-UP Achieve

Email: jbrown@achievempls.org

Phone: 612.455.1562 / Fax: 612.455.1531

www.achievempls.org/stepupachieve

Frequently Asked Questions

STEP-UP Achieve is operated by AchieveMpls and is part of the City of Minneapolis STEP-UP program, which has provided over 21,000 internships since 2004.

STEP-UP Achieve Employer Toolkit 2016 • page 4