Indiana INTERNnet to Host Three Summer Networking Events for Interns, Mentors

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Roche Diagnostics interns enjoy a day at The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis.

Indiana INTERNnet will host a series of intern networking events this summer to encourage community engagement.

Interns from organizations throughout Central Indiana are invited to events at The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis (June 14), Indianapolis Zoo (July 14) and Indiana State Fair (August 5). Each will offer professional development and networking opportunities in addition to time to explore the venues.

  • The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis event will begin at 9 a.m. (check-in at 8:30 a.m.) with professional development. Following the programming, attendees will be free to explore the museum at their leisure until it closes at 5 p.m. An optional lunch will be served around noon.
  • The Indianapolis Zoo event will take place from approximately 1-5 p.m. Following professional development programming and zoo experiences, attendees will be invited to enjoy the Animals and All That Jazz concert from 5:30-8:30 p.m.
  • The Indiana State Fair event will begin at 9 a.m. (check-in at 8 a.m.) with a welcome and networking activity where Pete the Planner will speak to attendees. Interns will be invited to enjoy the fair at their leisure and participate in an optional social media contest administered by Indiana INTERNnet. The contest will conclude in the early afternoon. Fair bucks will be provided for each attendee to be used at food vendors throughout the fair.

In 2015, nearly 200 interns participated in Indiana INTERNnet events at The Children’s Museum of Indianapolis and Indiana State Fair.

A feeling of community connectedness is a significant factor in a young professional’s decision regarding where he or she lives and works.

“Talent retention is at the core of Indiana INTERNnet’s mission,” emphasizes executive director Janet Boston. “To complement the real-world experience interns gain on the job, these engagement events provide an opportunity for them to build relationships through networking and develop community pride.”

Capacity is limited and registration is required. The reservation deadline is June 1 for The Children’s Museum, July 1 for the Indianapolis Zoo and July 15 for the Indiana State Fair. Contact Katie Coffin to RSVP at INTERNnet@indianachamber.com or (317) 264-7535.

If Only I Had Done It This Way …

SCORE is in business to help small businesses start, grow and achieve success. A recent posting on its site from the president of RoadMap Marketing shared regrets — or I wish I had done this differently — of several entrepreneurs.

Do any of these apply to you or sound familiar?

  1. “I wish I had not been so cheap. I should have invested in strong infrastructure like having my accounting set up properly and a decent website. I wasted too much time trying to cobble it together myself. And the result? My image did not look professional and my books had to be completely cleaned up later.”
  2. “I was unclear on my unique value proposition.  By being ‘all things to all people’, how could I communicate value? That meant my marketing was wishy-washy and ineffective. And without being clear on who was my best customer, I picked up many poorly defined projects where I lost money.”
  3. “I should have focused first on my sales pipeline. It took me too long to realize that the only way to meet my revenue goals was to work the numbers – number of clients, means 5 times as many proposals which means 10 times as many touches with potential prospects each month. When I finally focused on these raw facts, I started making money.”
  4. “My prices were too low. I tried to compete against more established players on price which just undercut my brand and service value. I failed to track my time – much less account for it in my profit calculations. When I finally looked at profitability by product, service and even customer, I was able to focus on areas where I could grow.”
  5. “I wish I had sought out a mentor.  I could have greatly benefited from someone with experience and some success – especially in my industry. An early mentor could have focused my efforts and held me accountable.”

Mentors Needed in Central Indiana — and It’s a Great Way to Help Your Community

"When he took time to help the man up the mountain, lo, he scaled it himself." – Tibetan Proverb

I’ve been involved with Trusted Mentors in Indianapolis for about six months now. In that short period of time, I’ve built a relationship with someone and watched him make tremendous strides in finding employment, his own place to live and even gaining custody of his son. I’m sure our relationship has been as beneficial to me as it has to him, and I’d like to ask others in Central Indiana to consider becoming a mentor.

In Indianapolis, we are fortunate to have organizations like Horizon House to provide social services for those in need — and based on what I’ve seen, they do amazing work. But that support can only go so far and last so long. It’s up to members of our community to step up by donating time as well.

There are plenty of folks in the Indianapolis area who could use the help, and your support could just be the tipping point they need to stay on the right track and avoid the perilous trap of homelessness. The commitment is just a few hours per month, and there is currently a strong need for more mentors — and the largest need is for women over 30 years old (mentors and mentees are always the same sex, and often around the same age).

Here’s some more info on the organization:

Trusted Mentors provides volunteer mentors to adults at risk of homelessness. Building on its success, it has expanded its mission to include other populations at risk of becoming homeless, including low wage earners, ex-offenders and young adults aging out of foster care. It uses the power of mentoring to help adults establish stable lives by reducing the chaos brought about by poverty, homelessness, underemployment and the effects of incarceration. These person-to-person mentoring relationships improve lives by developing life skills and positive social networks that empower people to:

  • Remain housed
  • Make a positive contribution to the local community
  • Stay or become employed
  • Advance their education
  • Stay out of jail
  • Improve parenting skills

"The opportunity for mentoring at-risk adults in Central Indiana is significant," explains Trusted Mentors Match Director Craig Neef. "In Marion County, approximately 7,000 people are homeless sometime during the year. In excess of 5,000 ex-offenders are released and re-enter the community each year. Trusted Mentors works with partnering agencies that provide an array of services for low wage earners, ex-offenders and young adults who are aging out of foster care. We work closely with the case managers in these organizations to complement their efforts with mentoring services leading to more successful outcomes."

For more information, feel free to contact me about my experience at mottinger@indianachamber.com or (317) 264-7541. Or you can reach Neef directly at cneef@trustedmentors.org or (317) 985-5041. We hope to hear from you.