Dee Jordan Perry started Office Net Central, LLC back in April 2010 on Euclid Ave. Since then, the company has moved to Shaker Square, on the second floor of the Yours Truly quadrant. Office Net Central rents Private Offices, Cubicle Spaces, Table Spaces, and two Conference Rooms to entrepreneurs, independent workers, and groups. They also offer printing services, virtual mail, and host networking events on a monthly basis. You can find more information on their Facebook and Twitter.

1. How did you get started in the industry? How can someone who is interested in your work get started?

Dee Perry, CEO of Office Net Central

My brother suggested a Co-Working office as a new fitting business to start during the economic downturn in 2010. I did the research of those existing offices local and national, and decided to start that business here in Cleveland. Finding a good location, and having start up money to get the equipment and furniture needed, is the way to begin.

2. What’s the future of your industry or job?

More people are becoming entrepreneurs, in this economy, and this offers them an easier way to get started. Hopefully, we will expand and have affordable locations in more areas of Cleveland, the state of Ohio, and the nation.

3. What do you look for when you hire an intern or entry-level candidate?

I look for a dependable person with good English skills when hiring an intern or entry-level candidate. I want someone available, and interested in learning and doing as much as they can, to help the business grow. I want this person to have initiative, and creative ideas. Being a young business, the ability to start new revenue streams is welcomed.

4. What is one thing an intern can do to make a favorable impression?

Be friendly, punctual, helpful, interested, and sincere about their opportunity. Willing to listen, and pay attention to details.

5. Can you share a positive intern story and an intern horror story? No names needed…

I had an intern that was dependable on punctuality and attendance, and would stay longer when working on a project. The person was creative, and presented excellent ideas to aid in exposure.

Interested in interning with Office Net Central? They’re currently looking for a Marketing/Communications intern! Apply now.

Free Arts’ programs inspire hope in the lives of children who have experienced abuse, neglect, homelessness, and chronic poverty through innovative creative arts programs and positive interactions with caring adult volunteer-mentors.  Free Arts for Abused Children has corps of approximately 600 volunteers who donate over 10,000 hours of service each year, making it possible to serve 30,000 children annually.  They work with 40 partner agencies throughout Los Angeles County, including emergency and transitional homeless shelters, family resource centers, foster group homes, and low-income housing communities. All of their programs operate with the belief that art heals! You can find more information on their Facebook and Twitter.

1. How did you get started in the industry? How can someone who is interested in your work get started?

Trevi Fountain, Community Liaison of Free Arts for Abused Children

I sort of fell into the nonprofit industry, and have only been involved in it for about a year and a half. I graduated from UCLA in June 2011 with a BA in World Arts and Cultures. Aside from being a fantastic and welcoming environment in which to study, the WAC department taught me to look at the world from all different angles and through a multi-faceted lens. I became interested in fighting to make public education more readily available to all. I began working at the Hollywood Arts Council shortly after graduation after replying to a Craigslist ad, and I focused that passion into making arts education available to those who need it most and yet receive the least. There is little to no art being taught in LAUSD schools, in favor of math and science. But the therapeutic and healing properties of art-making are necessary to a person’s emotional and intellectual growth.

I recognized this, and am now very happily working at Free Arts for Abused Children to deliver art programs to children throughout Los Angeles County who have faced abuse, neglect, homelessness, and chronic poverty. I have been lucky enough to know people in the nonprofit world for my whole life, and responding to that Craigslist ad was a total fluke! But if you’re interested in the nonprofit side of things, I would recommend figuring out what causes you’re passionate about and then landing an internship with an organization that serves that segment of the population. Even if the organization doesn’t take you on as an employee afterwards, you’ll really get to experience what it’s like working for a nonprofit and you’ll hopefully get to network with similar organizations from all over your city.

2. What’s the future of your industry or job?

My particular position holds a lot of promise in the coming years. My title is Community Liaison, which has never before existed at Free Arts. I am defining it as I go, and it’s really exciting for me. It started out programs-based, but has swiftly become a mix of programs and development, which I’m loving. Since my main mission is to get our name out there, the development side of my job will mean a lot of party-planning with companies who want to make us the beneficiary of their events. I am also hoping to create a schedule of salons throughout the year that will feature the multimedia work our children create during our programs. It is truly an exciting time!

3. What do you look for when you hire an intern or entry-level candidate?

I decided it would be good to go around and ask everyone in the office for help on this one, since our interns truly help all of us out. Across the board, the most important thing for an intern to have is passion. We want interns who are not only passionate about working at a nonprofit, but who are also passionate about our cause. Working in our office is certainly a good introduction into the nonprofit world, but we want someone who is specifically interested in working with children and/or the arts—because our office clearly functions differently from, for example, a healthcare nonprofit’s office. A good intern must also be self-sufficient, self-motivated, flexible, organized, dependable, a great communicator (even if they are shy at first!), a team player (who plays nice!), one who isn’t afraid to ask questions, and one who takes initiative. Our Executive Director Shauna McClure noted importantly, “An intern should understand and mesh well with our organization’s culture.”

4. What is one thing an intern can do to make a favorable impression?

Be eager! Free Arts is a very small nonprofit. We have a corps of around 600 volunteer-mentors and serve children and families at 40 partner agencies throughout Los Angeles, but there are only 7 people on our staff. We need all the help we can get! This might mean tedious tasks like filing volunteer applications and working with spreadsheets, but just trust that you are making our lives so much easier and therefore you are truly enabling us to focus on our mission. Being aware of and passionate about that mission is also imperative.

5. Can you share a positive intern story and an intern horror story? No names needed…

About a week after I started working at Free Arts this past June, we brought on a summer intern who was absolutely fantastic. She went above and beyond every single one of her assignments every single day. She filed, she updated our database, she made phone calls, and sent out emails, all with a big smile. She went home to her friends and sang praises of our organization, and spread the good word on her Facebook and Instagram accounts. She participated in all sorts of activities that were not mandatory for her. In short, she was amazing and truly lightened our workload. She also felt comfortable asking us questions when problems arose or something was unclear for her. That’s a huge plus!

My “intern horror story” is exactly the opposite. One of the interns I worked with at the Hollywood Arts Council was difficult to say the least. She would come in late every day, and proceed to spend most of her time arguing with her boyfriend over the phone. Almost every time I went over to her desk she was on her personal Facebook account. My boss asked her to make a copy of something, and she simply said, “I do not know how to make copies.” Whenever my boss would leave for lunch or a meeting, this intern would complain to me about how boring her current assignment was. As someone who has had several internships over the years, I know how frustrating it can be to complete sometimes mundane tasks for little or no money, but that’s no excuse for being blatantly disrespectful of the people you’re working with. And also, if you don’t know how to use the copier, just ask!

Interested in interning for Free Arts for Abused Children? They’re currently looking for an intern! Apply now.

Joilee Havner, CEO of LJRose Management & PR, has always been an inventive person with a creative outlook on everything. With a background in public relations with strong assets in social media , event planning, crisis management, product placement & implementation of PR campaigns. Joilee also has a high level of expertise in managing artist & styling. She believes her clients should love their image and through love she truly cares about giving them full service. You can find more information on her Twitter.

1. How did you get started in the industry? How can someone who is interested in your work get started?

Joilee Havner, CEO of LJRose Management & PR

I got started in the industry through my education. My bachelor’s degree in Public Relations really helped shape me as a person with the many learning experiences. Get an education and an INTERNSHIP those are what prepare you for the industry.

2. What’s the future of your industry or job?

The future of my industry in Social Media experience. The World Wide Web is taking over very steadily and causing an uproar in my occupation. Luckily for me I know the ends and out of this realm because I dedicated myself to knowing it before it went mainstream.

3. What do you look for when you hire an intern or entry-level candidate?

I look for a person who is willing to learn and can learn fast! It’s sometimes good to know a lot and its sometimes good to know noting but be willing to learn everything.

4. What is one thing an intern can do to make a favorable impression?

An intern can use sense of humor and wit to impress me and my team. Being quick on your feet and quirky is what I look for as additions.

5. Can you share a positive intern story and an intern horror story? No names needed…

One of my interns thought they could hold my intern position along with 5 other classes, 2 other jobs and another internship! NO WAY! A good internship gives the work and positive feedback as we teach you how to become a professional in this field. Please know that you cannot take on a serious internship position with no time. Think of it as a job, an internship is your job.

Another intern of mine, has an awesome turn around on assignments. She works diligently and with a sense of time relevance. If something is due by next week she’ll have it done by the end of the day. It’s her work ethic that will carry her far.

Interested in interning for LJRose Management & PR? They’re currently looking for Social Media interns! Apply now.

From their Minneapolis-based headquarters to over 1,700 stores and more than 35 distribution centers across America, Target offers a world of possibilities in an environment that will encourage you to innovate and contribute ideas. Join a company that’s always moving forward to what’s next. Be a part of a team that has revolutionized retail, championed design and volunteered thousands of hours giving back to their communities-  view their internships.

Jilian Clubb is a Field Campus Recruiter for Target Stores. She recruits for the Executive Internship and Executive Team Leader (Assistant Manager) positions for more than 70 stores located in Atlanta, GA and Memphis and Nashville, TN. She graduated from the University of Minnesota with a Bachelors degree in Retail Merchandising and a double minor in Management and Spanish.

1. How did you get started in the industry? How can someone who is interested in your work get started?

Jilian Clubb, Field Campus Recruiter for Target Stores

I started working for Target as a Stores Executive Intern in Fridley, MN, a suburb of Minneapolis, while attending the University of Minnesota. I continued working in Target stores while I finished college. I joined the Talent Acquisition team about 5 years ago as a Staffing Specialist and was promoted to my current position as a Campus Recruiter a little over 2 years ago.

Our internship program is a great way to get started with the company. It is a 10-week program designed to give our interns a realistic preview of what it is like to be a leader in a Target Store or Distribution Center. At the end of the 10-weeks our ultimate goal is to transition interns to full-time team members in leadership roles.

2. What’s the future of your industry or job?

Target is focused on delivering exceptional value, a broad assortment of products and a great store experience. One of our core strengths is being flexible in how we approach development in new markets and expansion in existing ones. We don’t try to tailor locations to fit a Target; we tailor Target to fit the location. Right now, we’re evolving our growth plans to include smaller stores in urban locations called City Targets.

To build on our growth strategies, we are also expanding to Canada where we intend to open approximately 200 stores, the first of which will open in March. As for my job, we put a lot of importance on building the best team, so we will continue to search for the best leaders for Target.

3. What do you look for when you hire an intern or entry-level candidate?

The number one thing I look for in candidates is someone who has great leadership experience. This could be from their previous work experience or campus involvement. Within the Stores and Distribution Centers it is all about being a leader and leading a team.

4. What is one thing an intern can do to make a favorable impression?

The interns that stand out to me the most are the ones who really take ownership of their own growth and development. They are eager to learn and take initiative.

5. Can you share a positive intern story and an intern horror story? No names needed…

My goal is to be able to offer summer Interns positions as Executive Team Leaders (Assistant Managers) in Stores or Group Leaders in Distribution Centers at the end of the Internship. The best part of my job is getting to see how much my Interns grew during the 10-week program and extending offers to our successful Interns to begin their future careers with Target.

Interested in interning for Target? They’re currently offering paid internships! Apply now.

Gabrielle Nistico is the owner of Three Moon Media a boutique advertising company in Charlotte, North Carolina. She is an accomplished voiceover artist, author, and voiceover coach. Her company is a vital part of the voiceover industry and helps to train and market highly skilled voiceover actors. Three Moon also casts voiceovers  for clients globally.

Gabrielle Nistico, Owner of Three Moon Media

1. How did you get started in the industry? How can someone who is interested in your work get started?

The advertising world is always looking for motivated and outgoing people. It’s a people industry – having a tenacious learning will to start with an internship or part time position is usually the way to get in the door.

2. What’s the future of your industry or job?

Technology- there are more vehicles for advertising now than ever before. With each new media we see new and creative ways to reach a buying audience.

3. What do you look for when you hire an intern or entry-level candidate?

Someone who is detail oriented and a people person. Someone with passion and heart who cares about the job they are doing and doing it to the best of their ability.

4. What is one thing an intern can do to make a favorable impression?

Do your homework. You should do research about the company and our employees. Learn about our key players and engage us with questions about the company, its origins and its future.

5. Can you share a positive intern story and an intern horror story? No names needed…

Best: Shawn! He brought solutions and new ideas to every project we gave him and each task. Hired him as a freelancer AND found him on Internships.com!

Worst: The creepy kid in the corner – at least that’s what we called him – he literally never said a word to anybody and just sulked and lurked his way through his time with us. It was awkward for everyone. We never really gave him a second thought the day after he was finished.

Interested in interning with the Three Moon Media team? They’re currently looking for interns! Apply now.

Feeding Children Everywhere is a social charity that empowers and mobilizes people to assemble healthy meals for hungry children. Good will, volunteer participation, and focused efficiency come together to produce an exciting and meaningful meal packing event. You can find more information on Facebook and Twitter.

Kara Teresi is a Relationship Manager at Feeding Children Everywhere who loves to connect with people and help them discover how they can help in the fight against hunger. Kara also assists in managing the Intern Program at FCE, leading their volunteers and further developing their Human Resources Department.

1. How did you get started in the industry? How can someone who is interested in your work get started?

Kara Teresi, Relationship Manager at Feeding Children Everywhere

I first got started in the industry during college where I completed two summer internships with nonprofit organizations. After graduating college, I came across the nonprofit, Feeding Children Everywhere (FCE). I volunteered at a meal packing event where we packaged 20,000 meals for Haiti.

A nonprofit that was both locally and internationally focused intrigued me. I went to Haiti a few weeks later and was moved by what I experienced there. Upon my return to the States, I chose to work with FCE. The best way for someone who is interested to get started in our work is through our Intern Program. We offer Spring, Summer and Fall internships.

2. What’s the future of your industry or job?

The future of our industry is ending world hunger. The need is to put 100 million meals in crisis food pantries at public schools around the US each year. We believe that every child in the United States, and around the world should have sustainable access to food. Our goal next year is to send 50 million meals around the world.

3. What do you look for when you hire an intern or entry-level candidate?

We have 5 key areas that we look for when we hire an intern or entry-level candidate. They are as follows: Professionalism, Experience, Availability, Leadership and Communication.

4. What is one thing an intern can do to make a favorable impression?

Our interns are incredible so it’s not hard for them to make favorable impressions. If I had to choose one thing, I would say interns make a favorable impression when they bring a new idea to the table and use teamwork to turn the new idea into a successful outcome.

5. Can you share a positive intern story and an intern horror story? No names needed…

We have two interns who both graduated college recently. They did exceptional work during their internships. We hired them on as Staff. We have many more positive intern stories like this.

Intern horror story-we had an intern on his first day hit the car of one our top corporate sponsors. To our horror the intern left and never returned.

Interested in interning for a non-profit? Feeding Children Everywhere is currently looking for interns! Apply now.

Annie Rabin Arnold grew up in the retail wine business that began with her grandfather in 1938. When Ann reentered into the wine scene, she noticed a niche that was not clearly defined or well represented. Ann decided to go off on her own and fill that niche. The dream of representing organic wineries and wines from around the world is now a reality. On any given day you can find Ann visiting wineries, finding new recipes to enjoy with her family or simply enjoying her 3 year old daughter who may soon be the 4th generation wine aficionado. Today, Annie helps represent both Organic Wine Exchange (@organicwineex), an online retail wine sales company, and their partner company Natural Organic Web (@NatOrganicWeb).

1. How did you get started in the industry? How can someone who is interested in your work get started?

Annie R. Arnold

I actually grew up in the wine business. My grandfather started selling wine in 1938. I rebelled and went into another line of work only to come back to learn more about our family business. Although we have a long family history in this type of business, I was not able to bring much of that over to my current business other than the experience and knowledge.

There are many different areas of the wine business that starts at the winery, and ends at the retailer. Marketing and Sales are a couple of skills that can cross all the lines, and is the best way to get in the door.

2. What’s the future of your industry or job?

Although it is still a relatively small niche market, wine will always be a consumed.  And based on it’s growth over the last 100 years, it will only continue to grow.

3. What do you look for when you hire an intern or entry-level candidate?

I look for someone who has completed something major in their life, like graduating from college, even if it is not in our specialty.  That commitment to finishing something shows great dedication.  Another example would be someone who has worked for a one company for at least a couple of years, even if it is just a food service job.  This too shows that they will not move on to the “next best thing.”

4. What is one thing an intern can do to make a favorable impression?

An intern that is always asking questions and willing to take the time to understand is a great virtue.  Additionally, I am always grateful for their new perspectives and ideas.  Even if I do not chose to implement an idea, it shows me that they are willing to think beyond the task at hand.

5. Can you share a positive intern story and an intern horror story? No names needed…

I cannot think of any at this time.

Interested in interning with Annie? She’s currently looking for Social Media interns for both companies! Apply now.

Sarai McMahan, a Supervisor- Revenue Cycle Training at Rady Children’s Hospital San Diego, is an Instructional Design and Training Manager with over 12 years experience in the industry.

1. How did you get started in the industry? How can someone who is interested in your work get started?

Obtaining a degree in Communication, Educational Technology, or Industrial/Organizational Psychology is a great way to break in to the field of instructional design. Taking on training roles/positions within your current job can be a great way to get started!

2. What’s the future of your industry or job?

With the introduction and subsequent ever changing electronic medical record, a career in systems training and development in the healthcare field is a recession-proof one. The future of healthcare is in technology and trainers will always be needed to educate medical professionals.

3. What do you look for when you hire an intern or entry-level candidate?

Internship candidates must possess a strong desire to learn and must be open to feedback. Strong communication skills are necessary (written and oral).

4. What is one thing an intern can do to make a favorable impression?

Present themselves in a professional manner and show that they are willing to learn.

5. Can you share a positive intern story and an intern horror story? No names needed…

Positive Story: After a 5 month internship in our organization as an Instructional Design Intern, Heather demonstrated the skills necessary to develop facilitator-led and self-study training materials. Her professionalism and commitment to her internship offered her the opportunity to interview and subsequently land a full-time position in a training position with our organization. Heather could not be more thrilled to have the dream job she’s always wanted!

We have been fortunate enough to not have a negative internship story!

Interested in interning with the Rady Children’s Hospital San Diego team? They’re currently looking for interns! Apply now.

Dangerous Lee (Lei Langston) is a brand with various projects in the fields of web publishing, writing, acting, painting, and internet radio has also worked professionally in the radio, television, and music industries over the course of her career. You can find more information on Twitter and Facebook.

1. How did you get started in the industry? How can someone who is interested in your work get started?

Dangerous Lee

DangerousLee.Biz started out as a website to highlight my career and personal life, but in the last two years or so I have taken it to be what it is now; The Dangerous Lee News & Entertainment Network. To take it to the next level I feature content in all areas except sports and I do that by using various guest writers.

2. What’s the future of your industry or job?

I hope the future consists of more media mentions (I was recently mentioned on the TODAY show), and that DangerousLee.Biz will be one of the top 100 websites in the world.

3. What do you look for when you hire an intern or entry-level candidate?

Someone that has a knack for social media marketing and exceptional writing skills is a plus!

4. What is one thing an intern can do to make a favorable impression?

Create viral content.

5. Can you share a positive intern story and an intern horror story? No names needed…

I can’t do this until I have a few interns under my belt.

Interested in interning with Dangerous Lee? She’s currently looking for Social Media interns! Apply now.

The Goddess of the Hunt is the premier online zine and community for the plugged-in and preached out Greek culture enthusiasts, taste makers and influencers. The authority of Alternative Greek culture that delivers engaging content with integrity, discernment & style.

Vasilis Xydias, Content Director

Vasilis Xydias is the content director of The Goddess of the Hunt. His passion is an understatement – obsession is more like it. Vasilis’ non-stop dedication to scouring and exposing the never-seen-before, coupled with his inner Hellenic hipster, makes him the curator of progressive Greek culture. Cool is hard to define. It’s also very fluid and elusive. But the moment of discovery for Vasilis is instant and he recognizes value and potential immediately. You can find more about The Goddess of the Hunt on their Twitter and Facebook.

1. How did you get started in the industry? How can someone who is interested in your work get started?

Dana Siomkos, Founder/Editor-in-Chief

Our team come from various backgrounds, mostly marketing oriented positions, but for this particular project, we came together based on our cultural background coupled with curating and showcasing the best creative people we can find. The tools are out there to get started more than ever. The motivation and risk involved is still the same. So for our team coming together, it was about a vision and being passionate about our concept and content.

2. What’s the future of your industry or job?

Well you have to be realistic for starters. Our world is very niche, by design. We wanted to stand out from the other websites that are about Greek content. For us, its still about interesting and unique content that is being broadcast by the latest technologies that are available to us. So the future is all upside, and like everything else in business, marketing is essential ,otherwise it doesn’t matter how great your product or content is, if no one knows about it.

3. What do you look for when you hire an intern or entry-level candidate?

Team-player. A great listener, and someone who will actually follow through.

4. What is one thing an intern can do to make a favorable impression?

Be themselves. Tell us how they can help. Ask for feedback. And see question number 3 again!

5. Can you share a positive intern story and an intern horror story? No names needed…

Positive Intern Story: They have taken over the logistics of planning and publishing a story from start to finish on your website. We don’t have to worry about this anymore and its one less thing our senior team needs to think about. So their involvement has created a positive and important impact so that we can focus more time with strategic initiatives.

Bad Intern Story: See #3. When an intern doesn’t do those things, its very noticeable in a small company.

Interested in interning with the Goddess of the Hunt team? They’re currently looking for a Social Media interns! Apply now.