Expresso 17 | Shaping tomorrow

FEATURE 2

DEVELOPING TALENT FROM THE Ground UP

recruiting starts with bringing interns into the office culture and immersing them into their process and projects. Don’t just tell them, show them – which becomes their differentiator. Every year, team members, also known as ambassadors, visit specific colleges, usually their alma mater to recruit future interns and full time hires. The ambassadors maintain relationships with the colleges throughout the academic year. They visit universities ranging from Kansas State, Penn State and Milwaukee School of Engineering, to Cal Poly and many others. Ahead of the career fair, the ambassadors plan meetings with college students about the prospect of a summer internship and the potential to visit the EXP office as the next step on the path to becoming an intern.

For former intern and now full-time mechanical designer Amanda Green, the selection process is where you learn “Why EXP?” “When I interviewed with EXP before my internship started, I was able to hear about the projects I would work on, talk to the experts I would work with and ask endless que to interview each other, and it opened my eyes to the opportunities they were offering. The internship allowed me to experience the culture and determine if it was a good fit for me. After my internship, I could not wait to join the team full time and see where my career would go.” Once selected for an internship, the interns learn the ins-and-outs of the industry through guidance from mentors

After the 2008 recession, Bill McGuire, Dan Christman and Chris Kearney from EXP’s Orlando office were tasked with recruiting top talent and building their teams. This rebuilding period was marked by rapid growth, largely due to a new successful intern development program. For the US South Buildings group, who are known for working on some of the world’s most inspiring entertainment, hospitality, healthcare and science projects and delivering unmatched mechanical, electrical, plumbing and lighting design services, their internship process is equally as bold and matches their philosophy with clients – become involved early. The team believes

6 | EXPRESSO