ARTICLE posted in September 2006 on the BAIA blog.
An internship in the US is a life-changing experience. When young Europeans return home after a few months spent working in an American company, they are changed. It’s a difference many carry with them for the rest of their lives, one that makes them special and more valuable at both the professional and individual levels.
Franco Folini
An internship in the US is for many people a life-changing experience, usually a very positive one. When young European men and women return home after a few months spent working in an American company, they are changed. It’s a difference many of them carry with them for the rest of their lives, one that makes them special and more valuable at both the professional and individual levels. Some might find their own country too small to fit in as before, and feel a strong desire to explore more of the world. They are no longer Italian or French, nor are they Americans. They have simply become citizens of the world — a special category of open-minded, free-spirited, multi-cultural people. On the other hand, US companies that host interns from Europe gain exposure to a pool of fresh, determined, brilliant young talent. They get new ideas, enthusiasm, and the opportunity to test-drive some of their best future employees. For the two halves of the internship to meet successfully, both sides may need some help. Nora Archambeau with Intern Abroad USA is one of the few people who can make the magic happen. Here is her interview.
The interview with Nora Archambeau
Franco: Nora, can you tell us a bit about yourself and your professional activities?
Nora: I’m a native San Franciscan, born into a big French-Irish Catholic family of four sisters and one brother (poor guy!). Exposure to different cultures began early on, living in the Mission District, where Mexican-Americans, Italian-Americans, and Irish-Americans all shared the same neighborhood. The family eventually moved to the East Bay, where I completed schooling and then attended Holy Names University. It was here that my passion for international students grew, as there was an English as a Second Language (ESL) school on campus. Meeting people from Italy, France, Brazil, Venezuela, Germany, Japan, etc. made my “little world” so much bigger and exciting! Having a B.A. in Psychology and a Minor in French, I decided my 1st real career would be in International Education. I also wanted to fulfill a dream and experience living in France. It’s been a blessing to have lived in both Paris and Dijon, to have spent time in South India, and to have traveled to several Eastern and Western countries. I have an M.A. in East-West Psychology and think it’s fun to be called an Indophile and a Francophile. In this highly changeable world, many of us are pushed to, and often have a thirst to, fulfill many of our gifts. One of these gifts is using the combination of business, education, and internationalism to find clients and interns from Europe, and hopefully, later the world, through Intern Abroad USA!
Once I completed my schooling and attended Holy Names University, my passion for international students grew, as there was an English as a Second Language (ESL) school on campus. Meeting people from Italy, France, Brazil, Venezuela, Germany, Japan, etc. made my “little world” so much bigger and exciting!
Nora Archambeau
Franco: Internships can be a great opportunity not only for young students but also for companies. What are your recommendations for small companies looking to hire a few interns?
Nora: Here are a few of my recommendations:
- Clarify your reasons for hiring an intern.
- What are the primary goals you’d like to see fulfilled in 4, 6, or 9 months?
- Which country would you be interested in hosting an intern from for your business?
- How can you best support the development of a young professional’s talents and gifts?
- What is there to learn from hiring and working with an intern?
- Which service company can you trust and could offer the smoothest hiring process?
Franco: In a few words, can you tell a young European student why s/he should leave the comfort and beauty of a European city for an internship in Florida or California?
Nora: For the sheer adventure of doing it! The word “adventure” is defined as:
- An exciting or extraordinary event or series of events;
- The participation or willingness to participate in things that involve uncertainty and risk;
- To dare to go somewhere new or engage in something dodgy!
Adventure, newness, and risk-taking provide the ingredients that shape and mold us into strong, more capable, and more creative individuals. Opening up to new experiences, new cultures and people, and exposure to different beauties expand and stretch our thinking, beliefs, and approaches to problem-solving. If I hadn’t adventured out at night on the streets of Venezia and trusted I’d find my way back, well, I’d probably still be wandering around, living in basilicas here and there, having never again found my pensione in Dorsodoro!
Adventure, newness, and risk-taking provide the ingredients that shape and mold us into strong, more capable, and more creative individuals. Opening up to new experiences, new cultures and people, and exposure to different beauties expand and stretch our thinking, beliefs, and approaches to problem-solving.
Nora Archambeau
Franco: Many interns come from Europe, mainly to improve their English. What other, less evident benefits can they receive from working in a foreign country and in a unique environment such as the San Francisco Bay area?
Nora: Some of the benefits they can receive are:
- Learn to trust more in themselves and in others;
- Hone their intuitive and intellectual abilities;
- Build on adaptive and flexibility skills;
- Increase culture-to-culture communication proficiency;
- Add new conduits in the brain;
- Willingness to accept a larger variety of ethnicities!
- Know that there are differences working in SF and Silicon Valley.
SF offers warmth, friendliness, cultural variety, intuitive thinking, city excitement with a hometown feeling; Silicon Valley presents self-sufficiency, methodical thinking, high-energy environments, and a constant production of innovative ideas.
SF offers warmth, friendliness, cultural variety, intuitive thinking, city excitement with a hometown feeling; Silicon Valley presents self-sufficiency, methodical thinking, high-energy environments, and a constant production of innovative ideas.
Nora Archambeau
Franco: Based on your experience, what are the most common realistic and unrealistic assumptions interns have about the San Francisco Bay area?
Nora: Realistic:
- Working in America can sometimes lead to a permanent job.
- Having a U.S. company listed on one’s resume or CV may open more doors upon returning home.
- Their English will most definitely improve; (d) most Americans are sincerely friendly and helpful whenever possible.
Unrealistic:
- Working in America guarantees permanent employment.
- The opportunities to advance economically are unlimited.
- Americans have ALL the answers! Last, you just may fall in love… with the City, with technology, with Noah’s Bagels… or maybe even with the love of your life!
Franco: As Europeans, we look to Silicon Valley as a reference model for business and technology. When looking at Europe as a whole, what do you see that could be successfully imported to help Americans perform even better in the SF Bay Area?
Nora:
- To take a longer time to work on the product before it is launched to the market so that less recalls occur.
- To cultivate the social side of a business relationship more before launching into potential business deals.
- Communicating more from a cross-cultural perspective can reduce conflicts and enable smoother decision-making, e.g., in the EU.
- To encourage Americans to increase their attention span from nano-seconds to minutes!
Franco, thank you for inviting me to be interviewed!
I would like to thank Nora Archambeau for taking the time for this interview and for the important work she does every day with Intern Abroad USA, promoting and supporting Euro-American internships.
