Archived ETL Interns

[Thunderbird1956]

Seriously who is vetting the interns this year? More than once I've caught our intern playing on the phone when they are supposed to be at least learning the business.

I'm sure they have promise, but I've yet to see any beside being willing to play shadow to an ETL.

 

[ken1920]

do you know anything about the ETL interview process?

 

[NKG]

On the wave with a broom, our intern kept walking by. Gonna be a great ETL.

 

[ken1920]

that keep cracking me up lol^^^

 

[BullseyeBlues]

Ours has pretty much been used as the “You deal with the LOD stuff because I don’t want to” and errand boy by our actual ETLs. I think ours is technically a communications major from a local college, and he’s not impressed with the lack of info that ordinary TMs (or anyone outside of leadership’s inner circle) gets at our store when trying to do tasks.

 

[EagleEye]

There are pretty strict goals and numbers to meet when retaining interns and offering them ETL positions, so once they pass interviews it's like a 95% chance they get offered a position regardless of performance.

 

[Him]

@Thunderbird1956 some ETL interns really WANT to do well and really want to improve wherever their at, whether it’s been training at a store or their actual store they will join. Some however like you said, take it as a joke and just deal with the duties the ETL they are being trained by DONT want to do. I think whenever they learn the “Totality” of all Spot. They do 1 of 2 things. Stick around or run for the hills!!

 

[Him]

@EagleEye so I’m guessing that’s why Spot has “Leadership” that knows “less” than TL’s and Tm’s.

 

[Thunderbird1956]

There are pretty strict goals and numbers to meet when retaining interns and offering them ETL positions, so once they pass interviews it's like a 95% chance they get offered a position regardless of performance.

Trust me I know, but you would think that because of that the vetting process would be better. As far as interns go that transition to Spot full time the rate of good ones to not has been 1/3rd good, 2/3rd not.

If Spot wants that piss poor level of dedication, I have a SCO TM that will show the same level of dedication they can get for way less than the Intern.

 

[EatPlanoLove]

It goes back to the recruiters for the vetting! Everyone all over this site has a bad taste in their mouth for “right out of college” ETL’s but that is for good reason. If you have no previous retail management experience you won’t be able to do the job as effectively as someone who has it’s just the plain facts. But the same thing for the recruiters, if you hire someone without or with little experience right out of college you’re gonna have a bad time ‍♂️

 

[SoftlinesTM2018]

Ours is literally straight out of college and she's a total bitch she started training front end 2 weeks ago and all the cashiers were complaining and now she started doing softlines and she's the worst it took her almost 3 hours do a go back rack so we had her do the folded cart and she didn't even fold the tables before putting them away she just added to the pile of mess which I later had to clean up. And we tried to teach her how to set a POG and we've tried teaching her about 3 seperate times and she still doesn't understand and she's always on her phone next week she trains with our Hardlines ETL who is amazing but very strict with her TL's and Team good luck to her.

 

[Kartman]

Don't even bother learning her name.

 

[sabria]

I personally enjoy interns. Given the right environment it's a much better introduction to the leadership team than a fresh hire into an ETL role with 6 weeks of training like I did. It simply wasn't enough time and plagued with one very poor primary ETL trainer I ended up put into a role unprepared that almost made me quit. I consider myself a success story but I'm one success story out of probably 7-10 failures.

Poor environments are what I'd consider to the in your store Op - if your ETL/STL team is not vigilant in managing the intern's development then they simply won't learn how to be succeed and will become a "coaster" as I call them. Shadowing an ETL is great for a week or two but at that point you have the primary routines down and should be given more responsibility daily but remain under heavy observation. In my situation as invasive as it might seem I might like to spend as much time as possible watching on AP cameras. Not necessarily trying to catch you loafing but just seeing how you interact with regular team members and guests.

Loafing interns and ETL's both in general might always coast along for awhile but they'll fail. Some might coast longer than others but rarely will you see an older ETL that has made a career out of the position with that attitude.

 

[Fix It]

Interns aren’t so bad most of the time. 2 weeks shadowing ETLs, 2 weeks of working them like regular TMs and errand boys, and 2 weeks learning LOD and routines.. And then they leave to flourish... or find how disfunctional other stores can be.

 

[SitSpotSit]

Wait, Etls get 6 weeks of training?? This explains a lot.....

 

[sabria]

Wait, Etls get 6 weeks of training?? This explains a lot.....

technically you get more. It's 6 weeks of training with a dedicated ETL Training. Then you get to your placement store and you are basically on a 6 month training period - essentially you still will be given a lot of support and leeway but after the 6 months or so whenever your STL/DTL want - they will start evaluating you more strictly as they do with other ETLs.

That's the perfect world though. I was thrown into my spot and given no support with a poor STL and ETL team behind me in my placement store. My DTL was great though and I was afraid I was opening a can of worms venting to her only a few months into my placement and she had already been in action on removing the other leadership but also moved my placement to a more positive environment for me to continue learning rather than essentially being tasked with turning around a completely red store where 75% of the leadership team was terminated a few months in.

Many fresh ETL's in the same position either would of went along with the sinking ship adopting the poor ethics/practices of the rest of the failing leadership - or just quit. I was about to put in my 2 weeks to STL before i spoke to my DTL, luckily she was more on my side than I realized.

 

[LearningTree]

technically you get more. It's 6 weeks of training with a dedicated ETL Training. Then you get to your placement store and you are basically on a 6 month training period - essentially you still will be given a lot of support and leeway but after the 6 months or so whenever your STL/DTL want - they will start evaluating you more strictly as they do with other ETLs.

That's the perfect world though. I was thrown into my spot and given no support with a poor STL and ETL team behind me in my placement store. My DTL was great though and I was afraid I was opening a can of worms venting to her only a few months into my placement and she had already been in action on removing the other leadership but also moved my placement to a more positive environment for me to continue learning rather than essentially being tasked with turning around a completely red store where 75% of the leadership team was terminated a few months in.

Many fresh ETL's in the same position either would of went along with the sinking ship adopting the poor ethics/practices of the rest of the failing leadership - or just quit. I was about to put in my 2 weeks to STL before i spoke to my DTL, luckily she was more on my side than I realized.

Man I should've asked my DTL to transfer me. The store where I did my initial 6 weeks of training was great: The ETLs all worked together, the culture was great, everyone worked to make sure the store was successful. Not so much at my current store. I was thrown into my department with no handoff period from the previous ETL, the department had been without an ETL for months, and my STL was absent. On top of all that my senior merch kept telling me to put off the computer training and stay on the floor. Seriously, I would catch shit for going on workbench and attempting to look up things like how to get the soda machine in food ave fixed. I was told not to do things by the book and to just partner with the other ETLs more. When I would do that I'd get a dismissive wave that they were too busy or they'd act incredulous that I didn't know. Then I tried asking my TLs to show me how to get things done, that didn't go over well either. My store's entire culture surrounding training is complete BS. Even now any time HR tells me I have training due, I catch shit any time I try to sit down and actually get it done. My Senior Merch just tells HR to key it in even though I haven't even looked at it yet.

Honestly this website is a big part of how I was finally able to get some stable footing (I lurked for a while before making a profile).

I plan on quitting before getting into the thick of Q4. I'm about to hit my 1 year mark so I can honestly say I tried to make it work.

 

[SitSpotSit]

Thanks @sabria!! That makes more sense! We have had a few interns since I've been w/Target. One stayed on and he is amazing for real. The other one got the 6 weeks and left, but seemed ok. Our current one is like the first one, amazing and I'll miss her. It's actually been a few etls who have rotated through that made me think that 6 weeks was it because they seemed so unfamiliar with so many basic things.

 

[Hardlinesmaster]

On Etl interns:
You will be offered an ETL position at the end of the summer internship program. You must receive a "meets expectations" during your bieeekly statuses, receive blessing from training ETL and STL, and successfully complete the Operational Review at the end of the internship.

Once the Operational Review is completed, you'll receive a phone call from the recruiter for your area with an offer. This is typically scheduled during one of your final internship shifts.

Extended Internships are completely optional, and not required to move forward as an ETL. If you are interesting in an EI, make your interest known, especially with the DTL.

EI's schedules vary... some work on special projects within the store, others may learn a different workcenter, some do LOD shifts a couple times a week, and others just work during the holiday season. Since you retain your internship pay rate, payroll challenged stores may not be able to "afford" extended interns. I was the only EI in my internship class of 10 to get one.

If you do EI, make sure your expectations are clear with your ETL trainer and STL. My summer internship was in logistics, and my extended internship was in Guest Experience... I was supposed to keep mentor and coach a struggling GSTL, and was basically a Sr. GSTl (minus opening/closing solo)... but then my STL blasted me for not being global enough. Just be clear on your role as an EI... a bad EI can result in your original offer being pulled.

Honestly, while I didn't have the greatest experience as an EI, it did give me the push to pursue other career opportunities. And I'm very thankful for that experience.
Thanks
bullseyekindaguy

 

[Hardlinesmaster]

do you know anything about the ETL interview process?

Etl STAR interviews:
The answer to your question(s) are pretty simple. During your interview be honest and yourself. They will ask you 4-5 situational questions (total of 3 rounds I believe) just to see what type of leader you are. Remember to paint them a picture because what they are looking for in each question that you answer is to be outlined in the following way:

Situation - how does your answer relate to the question
Example: tell me about a time you had to make a tough decison
You - During college ect..... <--- you are painting them a picture so tehy can visually see your answer.
Task - what did you have to accomplish/what what was the issue or problem
Action - how did you solve this issue/what steps were taken.
Result - what was the final outcome.

Overall be upbeat. During the interview don't EVER put yourself down. Even with the famous questions "what is one think your previous supervisor would change or say that you need to work on." Turn the question about to something like: "One thing my past supervisor would stay that I can improve is sometimes I tend want to help out too much. If I see someone struggling I always try and offer assistance." Remember to turn a weakness into a strength (sorry I just got off work so if a lot does not make sense please don't blame me lol).

Coolnite7

 

[Panda13]

Seriously who is vetting the interns this year? More than once I've caught our intern playing on the phone when they are supposed to be at least learning the business .

This and Starbucks trip is core ETL training I thought!!!

 

[Caesar82]

Etl STAR interviews:

Overall be upbeat. During the interview don't EVER put yourself down. Even with the famous questions "what is one think your previous supervisor would change or say that you need to work on." Turn the question about to something like: "One thing my past supervisor would stay that I can improve is sometimes I tend want to help out too much. If I see someone struggling I always try and offer assistance." Remember to turn a weakness into a strength (sorry I just got off work so if a lot does not make sense please don't blame me lol).

Coolnite7

Respectfully I disagree. As an HR practitioner I can tell you right now that any good interviewer doesn't want you to fluff them up. We can see through these backhanded compliment answers. Many interviewers will even go so far as to say "Okay, now give me a real answer" or "and don't give me an answer that's really a compliment." It's not because we're trying to trick you, it's because everyone has flaws and everyone has things they need to get better at. What we're trying to figure out is simply what's your opportunity? So be honest, it will say more about you as a leader than offering up some overly practiced compliment.