4 Ways Hiring Co-op Students Can Help Your Small Business

You may have heard the term “co-op” floating around before, whether at an academic institution or a hiring fair.

But have you thought about how hiring a co-op student could help your small business grow, retain talent and spread the word about your brand?

Benefits for Businesses

Affordable Talent

Do you have projects on your to-do list that you just can’t find the time for? Co-op positions can be hired to fill temporary human resource needs or for specific projects, like that website revamp you’ve been talking about or that big event you’re putting on – all without making too much of an impact on your bottom line.

Hiring students gives you affordable talent with a short-term commitment, providing you with financial flexibility to run your business.

New Perspectives

Hiring students is a great way to bring a fresh perspective and innovative ideas to your business. They’re often full of energy, eager to learn and bursting with ideas that you may not have considered before.

Brand Awareness

As your business grows, you’ll eventually need to hire on more permanent help and co-op students can help with that as well. Posting a co-op job position gives your company exposure and it’s a great way to showcase your work culture in front of university students and future graduates.

Students that apply for your position will be doing research on your company, and if they like what they see, they’ll look out for future opportunities to work for you.

Easy Recruitment

Although your co-ops may only be with you temporarily, it’s always an option to offer full-time employment following their graduation. Because you and the student are already familiar with each other, this helps the recruitment process in the long term and cuts down on the time you spend conducting interviews and training new hires.

All in all, co-op students have the potential to be an invaluable resource to your small business. If you could use a helping hand and some fresh new ideas, make a call to your local post-secondary institution to see what options are available to you.

Convinced that a hiring a student is the right move for your business? Companies in BC could be eligible for up to $10,800 per year in funding from the BC Innovation Council’s BC Tech Co-op Grants Program.