Innovation Internship and Fellowship Programs

About the Program

Category: Personnel Management, Employment and Training (Best in Category)

Year: 2023

In 2021, Jefferson County’s Business Innovation & Technology department launched an Innovation & Digital Transformation Internship Program. This program is designed to give university students and recent graduates the opportunity to lead emerging technology projects focused on improving government services. The primary goal of the program is to recruit and develop a new generation of aspiring civic innovators in order to build a talent pipeline into the county’s workforce. The interns research, evaluate, and pilot innovative opportunities in areas such as business intelligence, digital voice assistants, and robotic process automation. Their work continues to create efficiencies for the county and has even attracted external funding. Based on the success of the internship program, in 2022 the team launched an Innovation & Digital Transformation Fellowship Program offering one-year, full-time positions at the county. The interns and fellows receive specifically designed guidance and experiences from the county’s Innovation team. Career development opportunities include mentoring, training, and connecting with other professionals. Feedback on the experience has been very positive and several participants have transitioned into more permanent roles at the county. In such a competitive recruiting environment, this new source of home-grown talent and innovation has been invaluable to Jefferson County.