Summer Internship Program Continues to Empower Future Leaders

This piece was authored by Faith Richardson, who interned on the Communications and Corporate Responsibility team this summer. She is a communications major at the University of Pittsburgh and plans to pursue a career in public relations.
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The days of getting coffee and filing endless piles of paperwork are over for interns. These days, interns who spend the summer at Duquesne Light Holdings (DLH) — which includes Duquesne Light Company and The Efficiency Network — are encouraged to learn new concepts, propose innovative solutions and contribute to projects in ways that will have mutual, meaningful impact for them and the company.

What Sets Us Apart

DLH’s summer internship program has powered the start of many college students’ professional journeys for more than a decade. After each year, the experience is fine-tuned to give interns a rewarding, professional role intended to challenge the next generation of leaders. The paid 12-week program is an opportunity for students to build a foundation for their career while experiencing professional collaboration and comradery with peers.

DLH views interns as full-time employees, but the experience isn’t just sitting behind a desk. Interns participate in various external opportunities such as volunteering and networking. As part of the company’s initiative to promote an inclusive workspace where all employees feel valued, interns are especially encouraged to attend Business Employee Resource Groups (or BERG) events.

Leadership Networking

The annual Executive Leadership Team (ELT) luncheon is widely considered to be the most meaningful event of the internship program. ELT members, including President and CEO Kevin Walker, take time to talk directly with interns, speaking about their day-to-day role, work-life balance and their career paths. Interns have the opportunity to ask questions and network, further developing their professional careers.

“I’ve talked with interns at other companies, and we seem to be one of the only ones that give interns an opportunity to speak that closely with the C-suite,” said Kami Alfieri, a customer affordability and innovation intern. “It’s a very unique opportunity. I feel like I walked away with a stronger perspective of how careers can develop and understand that not every leader follows the same path.”

Where Intern Work Is Valued

For many interns, it’s easy to feel like your main job is rooted in busy work. It’s been part of the role for decades, but that is not the experience at DLH. Many of the recent interns said they appreciated being included on assignments and projects the company actively implemented.

“Since day one, my team has made it clear that my work has a meaningful impact,” added Luke Lombardo, a continuous improvement intern. “One of the most valuable ways that Duquesne Light has helped me develop in my professional life is by providing me with meaningful responsibilities. They create an environment where learning is encouraged. I’ve never felt uncomfortable asking questions, and collaboration is heavily prioritized.”

“My work on this year’s LEAD Summit really stood out to me,” said Emily Petko, a talent acquisition intern. “I contributed a lot of meaningful aspects to the event. For example, I made videos for all the awardees’ speeches instead of the traditional format. This was something Duquesne Light had been wanting to implement, so I was honored to be the one trusted with this task and various other responsibilities throughout the ceremony.”

Challenging the Next Group of Leaders

DLH’s summer internship program aims to create meaningful opportunities through projects while working closely with subject matter experts and innovators across the organization. Many interns reported that their supervisor ended up doubling as a mentor — someone who is always willing to answer questions and constantly teach as interns adapt to their expectations — while also demonstrating leadership qualities.

“My supervisor is an incredible public speaker and a great advocate for herself,” said Petko. “Although I learned a lot of technical skills, soft skills like leading a group and knowing how to improve team performance is something I will definitely take into my professional career.”

DLH also inspires interns to step out of their comfort zone and try new things. Interns are placed into small groups at the start of the program and challenged to innovate and find solutions for individual projects. Their work culminates with a gallery-style presentation of their findings at the end of the summer. Hundreds of DLH employees visit the event each year to view the presentations, ask questions and share feedback.

A Changing Perspective

Working for an electric utility comes with new insight into the behind-the-scenes effort it takes to keep the lights on. DLH interns participate in the work that serves our communities while having a front-row seat to cross-department dedication and collaboration, especially during inclement weather.

“This experience showed me how much is out of the company's control, and Duquesne Light does such a great job controlling what they can,” said Alfieri. “If you were to ask me three months ago how I felt when a storm came and knocked the power out, I would have probably been annoyed and wishing they fixed the problem faster. Now that I’ve experienced firsthand just how hard they work to do everything they can to turn the lights back on, I realize that it’s a much more extensive process than I thought.”

Interns also reported a greater understanding of DLH’s culture and values.

“When I saw the opening for the internship, my first thought was, ‘What do they do for the community?’” said Kay Lucas, an environmental, health and safety intern. “I then found all the volunteer work, collaborations with helping veterans and Pittsburgh-focused groups. For me, it was really looking at the efforts and values behind the company. It’s one thing to give a mission statement, but they go above and beyond to help our communities in so many ways.”

The Future Is Bright

While return offers are not guaranteed, DLH practices strategic hiring in the hopes that interns will return for a full-time job. In the decade since launching its summer internship program, DLH has promoted 83 interns to full-time employment, with the majority being placed in engineering and IT roles. The company is committed to hiring more interns as the program evolves.

For me personally, it’s been a privilege to find a company that shows they care about interns by designing a program that sparks growth and development while fine-tuning professional skills. DLH’s internship program is a perfect example of investing in the innovative future of our overall workforce. They teach all interns the skills needed to thrive in a professional environment and produce work that matters — regardless of whether they stay at DLH or move into another industry.