From Intern to Director: Ricky H.’s Advice to Summer Interns
By: Chelsey S.
On June 5th, approximately 450 interns across 19 service centers and 26 branches joined Schwab. It’s the 10th year of Schwab’s intern program, where we’ve hosted more than 1,800 interns. Nearly 550 former interns are still with Schwab, and we caught up with one of them. Richard “Ricky” H., interned in 2015, and has since grown his career to become a Director of IT Program Management within Schwab Technology Services (STS).
What made you apply to the intern program 8 years ago?
Just like most people going into their senior year of college, I was wondering what I was going to do with my life, so I applied for internships at multiple places. But I saw my mom go through her own Schwab journey as an employee. I saw that it was a company that put employees first, and that it was more than just a job. My mom interacted with her colleagues outside of work, and she took part in charitable activities with Schwab. I got to go to take-your-kid-to-work day and tour the data center. Because of this, Schwab was my preferred company, and I was thrilled when I was accepted to the intern program.
What was the most memorable part of your intern experience?
For me it was the shared learning that we got to do together. You come into this corporate work environment having no idea what it’s going to be like. But we were all there figuring it out together, collaborating and asking each other questions. We built relationships by jumping in the deep end together.
Did you ever imagine that you’d still be at Schwab eight years later?
Yes and no. You kind of go where your career takes you and follow what you feel passionate about and where you see opportunity. I’ve had lots of opportunity at Schwab. When I started on day one, I never said that I was going to be here for 10 years. But now that I’ve been here 8 years, it’s easier for me to say that I do see myself here for 10 more years. Schwab presents a lot of opportunity, whether that’s moving up in your current path, or finding a new path to explore.
What advice do you have for summer interns?
I’ve had the opportunity to have my own interns at Schwab and what I tell them is that everyone feels nervous. But when you are an intern, you have a golden halo, and people are going to give you the benefit of the doubt and they want to share their own journey. Interns have the chance to message their leadership. At Schwab they’ll get to meet our President, and listen to our CEO. Really take advantage of that and ask about how they got where they are. No person’s career journey is the same, but the more people you talk to, the more you can pick up the parts that relate to you. So take advantage of the time you have and ask as many questions as you can.