Engagement Intern

Lutheran Social Services of Illinois (LSSI), is a leading not-for-profit organization providing healing, justice and wholeness to people and communities. For over 150 years, LSSI has made a difference in the lives of children and families, and we're still a strong, viable presence in the State of Illinois, continuing that commitment to making a difference.

This is an unpaid internship. The Employee Experience & Engagement Intern will support the Department of Employee Experience & Engagement in advancing initiatives that strengthen organizational culture, employee engagement, recognition, and life event programming.

This role provides administrative, operational, and creative support to ensure the successful implementation of engagement strategies aligned with Gallup Q12 methodology and the organization’s Gen-Care philosophy.

This internship is ideal for a student interested in Human Resources, Organizational Development, Organizational Psychology, Nonprofit Leadership, Communications, or Business Administration.

• Provide clerical and administrative support for engagement initiatives and subcommittee work.
• Assist with meeting coordination, scheduling, calendar management, note-taking, and follow-up documentation.
• Maintain organized digital files, dashboards, and tracking systems (SharePoint, Teams, PowerPoint, Excel).
• Support data entry and documentation related to engagement activities and recognition programs.

• Assist in preparation of materials for Gallup engagement communications and action planning.
• Support Life Events, Recognition, and Engagement Subcommittee projects.
• Assist in drafting internal communications and program summaries.

• Create professional graphic and promotional materials using Canva or similar design platforms.
• Support the development of flyers, internal announcements, presentation slides, and digital content.
• Assist with formatting reports and visual summaries for leadership.

• Conduct research on best practices in employee engagement, recognition, and organizational culture.
• Assist in benchmarking and compiling insights for strategic planning.
• Support documentation and refinement of standard operating procedures.

• Master’s Level degree in Business Administration, HR, Business, Communications, Psychology, Nonprofit Management, Organizational Development, or related field.
• Strong computer proficiency (Microsoft Office, Word, Excel, PowerPoint)
• Experience with Canva or similar design tools.
• Strong organizational and clerical skills with high attention to detail.
• Ability to manage multiple tasks and meet deadlines.
• Professional written and verbal communication skills.
• Interest in organizational culture, employee engagement, and workplace experience.

• Familiarity with collaboration tools (Microsoft Teams, SharePoint)
• Interest in Gallup engagement methodology or employee experience strategy.
• Ability to work independently and maintain confidentiality.
• Strong critical thinking and initiative.

• Organizational culture strategy in a nonprofit setting.
• Gallup Q12 engagement framework and action planning.
• Cross-functional collaboration with program leadership and central administrative departments including HR, Communications, and IT.
• Program development and culture-building initiatives.
• Data-informed employee experience design.

We are an equal opportunity employer, and all qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability status, sexual orientation, protected veteran status, pregnancy, any other characteristic protected by law.