Platform Redefines How Firm’s Interns Learn and Launch

Grant Thornton’s national internship program serves 800 to 1,000 interns annually across dozens of offices and three service lines. 

To streamline the program’s orientation and training, the firm implemented a centralized, technology-enabled learning platform that delivers a consistent, high-quality experience regardless of location. 

Meredith Carr, Grant Thorton’s university recruiting associate director, explains that the platform—known as Intrepid—consolidates all orientation schedules, training materials, resources, and communication touchpoints into a single, intuitive digital hub. 

“Interns receive a guided, interactive, and personalized onboarding experience, reinforced with engagement analytics, quizzes and discussion boards,” Carr adds. 

“This innovative model reduces confusion, enhances learning, increases efficiency for internal teams, and delivers a scalable and replicable framework for future cohorts.” 

Before Intrepid, Grant Thorton’s interns were required to navigate multiple systems to locate essential orientation and training information, resulting in confusion, inconsistent guidance, and inefficiencies for both interns and recruiting teams. 

“Important schedules and resources were scattered across internal sites, and recruiters often fielded questions they couldn’t resolve due to limited involvement in training development,” Carr says. 

“This fragmented system created uncertainty during interns’ critical first days and hindered their ability to engage meaningfully in training. The lack of centralized tracking also made it difficult to monitor progress or identify interns needing support. A new, unified digital solution was essential to improving clarity, confidence, and consistency.” 

Carr says the creation and implementation of Intrepid specifically aimed to:

• Centralize orientation and training information—Consolidate all schedules, materials, and resources into a single, user-friendly platform to reduce confusion and eliminate the need to navigate multiple systems.
• Enhance learning through technology—Incorporate digital interactivity—quizzes, discussion boards, embedded tasks, and surveys—to reinforce understanding, promote engagement, and validate comprehension of core requirements.
• Improve accuracy and version control—Ensure interns access correct and up-to-date materials, preventing the distribution of outdated or conflicting information. 
• Strengthen intern accountability—Use platform analytics to monitor progress, identify outliers, and support interns who may fall behind in completing required modules.
• Increase efficiency for recruiting and learning teams—Reduce redundant inquiries, minimize manual troubleshooting, and establish a single reporting mechanism for training and technical issues.
• Promote scalability and national consistency—Build a replicable, high-quality digital onboarding model that can support 800+ interns each cycle and easily adapt to new service lines or future program growth.
• Gather actionable feedback—Leverage built-in survey tools and discussion features to collect quantitative and qualitative insights that inform continuous improvement. 

Grant Thorton also incorporated consistent branding, intuitive navigation, and mobile-responsive design to ensure a modern and professional experience. 

The team evaluated the effectiveness of Intrepid using a mixed-methods approach that included platform analytics, engagement data, survey results, and qualitative feedback. Carr reports that across all measures, the program met or exceeded its objectives. 

Quantitative metrics:

• Platform adoption—92% of interns logged into Intrepid during orientation week.
• Engagement—All participants demonstrated strong follow-through by completing required activities and fully meeting orientation expectations.
• Navigation improvement—Orientation resources were easier to find and understand, helping interns feel welcomed, grounded, and confident from the start.
• Accuracy and version control—Zero instances of incorrect or outdated orientation schedules being shared—down from recurring issues the previous year. 

Qualitative feedback:

• Interns reported increased confidence navigating orientation materials and a clearer understanding of expectations.
• A returning intern shared that the experience was “significantly smoother and more organized” than the previous year. 

In addition, Grant Thornton’s learning and development teams reported improved consistency in training delivery across service lines, while recruiters experienced reduced administrative burden, allowing more time for relationship-building and intern support. 

“Overall,” Carr says, “analytics and user feedback confirm that Intrepid substantially improved clarity, reduced confusion, increased engagement, and created a more modern and effective onboarding experience. These results validate the platform’s continued use and highlight strong potential for further expansion. 

“Grant Thornton remains committed to continually enhancing the Intrepid experience. As our primary learning platform, Intrepid will continue to evolve based on intern feedback to ensure the orientation experience remains modern, scalable, and aligned with the firm’s tech forward direction.”