The good reference

Referee reports are often important in getting that job you want. If you have the skills and experience to apply for your dream job, and you write a great application that wins you an interview, and if the interview goes really well, and everything seem set for getting the position, you are going to be seriously annoyed if you later find out your referees let you down by saying something about you with less enthusiasm than you’d like. It takes the edge off your application.

Where do you get a good reference? You’ll get them from the people who like and admire you, of course. They will be trusted work colleagues, friends, or relatives. They might even be your bosses or supervisor, but this isn’t always the case. Line managers are more likely to be interested in their balance sheets or productivity than your career. Mind you, if you come across a manager that has both interests at heart you may be better off staying where you are!

I’ve asked lots of bosses to be my referee. Gauge their reaction when you ask. If they seem in any way reticent don’t use them. If they don’t want you to tell you or discuss with you what they will say or write then don’t use them. I had one referee who passed on their reference to me before it was forwarded for me to review. It was a great reference, nicely worded and in some respects spoke about me in better terms than I would have considered of myself. I made some suggested edits and they were incorporated too.

A lot of referees’ reports are taken over the phone. In anticipation of this, get together with your colleagues who are going to be your referees and work out what is to be said when that telephone call is made. On some occasions a written report has to be provided and email will commonly be used. It would be to everyone’s advantage to consult each other, and share the load on this task. It’s possible for your old boss to remain your referee even though they may have moved. You can also continue to use friends who work in a different organisation as your referee too.

If an old work mate has moved on and works in some other company, and is obviously not your supervisor, don’t hesitate to consider asking them if you suspect your boss may not be as helpful to you in getting another job. Of course, the people you approach must take the responsibility seriously. And of course, they must be willing to give you an excellent report. You must convince them to speak about you in glowing terms, because that’s what may well be happening with your competition for the job.

If it is a requirement that one of your referees be your supervisor and you refuse to do this you may have to sit through an awkward period of questioning at the interview, but don’t use them if they will undermine your chance of winning the job. Remember, everyone has experienced troubles at work and the interview panel may well understand your reasons for your choice of referees.

Stupid Employers

Something that really annoys me with employers is that some of them ask for written referee reports to be provided prior to the interview. This insidious habit should be stamped out. Employers are asking too much by requesting written references at all, but to call for written references from everyone on the short list, prior to the interview, is exceptionally nasty. Don’t play their game.

The relationship you have with your referees exists on a knife-edge balance. If you are on good terms with these people they will probably be happy to support you by saying a few words in your favour. If the relationship is a bit more tenuous you may be in trouble, and if you have the bad luck to apply for a job with a company that requires your referees put their comments in writing you may find you are taxing your friendship, which may ultimately result in them declining to support you.

When the telephone rings from a prospective employer your referees will probably be happy to talk to them. If you were good for the company, they will be pleased to boast of your skills. However, we don’t generally get the first job we apply for, and if your boss or supervisors are your referees, speaking in your favour half a dozen times or more in a month probably won’t bother them too much. It’s part of their job, after all. However, if your referees are put in the position of having to provide a written statement half a dozen times a month the task becomes onerous. And if these stupid employers insist your referees provide a written statement addressing the job selection criteria that task becomes a burden that might make them see you in a less favourable light. It might force you to apply for jobs that are below your skill level.

There is another perspective that these stupid employers seem to have missed. Your referees may well get fed up with it, and if they are easy going may in all likelihood ask you to write up your own reference and pass it to them to sign and submit. So much for the confidential report.

One way of changing this policy is to ask your referees not to participate. Though, if they are decent people they will probably shrug it off saying that it’s no trouble. They are being polite: it’s a lot of trouble. Don’t put them to the nuisance of it. Look after your referees; don’t allow them to be abused by selfish stupid employers.

On a few occasions I have asked employers why they engage in this practice, and the HR section usually give some inane response about being their policy, with little more explanation. It’s probably easier for them. It probably saves them time. Well, in my view, stuff their policy. Take some action to stop it.

In recent years I have tended to exclude referee contact details from my applications. I include a statement in my application saying they will be provided in the event of an interview. Should I be fortunate enough to get to the interview stage I pass my list of referees across the table at the end of the interview. This may also be a gauge of how interested they are in your application. If they ask you for your references before you have the opportunity to produce them you can probably assume they are interested in your application, but if they fail to ask for them I think you can kiss the job goodbye.

One solution to this nasty procedure is to refuse to relinquish control. Don’t provide your referees with your application. When the company HR section later contacts you saying that referee contacts must be provided, explain ever so politely that you understand their request but that you would prefer not to provide them at this stage. Be firm, and remain polite in everything you say. Make up some story if you have to, or simply repeat that you will bring them to the interview if you are short-listed. You might be faced with a response that if you don’t provide contact details your application will be rejected. Now it gets difficult. Will you cave in and let them win, or stick to your guns? Consider this: it’s not generally up to the HR section to determine who gets short-listed. Short-listing is often a decision for the section that needs the staff member. The HR section of the company generally has the task of coordinating the applicants; they don’t usually make the decisions. You’ll know the section contact person’s name from the job ad; ask this HR person that you’re speaking with to refer your request to the contact person. If your application is rejected for this reason and the section gets to hear about it, and they could get to hear about it because you tell them, and if you were a good candidate you may have contributed to changing that company’s policy on recruitment procedures.