Minto Roy - Career - Recruitment Blog

Good reference checks are crucial to landing the job you want. As a long term career strategy, never miss an opportunity to get someone to say something nice about you in print. Ask in the moment of them giving you the compliment or acknowledging your work – they may not remember a year later when you need it; indeed, neither may you. Reference letters are like money in your savings account, there to help you advance or to get back on your feet again if you find yourself unemployed. You also need to keep in regular contact with anyone who is a key reference for you – as important as the letters are, employers will need to do a telephone check as well. There is no worse feeling than having a reference for the great job for which you just nailed the interview but not being able to reach them, so keep your database up to date.

In general, DO:

• Use a clear format for your list of references. Have a header which matches your resume and clearly identifies you, as in the following example:

References for Caitlyn Candidate, MBA

Sally Superreference, Director of Marketing, IBM Western Canada
Formerly Director of Marketing for Business Objects
Direct Supervisor for 4 years
Tel. 604.234.5678
Cel. 778.987.6543
Sally.jonas@shaw.ca

• Provide 2-3 ways to contact each reference to make it easy for employers to follow up on a tight timeline. Hiring is a lengthy and onerous process and there is a temptation to just get it over with by the end. If your references are the first to respond, that might just give you the edge.

• Prepare your references to help you effectively. Call them when you have had an interview where you expect a reference check. Email them your most recent resume, along with the cover letter you submitted for the position. Busy people may not open your attachments, though, so also give them 3-5 one line bullet points on the position, the company, and the impression you were hoping to leave. The more specific you are, the better your referees can help you.

• Choose 360 degree references: one-two direct supervisors, the more recent the better; one colleague; one direct report; and possibly also a client. Show employers that you “work and play well with others” at all levels of an organizational culture.

And DON’T:

• Do not put references on your resume unless you are only sending it to two or three select companies. Show respect for your referees’ time and privacy. If you are emailing applications in response to dozens or hundreds of postings, know that your referees will not appreciate having their contact information broadcast that far and wide. Offer to provide references on request and have multiple copies in hand for every interview.

• Don’t hand out ratty, torn, folded, or otherwise mangled old copies of reference letters. Neither should you pull a crisp original out of a protective case and ask the interviewer to make a copy. Keep originals in a portfolio and make clean, new copies you can leave behind.

• Don’t use personal or character references, or family members as references, if you have any alternative at all. Employment references are best. Senior staff members or senior volunteers in organizations to which you donated your work or teachers/professors with whom you took a relevant course are next in preference.

Minto Roy
President
CareersToday Canada
www.careerstodaycanada.com
www.mintoroy.net