Common
Do's/Don'ts Regarding:
Your References
DO - take your reference list to the
interview with you, and make sure that you have the correct name, address, title, and
phone number for each person on it. Contact your references periodically to
see if their contact info has changed. (DON'T
list references on your resume.)
DO - send your résumé to your references and show them
what you're going to be saying, and what job you're applying for
DO - remind your references of your success on the job, the
skills you gained, projects you worked on, etc.
DO - make sure you provide meaningful references. These
would be people you worked for, with, or above.
- DO - know if your company has a policy
about providing references. Some companies are only able to provide your job title
and length of service.
- DO - ask before you give names as
references. Fortunately, most people feel complemented when you call upon them. Usually
the few who might be uncomfortable, for whatever reason, will diplomatically refuse.
- DO - make sure your records are correct.
Occasionally an interviewee looks bad because his former HR department did not have the
same job date and title information in his file as he did on his resume. Data entry or
communications errors are not unusual, so check with your HR department to ensure that
their records correspond to yours. Conflicting data will be perceived as a big negative to
a prospective employer.
- DO - maintain active and positive
relationships with your references. Stay in touch over the phone or over coffee. Keep the
reference up-to-date about your progress, and make sure you have the most up-to-date
information about them. If the reference's title (or name) has changed, or if they've left
their position and you've provided old information to the prospective employer, it doesn't
look good.
Have you been
asked to write a letter of reference?
As
an employer, coworker, or friend, you may at some point in your career be called upon to
write a letter of recommendation. If you are unsure about how to go about it or simply
don't know what to say, here are some tips about what to include and how to structure a
typical letter of recommendation.
First
Paragraph -- Start out by specifying in what capacity and for how long you have know the
person whom you are recommending. If the person is an employee or coworker, indicate the
term of employment, the responsibilities of the position, and any significant projects
undertaken by the individual. You may wish to include a sentence about the nature of your
company and its activities. Here, you can also give a one-sentence summary or overview of
your opinion of the recommended individual.
Second
Paragraph -- In the next paragraph provide a more detailed evaluation of the person as an
employee. Describe his or her performance on specific assignments and list any important
accomplishments. What are the individual's strengths or shortcomings in the workplace?
What was it like to interact with him or her?
Third
Paragraph -- To sum things up you can make a more broad characterization of the individual
and his or her demeanor. Overall, was the person responsible, polite, warm, disagreeable,
lazy, spiteful? Finally, indicate the degree to which you recommend the individual for the
position she or he is seeking: without reservation, strongly, with some reservation.
If
you have not had much contact with the person, you may be better off declining to write
the letter of recommendation, rather than putting together something vague and
dispassionate.
Examples of commonly asked questions of a reference:
- "What
are his/her strong points on the job? What characteristics do you most admire about
him?"
- "What
are his/her shortcomings? Was there anything (s)he was trying to change about
him/her-self, or should be trying to improve on?"
- "How
did his/her last job performance review go? What strengths were cited? What recommended
improvement areas were noted? How about performance reviews prior to that?"
- "Is
(s)he a reliable person? Does (s)he have any personal problems or bad habits that
interfere with job performance? Were there ever any punctuality or attendance
problems?"
- "If
(s)he asked you what one thing would most improve the way (s)he performs on the job, what
specific advice would you give him/her?"
- "How
productive was (s)he? How high are his/her quality standards?"
- How
much supervision does (s)he require? How fast does (s)he learn?"
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