Re: Weighting References for Applicants

The following exchange took place on a list that I’m on.

“Subject: Re: QUESTION: References *********** wrote: >  > Ultimately, if you can’t find at least three people who can give> strong and enthusiastic references for you, you don’t get hired, no> matter how terrific the interview> > doesn’t that penalize people with longevity/loyalty/seniority, which> would in other circumstances be highly valued? My question too as I was reading through this thread.  I was at my firstjob in the area for over 9 years, the second one for over 15.  In eachcase I worked for the same boss until they left the job.  In each case thenew boss was a horse’s backside so I moved on.  Since the first good bossand I lost touch over the years, that means that I’m short on managerreferences. That doesn’t mean I don’t have other references, but they’re co-workersrather than managers. 

********”

References are not everything, but they help removed doubt and shore up confidence in a candidate.  If someone relies solely on references for their decision (as in a case like the one described here, you are better off not working for them in the first place.  That said, you should probably set up a LinkedIn profile and ask peers to endorse you on it as you go in the future (now if you can).  If you are doing web related work then you should spend some time working on your web portfolio.

One of my earliest job placements as a recruiter involved a candidate who had overwhelming qualifications and stellar references.  I never met the candidate, before or after he was hired, and it wasn’t long before I started to hear that the executive team of the company was having doubts.  It wasn’t long after that that more details about this person’s background unfolded and a call for a replacement came in.  This just goes to show that you can’t judge a book by its cover…references are part of that.

More important than having references that sing praises for people are references that supervised someone and who are willing to tell you who this person is as an employee.  Most savvy job seekers have a few good people in their pocket, but those are not always the best professional references because they are biased.  Checking references is a lot like Poker.  You have to be able to tell when someone is bluffing or not.  When you can’t tell, but suspect they are, that’s when it is time to ask for additional references.  The second round of references are never as chummy.

Above all else, when checking references and in hiring people you have to trust your instincts.  If you have a gut feeling that someone isn’t right then you need to learn to listen to it.  Your gut isn’t always right, especially when it hasn’t had sufficient experience hiring people, but it is extremely helpful as an indication that more time should be spent on the search, interviewing and due dilligence.