How to Make the Most of Your References

By DOUGLAS B. RICHARDSON From the National Business Employment Weekly

"Of course we’ll give you a favorable reference."

Whether you’ve checked out or been chucked out, that phrase probably is music to your ears. You permit yourself a slight sigh of relief: your prior employer is going to say nice things, advance your cause or at least not torch your prospects.

But what is "a positive reference?" Who decides what’s positive and what is and isn’t said -- you or an employee of your former organization? Who’s going to provide your reference -- someone who was in a position to evaluate your contributions, or a functionary reading lifelessly off a script or pulling personal judgments from thin air?

Who isn’t going to have license to talk about you to a prospective employer or a headhunter -- or can any warm body, from your bitter ex-secretary to the new kid in the mailroom, talk about your strengths, weaknesses, style and motivation?

When is your reference going to be delivered -- at the outset of the interviewing process to pull you through the screen or at the close, as an assurance to the employer?

An astonishing number of candidates leave this crucial job-search element to chance. They assume or hope that those empowered to comment on them will do the right thing. But in reality, it’s up to you to assure that your references support your candidacy.

What’s a Reference For?

A potential employer isn’t automatically going to take at face value personal recitals of your many virtues. Armed with ample horror stories and cautionary tales about inflated accomplishments, bogus credentials and blatant fraud, employers are justified in seeking assurance that their favorable impressions are well-founded.

At its best, the reference check should be the tail on the dog, not the dog itself. Skilled recruiters and experienced hiring managers shouldn’t rely on references to establish your abilities. A check should serve as a final step in the selection process.

Still, some employers ask for references in their initial screening. This seems to occur most in academia. In the private sector, some executive recruiters also have been known to keep the brakes on a professional’s candidacy until a couple of heavy-hitting references provide assurances that he or she is worth further attention. There may be little you can do to dissuade these recruiters from demanding premature disclosure of your references, but you can tactfully suggest why such a request causes you heartburn:

Larry, I appreciate your wanting some initial testimonials about my skills and abilities, but let me explain my hesitancy to provide a full set of references at this stage. First, I am looking for new opportunities while continuing my present job -- I don’t have the financial luxury of quitting my present job just so I can run an open job search. If I give you the names of my most powerful references, those who know me best and most recently in my current role, I’ll be blowing my cover with my employer.

Or:

I’m uncomfortable asking my references to weigh in at the initial screening stage. It’s still too early to know if there’s a strong fit, yet my references are being asked to take call after call. I know they’ll speak positively about me, but I worry about wearing out their good will.

It may be possible to compromise with a reference-happy headhunter. Say you’d provide one or two sources, but ask that a full check be deferred until the process has progressed -- preferably until you’ve received an offer.

What’s in a Reference?

Bland, all-encompassing, rose-colored testimonials won’t do you any good. "To Whom It May Concern" reference letters likewise aren’t accorded much credibility. A reference checker wants specifics that address your suitability for the job, not an assurance that you’re a treasured member of the human race. Letters actually may raise alarms: "How come I can’t talk to the reference personally?" the reference checker may wonder.

Planning and Supporting Your Proofs

Generally speaking, interviewers want to answer only two questions:

1. What value do you offer my organization and can you prove it in a way I believe?
2. Why do you want this job? What motivates you and will this position keep you interested and challenged?

These issues of competency and compatibility are at the heart of every reference check and the questions involved.

Your best references provide specific first-hand examples. Interviewers are looking for evidence of skill, achievement and temperament, not general praise. Additionally, there’s no benefit in having all your references say the same thing (Lou’s a nice guy...Lou’s a nice guy...Lou’s a nice guy.).

Select a variety of champions -- one for each of your strengths and let them know what areas you’d like them to stress. This reduces the likelihood of the reference check devolving into banal superficialities. What emerges is a factual, example-based picture of your strengths. But don’t suggest that your references limit their discussion to certain areas. You don’t want to suggest you’re trying to manipulate the process or avoid sensitive issues.

The Organization Speaks

This technique depends on your having a number of different references. After you leave an organization, however, you may find that its willingness to speak on the record about you diminishes dramatically.

Increasingly, organizations aren’t fond of having individuals speak freely, lest they be deemed agents of the organization and their comments attributed to it. Employers have been sued by job seekers who feel they were defamed or their marketability was impaired by a negative reference. Lawsuits also have been filed by employers who found that favorable references had distorted or hidden damning information.

Accordingly, many organizations now have formal written policies limiting reference information to dates of employment, title and perhaps compensation or other limited categories. Generally, it’s unwise to ask friends within the organization to circumvent these limits and offer "informal" personal references. Policies against giving references seldom hurt job seekers. If the employer doesn’t want to talk, it doesn’t have to. However, it’s important to remind the company that if it’s going to invoke such a policy, it should to say it has a policy against giving references about all employees at all levels. Otherwise, checkers may infer there’s something about you that makes them nervous. More than one candidate’s prospects have been doomed by a stony silence.

In other cases, the organization is willing to offer "a positive reference statement," whether you leave voluntarily or have been asked to depart. Your exit interview should discuss who will handle reference inquiries and what they will and won’t say. The job seeker is entitled to know who’ll be commenting on his performance and should insist that measures will ensure others don’t give unauthorized comments.

Many career consultants urge their clients to draft a "reference statement" to serve an informal outline for the reference provider. This shouldn’t be a "To Whom It May Concern" letter or a rigid contract that prescribes each word. It should serve as a brief script. Here’s an example:

Noel Barnes joined us at Extempore in 1993 to head a new unit going beyond our business-to-business core and marketing a new retail line of electronics components. We were impressed with Noel’s record of ramping up new products and his knowledge of the emerging markets. Noel was in charge of market research, new product design, product roll-out and marketing support. He had a staff of 40 and an initial budget of more than $20 million. Noel got up to speed quickly and showed a knack for identifying new niches and existing markets that could be expanded. He proved he’s an strong strategist and an expert in developing brand loyalties through effective marketing programs. He recruited and developed a bright, energetic staff who performed well from the outset. Unfortunately, the changes in the exchange rate meant we couldn’t be assured of a steady stream of offshore subassemblied products at a price that would allow acceptable profit margins. With our core business also subject to the same stresses, we decided we couldn’t continue the experiment, and Noel’s group was reluctantly eliminated. Noel proved himself a bright, innovative general manager capable of managing both the top line and the cost side of operations. I’ve enjoyed his optimistic and forthright style and can recommend him for any role that makes appropriate use of his strategic and marketing skills.

The approval and delivery of such a statement often is handled through the human-resources department. Some employers will want to change the wording, others not. Both you and your former employer should regard the statement as a fair and useful characterization of your role, contributions, strengths and reason for leaving.

Don’t overwrite your reference statement. It it’s too long, detailed or flattering, the former employer may frown. If it isn’t in simple, conversational language, it could sound canned.

Don’t be surprised if everyone on your reference list isn’t contacted. Headhunters in particular are suspicious of sweetheart references, figuring pals are unlikely to divulge your faults. Similarly, don’t be surprised that those not on your list are contacted. Moreover, don’t reveal that such "due diligence" alarms you. Your attitude should be that you have nothing to hide and all inquiries are welcome.

There’s little you can do if you suspect a reference will respond critically. Trying to neutralize negative comments in advance seldom works. You might say, "I’ll be curious to see what Larry says. Clearly we didn’t always see eye-to-eye, but I respect his judgment. I’d be grateful if you’d let me know what he says." You gain little by attacking your critics. Show yourself to be willing to address concerns. Your openness will keep a negative reference from disqualifying you, reducing it to an issue that can be addressed and successfully rebutted.

In summary, remember always to respect references, the reference checker and the process. Don’t allow your references to be taken by surprise or overtaxed. Don’t dodge or dismiss the process; you should appear to take it seriously without appearing threatened. Encourage its proper role as the tail of the dog, and do what you can to keep that tail wagging energetically and happily.