The Importance of References

A critical, and yet overlooked component of the job fulfillment process is having solid references available as soon as possible, and even beforehand. References are crucial because they can validate a candidate’s work experiences and most hiring managers require this as part of their hiring practice.

Most recruiters can tell you that they despise the process of getting job candidate references – and for good reason. It typically involves making several phone calls to track down past supervisors who will vouch for someone’s career abilities. This can be like pulling teeth. Reaching them is half the battle. The other half of the battle is getting them to communicate what you are seeking without their maundering.

Recruiters who finally do reach a reference will then ask various important questions and then hand write notes from the verbal conversation on a sheet of scribble paper and then type out those notes and prepare them to fax or email the candidate reference back to their client. What a process. There has to be a better way!

Sure enough… there is! In fact a new site is preparing to launch in the upcoming months. MyJobCast.com will offer several automated components that will help facilitate the job closing process in a much more effective manner. One of these automated features will be an online digital reference generator. This feature will essentially allow job candidates to use the system to send their past supervisor(s) an email seeking a reference. This individual will receive the email message and the unique URL link which will connect them to an online reference form. Once filled out, the individual hits send and the reference system will automatically create a PDF file and send it back to the job seeker’s online profile for future use. The premise is to have the references available beforehand!

Today you have to be more proactive about references. Many recruiters will testify that the ideal practice would be to send references upfront to hiring managers who have scheduled an interview with their job candidates. I highly recommend this practice at the individual level as well. The reason is that it can help set the expectation and overall outcome of the interview. If you have great references to showcase and have them ready, that is saying something and you should not shy away from promoting your references. After all they are promoting you!