Still not sure if you’ll get a good professional reference from a former employer? You should be.
“Believe it or not, many managers don’t know the official reference policy of a company and inadvertently say too much,” Allison said. “Someone in human resources needs to remind them of the rules, which force former bosses to temper their comments.”
In some cases, prospective employers who cannot reach a candidate’s professional references simply eliminate that person from contention.
“The interviewing and reference-checking process is all about impressions,” Allison explained. “What kind of impression do you think a candidate provides if a so-called professional reference refuses to acknowledge a candidate worked for them? Not good.”
So, what is a job seeker to do if a former employer drops the ball, so to speak? According to Allison, one may have to hire an attorney to prompt the company to cooperate.
“A letter is sent on one’s behalf to the company, explaining that the candidate needs a job and asking them to provide a professional reference following set policies,” Allison said. “Most companies are sympathetic to a candidate’s efforts to find another position and then return the call from the prospective employer.”
An “official” letter of recommendation never replaces a professional reference verbally provided to a hiring manager, she stressed.
“Letters of recommendation really aren’t effective in today’s job market,” Allison said. “A candidate can work with the letter provider to assure the letter says all the right things so, in the minds of many hiring managers, they have little credibility no matter who it comes from.”
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