Picture this scenario: you’ve been seeking new employment, but without success. Your employment credentials are excellent, and while you’ve been able to land the interviews – sometimes more than one with a prospective employer – that job for which you’re well qualified continues to elude you. Even more ominous, you may have been assured that the job is virtually yours and that completing the hiring process is a mere formality, and then… the trail goes cold, and the call-backs cease.
Sound familiar? If it does, reference checking company Allison & Taylor says you likely have a negative reference that is limiting your chances for employment. What can you do about it?
The first step is to confirm that you do indeed have a problem with at least one of your references. Do an honest self-assessment of your references that are most likely to be called by prospective employers. Did you depart on good terms with them? Is there anything unflattering that may have made its way into your personnel file, accessible by an HR representative?
You may already have a good idea of who may be making your employment search a miserable one, and while you might be able to keep some former associates off of a prospective employer’s radar, it is unlikely that a former supervisor or HR department will be overlooked. The HR department is a traditional venue for reference checks, and HR reps of your most recent employers are almost certain to get a call from potential employers. Your former supervisors will also be high on an employer’s call list, as they know you better than HR, and may also be willing to offer a more revealing profile about you.
To find out what you can do come back next time.