How to behave when asked as a reference in your CV?

“Anyone who has been in a management position knows that there are times when a former employee will ask for a reference,”– Head of Human Resources Administration. “Many people flatly refused, there were also people who thought that saying only good things was the best way to do it. And there is an opinion that it should be transferred to the human resources department. We have the right to accept or refuse, but in any direction, we need to know how to do it professionally.”

If you don't feel comfortable using it as a reference on your CV, say no.

We are not required to make a reference in our CV, so we can refuse. Don't accept it out of respect and then give a superficial introduction, this will do more harm than good. Employers will feel our hesitation and the evaluation of candidates will also be affected more or less because of that.

I was once asked if it was possible to give a positive introduction to a former employee. This friend is often late to work, often quarrels with colleagues and lacks ability. After thinking about it, I replied, “I want to support you too, but I really don't have much to say.” It's a shame to say no, but it's better than saying negative things.

But we don't always have the opportunity to refuse, but we will be put in a fait accompli. There was a candidate who, before consulting, put my name on his CV because he guessed I would agree anyway. When I refused, she said that if I get a call, just hang up, don't say bad things. I didn't get any calls but if I did, I wouldn't say bad things about her. She was not a good employee before, but maybe she could do better at another company.

Things to keep in mind if you agree to be a reference in your CV

If refusing sounds easy, agreeing to be a reference on your CV is a bit more complicated. The first is to check company policy. Most businesses have regulations on providing reference information. Many places can only talk about the start date, title, and official departure date. There are also many companies that allow more information to be released. So even if we're willing to say only nice things, it's a good idea to check with human resources to see what's said and what's not.

“With understanding, you will provide the right references and will feel comfortable acting as a reference on your CV.”

Once you've agreed to act as a reference, there's an unwritten rule to answer honestly any questions a potential employer asks, even at the risk of losing a relationship. Many people wonder why not "polish" the candidate a bit? The simple answer is because none of us are perfect.

It is detrimental to the candidate when we say that they are good at something when in fact they know nothing about it, or conversely say that their achievement in the job is insignificant even though we know it is very good. Good. If we “advertise the truth” we may inadvertently set them up for failure in a new job when it turns out they can't complete the task we say we can. On the contrary, if we say that they do poorly even though we know they did well, we are preventing them from getting the job. Therefore, the best way to respond is to be honest, not hiding the bad nor minimizing the good.

Honesty not only helps the candidate but also keeps us out of trouble. Telling the truth eliminates the possibility of a potential employer judging us as a liar and mean-spirited to the person they're trying to get to know.

Speaking of honesty, I also want to say a little more. You must have heard the saying that half the truth is not necessarily true. Withholding information that we know to be true can also be problematic. Suppose we know that the candidate has a short temper and has had a lot of trouble at work because he does not know how to control his emotions. What are the possible consequences if we say that “she is as gentle as a doughnut” even though we know that is not true? Suppose that, at least in part by our recommendation, the person is employed. Also suppose that she hurt a customer or co-worker. We certainly don't escape being judged as a sloppy introduction.

At this point, there is a question that is "Should I answer all the questions of the employer?". Absolutely not! If we have agreed to be a reference – reference in our CV, we should not only give honest answers, but also limit our answers, namely, we should not answer unrelated questions. to general work performance! Suppose to the question "What is Mr. A's personality?", should we answer? Sure, but the trick is to phrase your answer in a performance-oriented way and say something like, “I think he has a very open personality at work.” Or to the question “Does Ms. B get along?”, the answer might be: “I think Ms. B works very well with everyone”.

On the other hand, if a question is completely unrelated to job performance and cannot be equated with performance in any way, don't answer.

Answering calls or emails as a reference – a reference in a CV is not a difficult situation but needs to be careful. It is important to choose words carefully as well as to avoid saying something personal or without concrete evidence to avoid getting yourself into unnecessary trouble, ”.