How to handle job references.
My daughter is looking for a new job, and like many other young adults, she is looking for work in retail. All of the jobs she has applied for have given her a job application. Although most of the questions were fairly easy for her to answer, she was stumped when it came to the blank for references. I don't think she's alone in wondering who she should list on her application.
She's not alone, picking the right references is tricky. Even though most people don't provide references on their resumes, there are many times when an employer will ask you to provide professional references.When you don't have much, if any, related job experience, having great references is vital.
The problem is that finding the right people to provide such references can be difficult and there are a few things you should know about how to ask for references without offending anyone.
Here are some tips for obtaining great references:
- Choose your references wisely- Don't include family members or friends of your parents if you can help it.Depending on your age, you might not have a choice. Still, if you think about it, there might be someone that you did odd jobs for, a teacher, a neighbor or anyone who knows you as a person, not just as a child of a friend. That being said, if your long time family friend is an executive in the field you are entering, by all means, use them. Otherwise, try to select people who can vouch for your experience, skills and abilities. If you have a mentor or an academic adviser with whom you are especially close, or a professor who you worked with often, they would be good choices.
- Ask before you use them- This is very important. Don't just list people as references and hope for the best. Even if you know someone well and think that they would give you a great reference, they might be offended if a call comes out of the blue. Contact the people you want to use and ask them if they would be willing to give you a good reference. If they seem at all hesitant, it is better to find someone else. You don't want to risk having an unenthusiastic reference. It can also be helpful to restate to them your skills and talents so that they have a refresher on you.
- Keep in touch with your references- Touch base with your references to let them know the status of your job search. It is a good idea to make sure that these key people have a copy of your resume and are familiar with your career goals. When you do find a job, whether you needed their reference or not, be sure to let them know that you have found a job and thank them for all of their help.
- Don't burn bridges- Keep in touch with your professional network. Sometimes, when you leave a job or graduate from college it's easy to let those relationships slide. But, those same people can prove invaluable in your future career. This is why it's so important to never bad mouth previous employers or co-workers. You just never know when those contacts will be important and it's just plain bad manners anyway.
Have you had to provide references at a job interview? What tips do you have to share? Let me know in the comment section.
By Melissa Kennedy- Melissa is a 9 year blog veteran and a freelance writer for SalesHeadsBlog and Nexxt. Along with helping others find the job of their dreams, she enjoys computer geekery, raising a teenager, supporting her local library, writing about herself in the third person and working on her next novel.
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