TAKE CARE OF YOUR RESUME REFERENCES
By Patrick Ledonio

References could be a very integral part of your resume.  Please be sure though that the references you furnish really know you.  You can’t just put any ‘Big Shot’ you know that doesn’t even know you exist. Don’t also provide an employer with a list of questionable references either.

Call your own references and influence them – within ethical boundaries – what they should say about you if and when a prospective employer checks. There's no magic to this; it won't cost you any more than the price of a phone call, and you're less likely to encounter surprises if you act preemptively.

Before we get further, I would like cover a few important things. First, an employer (and certainly any good headhunter) will check not only the references you provide, but also additional references that he will dig up on his own. Face it, an employer wants to know whom he's hiring. So, if you have a spotty history, expect that someone is going to find out. It's your responsibility to do what you can to alleviate possible problems.

Second, people matter more than paper when you're looking for a good job. Devote twice as much time to your references as to your resume. In fact, if you handle your references properly, you won't need a resume because a good reference can introduce you to a good employer.

Finally, detailed reference checking is almost impossible because legal risks make references zip their lips; you can positively startle your prospective new employer by ensuring that he gets very informative reference reports on you. Employers are thrilled when references volunteer lots of detailed information – information the employer can't come out and ask for. So, giving your references permission to talk about you can give you a real edge over competitors whose references will provide nothing more than dates of employment.

In a nutshell, it pays to tend to your references. Take care of them.

Pick references who will emphasize your wonderful attributes, but make sure they will satisfy the employer so he won't need to track down more references on his own. This is a good mix: a recent boss, a recent co-worker, and a recent customer or vendor who knows the quality of your work.

Call your references before you need them---and I don't mean the week before an employer needs to talk to them. Call them before you start job hunting. It's very important to stay in touch with people you may need to use as references long before you need them. Then, give them a heads-up just before the reference call comes. But, if you're stuck and the need is immediate, don't leave anything to chance. Call the reference and renew your acquaintance.

Before taking the next step, ask the person if he'd feel comfortable being your reference. If he says yes, thank him and say, "I hope I can return the favor someday." The reciprocity will remind the reference to put some thought into what he's going to say about you.

The single biggest problem references have is remembering you in enough detail to provide useful information to an employer. Help them out.
This is where you can be influential without compromising anyone's integrity:

Briefly outline projects you worked on together and the outcomes, your contributions to the company's success, the special challenges or problems you encountered and how you dealt with them, the awards or recognition you received; and so on. Rather than dominate this discussion, mention a topic and ask, "Do you recall anything about that?" Let the reference take the lead, and keep it honest.

Basic psychological research about memory shows that a person remembers something better if he says it out loud first. Let your reference recount his knowledge of your work history in his own words. Ask him questions that induce him to verbalize his judgment of you. Odds are good that, having used certain words and expressions once, he'll use them again when the employer calls.

If you think you have a problem reference, test it. You need not hire a special service to do this for you. Have a trusted friend who is also a manager at a company (any company) call and check the reference. If the reference is a sour one, you may have a problem.

What you do about it is up to you, but I believe the best defense is an offense: have enough credible positive references to offset the bad one. Just remember that while a bad reference doesn't necessarily make a bad reputation or cost you a job, a truly bad reputation is likely your own fault – and an employer deserves to know about that.

Take care of your references. Do it with respect and do it responsibly.

Take care of your references if you want your references to take care of you.