The importance of Reference Checking
One of the most important aspects of the recruitment process is reference checking, however it is also the one part that probably gets the least attention. In this post we are going to talk about reference checking and share some stories that should provide some entertainment.
No one puts down a bad referee
How many times have you heard, “but no one puts down a bad referee”? I must of heard it over 1000 times. What this does is dilutes the credibility of the reference checking process. Weak recruiters who are time poor use this excuse all the time. It is their way of getting out of doing ref checks.
It is true, most people will not put down a bad referee. Why would you, it doesn’t make any sense. But who says you have to use the referees that the candidate has provided you? Why cant you ask for a particular person?
E.g., Betty used to work for ABC Pty Ltd and reported to Jackie the MD, however Betty has given me Fred’s (the Manufacturing Manager) number? It is fairly obvious, Fred is going to say better things than Jackie. Who knows, Fred and Betty may be related, they might be partners.
This reference check is about validating what the candidate has said during the selection process. It’s your process, not the candidates, so take control and ask for Jackie’s number.
By the way, remember its 2017 and we have all these wonderful tools like LinkedIn which means you can find anyone. So when a candidate says,
“hmmm, I have no idea where they [their past employer] are now and wouldn’t even know where to start to find them”,
and they [the candidates] will use this excuse and many others to avoid that particular person being contacted, throw it back at them and ask them to find them. We if they want the job, and if they don’t find this particular person, then I would say someone is hiding something.
Give Me Reality, Not What You Think I Want To Hear
One of the problems we face with the ref checking process is the referee has been conditioned to tell you what they think you want to hear. Keep in mind also that this is actually intruding on their day, so they will say anything to get you off the phone.
Be mindful of this. Explain to the referee how important it is to get the reality around the candidate. Let them know, you want to hear the good, the bad and the ugly. Give them permission to be honest with the feedback.
Remember, you are looking for the less lovely aspects of this person, not the shiny parts. You are digging in, under the surface. You are trying to find out what they are going to be like once the honeymoon period is over.
Be Respectful of the Referee’s Time
Remember, this referee is doing you a favour. Sure they are also doing it for the candidate, however the main person who is benefiting from this ref check is you. So please be respectful of their time. When you call, set the agenda together with estimated time, and ask permission to continue. If they hesitate, ask if there is a better time. By doing so you will be able to have a more in-depth discussion which will contain a lot more information.
Ask “Fatter” Questions
I don’t know how many times I have been called for a reference check (me being the referee) only to have the person conducting the check asking lame questions. Questions like,
- “did he do a good job”,
- “would you re-employ him”,
- “whats he like”,
- “was he ever late”
Seriously, some of the ref checks are over and done with in 5 minutes. How the hell can anyone extract enough rich information from a perfect stranger, to justify employing a person in 10 minutes! The problem is, they have a form and they just ask those questions.
Fatten up the questions. Don’t just fill in the form. If you hear a pause or hesitation, explore it. Become child like and ask WHY. When they say “she was a great communicator” ask why. It confuses them and forces them to justify their last comment and usually behaviourally. Eg, She was able to build rapport with all people from the cleaner to the CEO.
Reference Check The Referee
Make sure you always check that the person who is the referee is who they say they are. Ask what company they work for. Call the main switch of the company to verify they work there.
Stop Writing & Listen
The majority of reference check are carried out over the phone, therefore we are not in a position to be able to see the person squirm or grimace when a certain question is asked. So stop writing/typing and LISTEN! Listen for pauses, hesitations, stumbles. These are all signs of uncertainty. If you hear these go back and validate what you think you just heard.
Sorry, we don’t give out reference checks
There are many organisations out there that have a policy that they don’t give out ref checks. This is usually a HR department thing. If they say they don’t, then its pretty hard to get them to give one.
However, there is usually nothing stopping the actual referee from providing a personal assessment of the person. This is usually brief, but if you listen (see above point), you will get everything you need.
Reference Checking is the most powerful aspect of your recruitment process. Don’t disregard or dilute it.
If you think that you should be getting more from your reference checking process, consider our training, we are able to provide training on how to drive reference checks for any team size.
Reference Check Stories
The following stories are all true. I have changed the names of the companies to protect the innocent and the stupid.
Crooked CFO
One of my team members once placed a CFO (Phil) with a very large organisation. During the selection process, the recruiter had a bad “vibe” about the favoured candidate. He wanted to drill into this feeling through the ref check process. However Bob, the brand new HRM of the client company insisted he was better equipped/qualified to conduct the ref checks.
Outcome – 3-6 months later the successful candidate had been helping himself to the till (so to speak). He had stolen in excess of $200,000. The original referee turned out to be a mate of the successful candidate who acted as the former CEO of the past organisation. Upon further investigation, we found that Phil had done this in the past and in fact, had been caught and convicted, and had spent 2 yrs behind bars just 3 years prior to landing this great job.
Hey Baby
A senior candidate was favoured for the National Sales Director of a high profile company. A role paying $350,000 pa + incentives. This candidate was smooth, real smooth. There was nothing he didn’t have. I found him through a search process. When it came to ref checks, he was adamant that given his profile in his industry, he didn’t need to be ref checked and wouldn’t provide referees. I didn’t feel comfortable so I contacted people in his past employers who can give me an off the record summary.
Outcome – it is still unknown exactly how many but there were at least five sexual harassment claims against this guy that I could find.
I visit the Library at Lunch
Kevin, a senior Accountant was the preferred candidate for a business services operation in Sydney. Kevin was apparently on “gardening leave” after resigning from his last role. The recruitment process was gruelling with 5 interviews. However something strange was that Kevin would never attend any of the interviews in the afternoon and he instead all meetings be morning. Last stage was ref checks, 4 of them. 2 superiors and 2 suppliers or clients.
Outcome – Kevin used to say he went to Library at lunch. What we found from the reference checking was “the Library” was code word for a local pub. Kevin was an alcoholic with a serious problem. So bad, that often Kevin would not return to the office as was in “off-site” meetings. Kevin was dismissed from his last two roles for this issue which he refused to acknowledge or get assistance with.
Rocky
An industrial sales organisations was looking for 3 new BDM’s for the expanding business. The roles were all paying $100,000. We took the roles to market and found some brilliant candidates that ticked all the boxes.
One of the candidates was ideal for the role. During the reference checking process we found a past employer hesitant to talk to much about Rocky’s performance. We decided to take note of this and call the referee back and re-do the ref check. The reluctant referee started to open up a little more. We started to build a picture of what Rocky was like to work with. Rocky was a workplace bully! He was the largest biller in the organisation so he his behaviour was tolerated to a certain extent, at least it was until he struck one of his work colleagues and was removed.
Reference checks are the most important part of the recruitment process. Do not treat them lightly as you would be amazed at what you can find if you ask the right question.
Recruitment School is not a recruitment agency, we build better recruiters through unique training. To find out more go to www.recruitmentschool.com.au
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