Calling All References

We recently worked with a candidate who moved rapidly through the initial selection process into the final round of interviewees. As the candidate passed the phone interview with flying colors, we confirmed with him that we would now be conducting a reference check and contacting the people he had provided for us during our firms' initial interview process. Yes, he understood. In fact, he was elated, eager to move to the final interview.

We had a list of five references, and in less than an hours time, had discovered that three of the five were no longer at the phone numbers provided or businesses listed. Since our candidate was currently employed, we discreetly left a message on his cell and explained details in an email. He responded via email that he would look into it.

We had three business days to complete the reference check prior to his face to face interview session. We left messages with the other two viable references and hoped for much better success the next day.

Well into day two, our candidate communicates that he cannot track down the other three references - facilities have closed, moved overseas, etc. He's working to get another reference. We inform our candidate that we have not heard back from the other two people - could he please contact them to "light a fire" and get them to respond quickly?

I won't bore you with all the details of the next frantic hours, but the highlights include finally making contact with one reference's spouse, only to find out that the indvidual is now deceased, reaching another wrong number and having a very angry homeowner on the other end of the line complaining that we've been leaving an excessive amount of voice messages, and a receptionist transferring me to every person in the firm she could think of to help me (it wasn't helpful, it was irritating - which was, undoutedly what she thought I was!).

I've had a reference or two now and then that haven't returned my call, but never anything quite like this! The ending to this story is that the candidate is not in that new job opportunity and we won't be representing that candidate in the future.

The moral of the story is obvious. Keep in touch with your professional references and keep them up to date. Get permission to provide at least two means of communication for each of your references (work number, home number, work or personal email address, etc.) and contact your references as a courtesy to them as soon as you become aware that they may be contacted.

Going one step further, select your references with great care. I've had an experience where a candidate was given a verbal offer the very day her references were called - and she hadn't interviewed in-person yet! Her references were carefully chosen professionals who were all dependent on her abilities and performance to succeed in their work at one point or another. They gave clear, bottom line focused references spoken with genuine emotion.

Make keeping in contact with your references and your network a core part of your job search. And remember that your references may just win or lose you your next job.

Round Up: Interviewing

Resource Round Up: Recently Published Interviewing Tips

The following are links to articles and blog postings on interviewing and interview preparation. "My Take, Your Take" will regularly feature "Resource Round Up's", which will be a short compilation of interesting, timely and/or insightful links that the staff at PRI Business Services feels may be of some help to our candidates.

• Tips to Make Your Interview Successful



• Do You Sound As Good As You Look?



• Robert De Niro on Interviewing



• The Worst Answer to Give in an Interview



• What To Do When You're Late For Your Interview



• Interview Tips

How Long?

A fair number of candidates ask me how long the average job search takes. Whether prompted by their current search having taken much longer than anticipated (I think many of these people are really asking if they are doing anything wrong in their search), or for planning when to move from “just starting to test the water” to seriously searching, the answer is to brace yourself. Searches can take a long time, and it seems to be getting longer.

While there are exceptions, we’ve noticed that employers are taking longer in nearly all aspects of the selection process. Once the decision is made to hire, the offer process moves quickly enough, but the initial review and interview phases can take many weeks. Clients have lost plenty of star candidates by dragging their feet.

We are not alone in our experience - I network with other recruiters that have the same complaint. Some employers are not putting any significant priority on their hiring timeline.

I found an interesting article on a couple of the blogs that addresses this very topic. Check out this entry from CareerHub: Job Search Time Projected to Increase.

The important point of this entry is not to discourage every active job seeker, but to encourage you that it may not be what you are, or are not doing. It may be a that your search is going to take longer than you originally thought. And, to all those seekers who are just casually searching - perhaps you should start taking your search more seriously now, rather than later?

Welcome!

After nearly a year of internal discussion and research, the group here at PRI Business Services have finally made the push to join the blogging world. While I’ve been elected as the writer, let me be upfront that this blog will be a team effort – be assured that the whole of our team will be listening to you, doing the research and helping this blog to be whatever it may be.

Why would a small, independent executive search firm blog? The simple answer is in our blog’s tagline – “Your Take, My Take”. Every day I talk to dozens of career seekers and the one thing I hear over and over again is “what is your take on…?” You’ve got questions, or want to understand the recruiter’s desk, or perhaps are searching for information to help you in your current search. A blog seemed like a great way for us to get information into your hands – but better yet – a blog will allow you to respond with YOUR opinions, “your take”.

The secondary reason for this blog will be to communicate how to work with us better. We’re commissioned by the employer to do a job – yet many people don’t realize the full extent of what the recruiter’s job is – and isn’t.

I am a simple gal with 14+ years of professional recruiting, human resource management and corporate project management. In no way am I an expert in the job search or hiring process. The success I’ve seen in my career as an executive recruiter has come, in great part, from listening to my clients and candidates – listening to people like you. In fact, that is one of my greatest personal joys in my profession. I have the privilege of learning from the professionals I speak with every day.

So, it is my sincere hope that we will get some of you to comment on our topics on this blog. To share your experience, to tap into the wealth of knowledge that I know exists within the network of professionals that visit our site. (Or, perhaps your experiences were simply outlandish, funny or wacky? Share those too!)

To begin with, I will focus on some of the most common topics our candidates ask about. For starters: the average time of a career search, switching industries, interviewing with a recruiter, what you can do to improve your chances with the client, and improving your resume.

Again, welcome to our new blog. We hope you’ll find insight, resources and perhaps even humor to help you along the way to securing your new career opportunity.