Personal Reference Checks

Reference checking pains the backside and no one will tell you any different, but there’s a good reason to call anyway. People spill things over the phone they’ll never share in person or on paper.  Folks tend to lower their defenses when visual cues such as body language and facial expression are missing. Con artists love the telephone. The longer they keep someone talking, the more money they make. The same  principles apply when calling for the legitimate purpose of checking qualifications and character before placing someone in a position of trust and assumed authority.

Some people are better communicators than others. Try to choose a trustworthy individual with an outgoing personality. If your reference checker has the personality of a dump truck, put a big sign by the phone in bright letters that says, “SMILE” (rubber chickens and smiley face stickers optional.) Smiling relaxes the facial muscles and shows up in the voice. No one can resist a smile, even over the telephone. Have them practice in a mirror if necessary. Japanese business men have a technique that works equally well for sour-faced Americans. Place a #2 pencil in your mouth sideways, between the teeth. Grip the pencil gently and lift the corners of the mouth a few times; one and two and up and down. No one’s quite sure whether this works by relaxing the face or just making you feel very, very silly.

There are things you can and cannot expect from calling references listed on the application. Remember:

• Those references were hand-picked by the applicant. It’s highly doubtful you’ll find any open dirt.
• The answers to your scripted questions aren’t your final objective. Pay careful attention to throw-away remarks and what isn’t said.
• References seldom give sufficient reason to disqualify someone. You’re  looking for those annoying red flags that alert you to double check the other information for discrepancies.
• Good character is a precious commodity. If your applicant has it, others want to let you know.
• Ask open-ended questions that can’t be answered with a simple yes or no.
• If someone’s lived in the area for any length of time, they should have local references.

Write down complete quotes with quotation marks. Take your time. Thank the reference for their patience and be pleasant. Remember-the majority of folks are good people who just want to help, despite what the news seems to indicate. These are your applicant’s friends and coworkers and they’re doing the whole community a service.

The chart below is optional. Make sure you fill in the comment section. Someone may be highly annoyed because the dog just bit their leg and the kids are raiding the fridge. Make a note of the dog barking in the background and the mom screaming at the kids every five seconds. Better yet, toss the form and forget overall tone for this particular reference. Surely we can all sympathize.

Previous Employment Verification

The former employer is another animal entirely. Previous employers may fear lawsuits or may be more than happy to see this bad egg moved along to someone else’s carton. Some want to give ‘name, rank, and serial number,’ which, besides being highly annoying, doesn’t help in the slightest. You may need to remind the employer that this information is considered “qualifiedly privileged” in most states. This means that what they share is privileged unless:

• the information is knowingly false
• given in bad faith
• or with reckless disregard for the truth

When considering someone for employment, you’ll want to cover these points:

• Position held
• Dates of employment
• Salary
• General information concerning job performance
• Reason for termination and eligibility for rehire
• Job description/job duties

The last employer may want to see their former employee rehired, fearing unemployment claims, so check at least 2 previous employers. Watch for discrepancies between starting and termination dates. Some folks try to cover job-hopping by extending times on an application. Also pay particular attention to salary/compensation. Someone may purposefully misstate previous salary hoping that the new employer will make an offer to match. Besides being underhanded and sneaky, this is blatantly dishonest.

The person you ultimately speak to on the phone may be reluctant to answer open-ended questions. Some companies are adopting a scaled system for ranking such things as attendance, punctuality, initiative, and other intangibles. We found that a 1-5 scale yields plenty of all 3’s or 4’s which doesn’t tell much. A scale of 1-10 works better, giving wiggle room for reluctant ex-bosses.

Sometimes all attempts to contact previous employers fail. Be sure to note each and every time you try, whether by letter or phone, and keep a copy for your records.

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