As a recruiter, there is nothing more satisfying than finding the perfect candidate for your job listing. Hiring someone who appears ideal on papers yet fails to increase your business’s productivity or cannot see eye-to-eye with the firm’s values can be a bad experience.
So, before making the final offer, the next major task must be reference checking. You can no longer skip the process or consider it a formality.
Hence, checking the references provided by your potential employee can save you from getting into an unwanted situation.
Background check vs. Reference check
Even though background checks and reference checks do not entail much difference, there is a slight variation in the kinds of information they look into.
Background checks involve verifying your potential employee’s employment credentials and experience. Sometimes businesses also look into the potential recruit’s criminal records and credit history.
On the other hand, reference checking provides insights into your candidates’ performance records through their professional or personal references.
Things to ease the process of Reference Checking
Here are a few points that will help you considerably with the reference check.
- Awareness about Legislations
Keep up-to-date regarding the consent requirements that you must adhere to by law. Some geo-specific laws might not allow companies to disclose their employee details.
At the same time, there may be provisions under the law that do not require getting permission from the candidate. In either situation, proceed, keeping in mind the rules and regulations.
- Asking for permission before conducting Reference Check
It would be best if you asked for permission to check the references provided by the candidate. Once you receive approval, inform your candidates that their listed references will likely receive a call.
If you need to access educational information, like mark transcripts, notify your candidates regarding the same. You may even ask them to sign consent forms to ease the process.
- Take into account the inputs from the interview
If you cannot use the references provided by the candidate due to specific laws in place, try gaining as much information as you can from inside your organization. Talking to everyone involved in interviewing the candidate can be the first step.
The input of the recruiters can provide insights into the candidate’s thought process and let them voice some of the concerns they may have about your potential hire.
- Talking to the right people
While contacting the references provided by your candidate, keep in mind the position that you are hiring them for. Talking to former subordinates can help you understand their leadership skills and ability to delegate tasks efficiently.
A former manager can give you insights into the productivity deliverance and the quality of tasks produced by the candidate. They can also provide insights into how goal driven and motivated the candidate was at their previous job.
- Take time to know your candidate.
As a new employer, you should not rush through reference checking. Take considerable time to cross-reference and check with the people associated with your candidates in their previous employment.
Ask open-ended questions for them to ponder so that you can comprehensively understand your to-be recruit. However, keep your mind open and do not show any prejudice towards the candidate.
Final Thoughts
Reference checking may seem like a tedious task. However, it is not at all futile, as gaining the correct information can enhance your recruitment process.
