Information for Managers and Supervisors

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Checking References on Job Candidates

Always check references

GSU's Office of Human Resources reviews and refers application materials to the hiring department if the information presented by the candidate satisfies the posted qualifications for the job. But HR doesn't check references before referral.

As the hiring supervisor, once you've narrowed down your candidate field to a couple of finalists, you will need to check references.

You should ALWAYS check references. Unfortunately, people are not always exactly as they portray themselves to be -- and you owe it to yourself and to the University know whom you're hiring.

The risks of negligent hiring
Failure to conduct background and reference checks may mean that you make the mistake of hiring someone without the education or experience to do the job. Or it may mean that you hire an employee with a history of problem performance. At the extreme, it may even mean that you create a legal liability for the University: increasingly, courts are finding employers legally responsible for "negligent hiring" if they've hired someone without diligent efforts to verify the individual's history -- and the person then uses their job to commit violent or other serious acts.

Insist on checking supervisory references

Candidates sometimes say they don't want you to contact a former or current supervisor. There are two common reasons for this reluctance.

The first reason is that they don't want their current boss to know they're job-hunting. They don't want to burn any bridges with their current employer until they know they have a new job lined up.

The second reason is that they're afraid their current supervisor will say something negative about them.

If you're seriously interested in the applicant, you should tell them that they're a finalist candidate (never say they're the finalist), but that you must have a full picture of their work history, and therefore must check with their past and current supervisors, even if the applicant has provided the names of other individuals in the organization as references. Explain that if you can't have a discussion with the immediate supervisor, you may not have enough information about their candidacy to make an informed decision, and you won't be able to consider them further. Then ask them to explain their reluctance and work through it with them.

If their current boss doesn't know they're looking, give the candidate some time (a day or so) to go back and have their own conversation with their supervisor, so that your reference call won't catch the boss off-guard.

If they're afraid the supervisor will say something bad about them, ask them to describe what they think the supervisor will say -- and why they think s/he'll say it. Sometimes supervisors will say discouraging things, even about good employees, if they're trying to keep the worker from leaving. Sometimes if there are problems in an employment relationship, the problems are with the boss -- and not with the employee. And sometimes there's legitimate negative information that the candidate would rather you not hear.

If the candidate thinks you may get negative information from a current or former supervisor, assure them that their own explanation of the situation will also help you weigh what you hear. Encourage the applicant to give you the names and phone numbers of others in the organization who might be able to give countering or balancing information.

Don't take no (information) for an answer

Even though some employers say they only give out "name, rank, and serial number," many organizations do not expressly prohibit supervisors from providing references on employees. A recent survey by the Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) found that 78% of more than 1,300 responding companies say they do provide references.

At the very least, an HR office will usually verify (1) that the individual did work there, (2) the dates of employment, and (3) the job title. The company may or may not release salary information or the reason why an employment relationship ended. However, many organizations will verify or refute data that you provide to them -- so you can ask questions like, "This person says her final salary was $10 per hour. Is that consistent with your records?" Or "This person indicates his employment ended due to a reduction in workforce. Is that what your records show?" The respondent can then simply answer with a yes or no.

Be persistent

If one company representative is unwilling to give useful information, try contacting other references at the same company. If you tried the supervisor, then try the HR office, or try the supervisor's boss. You can also ask the candidate for additional names of people familiar with their work. If a company representative balks, consider asking them if they will speak with you if the candidate calls them with a verbal release or provides a written release form (the Human Resources office has a sample release form). Or ask if they would be willing to answer your questions if you put them in writing on University letterhead.

One strategy to use with someone who's holding firm to a "no reference" policy is to tell them you're aware that most employers will give good references -- so you have to assume that "no reference" implies a bad reference, and you won't be likely to offer the individual a job. If their response is basically, "You gotta do what you gotta do," they may be sending you an implied message that not hiring would be a good idea. But if they say, "Oh, please don't make that assumption. It's just that since we don't give bad references, we can't give good ones either," then you may be getting between-the-lines positive information.

As mentioned earlier, it's fine to put the responsibility back on the candidate to help you get references. Good applicants won't have any trouble getting former employers to speak with you. Have the applicant track down former supervisors and alert them to your call. Be very suspicious of any candidate who can't come up with several contactable references -- if all their former employers have "gone out of business" or every former supervisor is "no longer with the company," don't hire the person. Those are clear warning signs of problems. Also be wary of reference letters provided directly by the candidate-- experts will tell you the applicant may well have written such letters themselves.

Ask only questions that are directly related to the job

The questions you should ask of a reference are virtually identical to the questions you would ask of candidates themselves. It helps if you can give the reference a brief overview of the basic functions of the job you are trying to fill; that makes it easier for the reference to compare your job to the job the candidate held with them.

If you say, "Here is the type of work I'm looking for this position to accomplish," then you can ask: "How does the work this person did for you translate to what I'm looking for?" Here are some other useful questions (by the way, these are also questions you can re-phrase and ask the applicant in an interview. Then you can compare their answers with their boss's):

• "How did this person handle a typical, specific situation like XXX when they worked for you?"
• "How much experience did this person have doing XXX for you, and how well did they do it?"
• "What is the person's level of technical expertise in the essential job functions I need?"
• "This person would be responsible for handling XXX duties. Is there anything in this person's performance history that would cause you concern about their ability or appropriateness to do these tasks?"
• "What types of tasks did this person handle well on their own, and what things required structured supervision?"
• "What do you anticipate I will find to be this person's real strengths, and what areas would benefit from constructive coaching or mentoring?"
• "This position interacts with XXX types of co-workers or customers in XXX types of situations. How does that compare to what they did for you, and how well do you think they will handle these interactions for me?"
• "Here's something I noticed on the person's application (or in the interview) that raised a question in my mind. Can you help me understand it?"
  

You can ask if there were documented performance problems that might be relevant to your job. For example, if reliable attendance is an important factor for your job, you can ask about the candidate's attendance record. But just like in an interview, phrase your questions carefully to make sure you are not going to accidentally hear medical or disability information that could have discriminatory impact on your hiring decision. One way to ask is: "Other than for legitimate medical or family leave reasons, did the individual have any documented problems with abusing attendance or time off?"

In general, stay away from any reference questions that you wouldn't ask the candidate themselves in an interview. Don't ask personal questions that aren't directly related to the ability to do the job.

Evaluate negative information with caution

Even if you receive negative information during a reference check, don't immediately rule out the candidate. Attempt to understand every angle of the circumstances that caused the problem. Try to get confirming or refuting information from other sources. If you hear "red flags" in your checks, please feel free to consult with the Employment office, and we'll help you analyze the information. However, if it appears that the negative information is supported by relevant facts, and/or if you get similar responses from several references, you may choose not to consider the candidate further.

You should even evaluate positive information carefully. Some folks subscribe to the "if you can't say something nice don't say anything at all" school of giving references. Read between the lines -- do you get the feeling there's something they're not telling you? Are they damning with faint praise, as the saying goes? If you sense there's something the reference is avoiding, probe further. But don't promise that what they tell you is "off the record." If you end up basing your hiring decision on that information, it will need to be part of your records.

Get at least 3 work references

To make a good decision you will need feedback from at least three referees going back at least 5 years if possible. Even for entry-level positions that require little or no prior work experience, you should speak with school counselors, internship coordinators, major professors, or coordinators of volunteer activities who are familiar with the candidate in a professional or academic (rather than social) environment.

Don't bother with personal references

Personal or "character" references are seldom useful. Such individuals usually can't offer direct information about how a candidate would perform in a work environment. And often they are personal friends, so their perspectives will not be neutral and objective.

Document all reference information

Document in writing all the references you attempted to contact, or did contact, and all the relevant information you received. If you get stonewalled, document whom you contacted -- and that they refused to give you useful information.

For legal tracking purposes, you should maintain this documentation for three years, along with your interview notes and your reasons for non-selection of all unsuccessful candidates (for more information on interview notes, see HR's guidelines on Inter viewing). You can keep these materials in your departmental files. Why do we have to keep them for 3 years? Because that's the general limit within which an unsuccessful candidate can challenge your hiring decision to a state or federal equal employment opportunity agency -- and you need to be able to present contemporaneous records that prove you made your decision at the time for legitimate reasons, based on verifiable information and non discriminatory factors.

Check both academic and employment information

Companies that conduct professional background- check services say that applicants are even more likely to falsify information about their academic backgrounds than about their work history -- probably because employers are less likely to check with schools for verification or to require academic transcripts. Most college Registrar's offices will confirm dates of attendance and graduation, as well as degrees awarded and majors, upon request.

If you have questions, call HR

Remember that Employment is available to consult with you any time you have questions or concerns. Our goal is exactly the same as yours: to make sure you hire the very best person for the job. Please feel free to call us at x 3331.