4 Tips for Conducting Effective Reference Checks

Reference checking can sometimes be dismissed as a box-ticking exercise at the end of a long, arduous hiring process. You have your ideal candidate lined up and have put them through their paces with applications, tests and interviews, so why not complete the final stage of due diligence with the same level of enthusiasm?

Best practice reference checking performs a number of functions – not just saving your organisation time and money by avoiding bad hires. On a positive note, you can also gain insight into how to motivate and support your new employee, and better understand their strengths and weakness.

Obviously if you’re working with a specialist recruitment agency, we’ll ensure references are completed to the best possible standards, however if not, follow these tips when checking a candidate’s references.

Prepare and Place Value in the Process

Invest the same amount of time into the reference checking process as the previous stages. Start by writing up the list of questions you plan to ask, basing them on the specific role description and the candidate themselves.

Set a decent amount of time aside to conduct them and don’t be tempted to reschedule or deprioritise them, even if you’re juggling a busy schedule. Keep remembering this is a vital stage in the hiring process and you don’t want to undermine all the time and effort invested so far.

Work Collaboratively and Seek Input

When drawing up your list of questions, talk to people in your team who participated in the interview process. Find out if they had any specific concerns or areas they’d like to follow up on. This is the chance to explore and address any niggling doubts or red flags that may have been raised during the interview process.

Checking refences is about more than simply verifying facts and dates – it’s your last opportunity to gather information about the candidate before progressing to the offer stage.

Also, work with the candidate to extract the right person to speak to. Candidates will often prioritise people who they know will give them a glowing endorsement, but it’s important that they are best positioned to provide this feedback. Find out if you can speak to their current manager, or someone who can attest to the core capabilities required for the new role, whether that be team management, stakeholder engagement or project delivery.

Be Specific and Provide Context

The best way to start a reference check is by telling the nominated referee a bit about the role the candidate is applying for. That means they can set all their responses within the context of the specific position being recruited, and determine whether the candidate would be a good fit.

Verifying facts about job titles, time spent working with the organisation and reporting structures are a good way to ease into the discussion. You can then follow up with some open-ended questions that substantiate examples provided in the face-to-face interview, or ask about performance metrics and achievements outlined in the candidate’s CV. You can also ask for details around how they delivered those projects or achieved certain goals, which might provide insight into the candidate’s working style and cultural fit.

Finally, if there are any lingering areas of concern, now’s the time to raise them. Again, using the context of the role being advertised, you can ask the referee their thoughts about whether the candidate will suit some of the core responsibilities for the job. Despite some scenarios being hypothetical, you will be able to gauge a lot from the referee’s answer, especially if they talk through how they arrived at it.

Check for Bias

We’ve already highlighted that candidates are likely to put forward referees who will speak highly of them, but how can you ensure that personal loyalty and friendship doesn’t cloud the referee’s judgment? It’s not uncommon for managers to measure their own success in terms of how well their team members progress with their careers, so there is also the issue of self-interest. If the responses seem too good to be true, you can always ask the referee to suggest areas for improvement in the candidate’s future.

You may also have your own bias that you need to be aware of. During the interview process, you may have determined that one candidate would be the best person for the job. This can lead to you unconsciously biasing the reference check process by asking leading questions or not probing a referee’s responses when needed. This is a natural response but something you need to be aware of to ensure the reference check process is fair and above board.

Summary

By investing time in planning and conducting your reference checks, you’ll be able to progress to the offer stage feeling confident and finishing the hiring process on a positive note.

If you’re looking to partner with an experienced agency who can manage your hiring process from start to finish, chat to one of our Construction and Engineering recruitment specialists.