In the last post I began to discuss the importance of negotiating a professional. Its standard for a fair severance package to be negotiated when a person involuntarily leaves a company. What many people fail to realize, however, is that it’s just as important to negotiate a fair professional reference for use in landing one’s next position, says professional reference checking company Allison & Taylor.
What your former employer says or maybe doesn’t say, can be very detrimental to your job search. If a former employer says too much or refuses to return a call to a potential employer, you may be eliminated from contention for the job completely. So, what is a job seeker to do if a former employer drops the ball? The candidate might have to hire an attorney to prompt the company to cooperate. A letter is sent on one’s behalf to the company, explaining that the candidate needs a job and asking them to provide a professional reference following set policies.
Most companies are sympathetic to a candidate’s efforts to find another position and then return the call from the prospective employer.
Note that an “official” letter of recommendation never replaces a professional reference verbally provided to a hiring manager. “Letters of recommendation really aren’t effective in today’s job market,” Allison says. “A candidate can work with the letter provider to assure the letter says all the right things so, in the minds of many hiring managers, they have little credibility no matter who it comes from.” In summary, it’s critical that a job seeker carefully perform their “due diligence” in predetermining and managing – where possible – the input previous employers will offer to prospective new ones.
For further details on services and procedures please visit www.AllisonTaylor.com.
Its important to be proactive when it comes to to your references. The worry of wondering what your former employer will say can cause great stress. Consider what a client of Allison and Taylor, Inc. said after using our professional reference checking services:
” I was SO thrilled with this service. I was living in a constant
state of anxiety during my current job hunt, due in part to the fear of what
my references might have to say. The anxiety really destroyed my confidence,
thereby making my performance at interviews much weaker. When I read this
report, it felt like an enormous weight had been lifted off my shoulders.
I’m so grateful for the service you have provided- and it was ABSOLUTELY
worth the price. Thank you!!!”