Dealing with referees
Obligatory procedure:
• When you call, introduce yourself and the organisation, and explain why you are calling.
• Ask the referee if he/she has time to talk; if not, offer to call back later.
• Describe briefly the position the candidate is being considered for, the duties and responsibilities it carries, the organization surrounding it, and what will be expected of the person holding it.
• Ask your questions, ideally about what the applicant has done in different work contexts, how he/she performed these tasks and what the results were. Be detailed enough to ensure the replies are specific rather than general.
• Ask the referee what his/her position is in relation to the applicant. Note that KI’s recruitment process requires a candidate’s referees to be his/her former managers. Establish that the applicant occupied/ies the exact positions stated in his/her application and for the correct lengths of time.
• What did these positions entail and at what level of the organisation were they? What were the applicant’s responsibilities/authorisations?
Suggested questions, to be adjusted to the type of employment that the applicant has/had and the requirements of these positions:
• Skills and personal qualities: what are the candidate’s most distinguishing characteristics?
• What is the applicant’s work group like, and what were his/her most important contributions to it?
• Has the applicant been in any position of management or leadership? For how many people and for how long? How did he/she lead? How does he/she work and perform his/her duties?
• How engaged is the applicant? Does he/she take initiative? Is he/she flexible? Driven?
• How does the applicant deliver? What results does he/she achieve?
• How do you judge the quality of his/her work?
• Are they any examples of work well done? Any major projects? How well does he/she cooperate with the group and outside the organisation?
• How well does the applicant perform (in terms of both quantity and quality) compared to others in his/her group?
• What kind of duties is the applicant best at, and which not so good at? Why?
• What duties does the applicant enjoy most and least? Why?
• What does the rest of the group/the applicant’s colleagues think of him/her?
• How well does the applicant cooperate in general? How does he/she go about it and what is the outcome?
• How approachable/contactable is the applicant?
• What are the applicant’s strong/weak sides?
• How well does the applicant perform under stress? How capable is he/she of making decisions under pressure?
• How does the applicant respond to unexpected events? Does he/she need structure at work?
• What is his/her record of presence/absence at work like? Does he/she work overtime or have an uneven workload?
• Why dos the applicant want to change job?
• Is the applicant someone the referee would like to work with again? If so, in what capacity?
• Are there any concluding recommendations that the referee can give?
• Is there anything else the referee can offer that might be of value?
Closing:
• Sum up your impressions of the applicant and thank the referee. End the call.