How to avoid hiring mistakes and reduce employee turnover

There are many who say that reference checking is fast becoming a “lost art” … something of great value that could be lost forever. Why aren’t so many companies doing reference checks these days?

We live in an age of legalism. Businesses, especially those with “deep pockets”, want to avoid legal tangles and litigation. Many companies have strict policies that prohibit releasing information about former employees other than employment verification. Typically, requests for information about former employees are sent to the Human Resources Department. HR staff often have limited knowledge about employee performance, etc. For these reasons, many companies question the value of reference checking.

For those of you who believe that reference checking is a “lost art”, I think you have it “right means”. We agree that reference checking, like art, can be invaluable. But we don’t agree that reference checking should become a thing of the past … a step we used in our hiring processes many years ago. But like art, its value is variable. The information we obtain can be “useful” (and always is) to “invaluable” in helping us avoid a terribly costly recruitment error. The first rule of reference checking is to just do it!

Consider creating a policy where a reference check must be performed before you can bid. Reference checking can be a “negotiator” … or a “deal breaker”. It’s amazing what people will tell us … like these actual examples of references telling me about candidates …

“We have a rule about giving no information. But … let me put it this way. If I was shipwrecked in the middle of the ocean and I could choose six people to get on the life raft with me … he wouldn’t be one of them.”

“Of the 8 people who inform me, where would I classify Greg? … One minus two.”

“He just couldn’t decide that this was what he wanted to do. So we finally agreed that it was better to part.”

Sometimes a reference will vindicate a candidate. A candidate for vice president of manufacturing warned me that his boss would probably give him a bad reference. The boss had a history of retaliating against people who resigned. He viewed resignation as an act of treason. So I called a third party, one of the candidate’s colleagues at the company, who knew both men for reference. He gave an enthusiastic account of the candidate and confirmed that the boss was very upset when people left.

It is true that obtaining quality information from references is increasingly difficult due to the world in which we live. But it can be done. The method I’ll share with you will certainly improve your odds … but it all starts with your commitment to … DO IT!

I have used a method of reference checking that has been amazingly successful, even in the age of legalism, and even with companies that have policies against giving references. It’s a four-step process, easy to implement …

STEP ONE: Assign an interviewer in your hiring process to gather references. You should only be interested in references from past and present supervisors. Get their names and phone numbers. The interviewer should explain your requirement to speak with references before hiring. Get the candidate’s permission to do so.

STEP TWO: You must prepare the reference for your call and request the help of the candidate. Ask the candidate to call the supervisor and ask if they would give you a positive reference. The candidate must then tell the supervisor that they will hear from him within two days.

STEP THREE: I recommend that the hiring manager make the call. The call should not be made until all interviews have been completed and the candidate is deemed worthy of being hired. Interviews always raise questions that can only be answered by the candidate’s immediate or previous supervisor. Prepare for the call. You can assume the call will be short, so have a list of four of the five questions you would like to ask.

STEP FOUR: Make the call. If a receptionist responds, ask to speak to the reference using their first name. If they ask the reason for your call, explain that you are a friend and that you are waiting for their call. Again, you should expect a short conversation. Be prepared, move fast, and take notes. Obviously be very courteous and grateful for your input.

The key to talking to former supervisors is to enlist the help of the candidate. If the candidate cannot obtain the cooperation of his supervisor, there could be a serious problem. It is certainly a warning sign that something might be wrong.

This system is not perfect. But using it will dramatically increase the chances of making contact with the referral. Reference checking can be a valuable component of a hiring process. Use it with an open mind. Assuming it’s a lost art could deprive you of a valuable source of information and contribute to serious hiring errors.

http://www.performanceleadershipllc.com

William E. Miller