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In today’s competitive job market, organizations strive to make informed hiring decisions to build a skilled workforce that will be around for years to come. One crucial step in this process is conducting reference checks. While in many cases reference checks can be seen as just a formality in the hiring process, they can still serve great purpose.
What Are Reference Checks?
A reference check involves contacting a candidate's professional contacts to gather information about their work history, skills, and character. This information is used to assess their fit for the role and the organization to which they are applying.
Purposes of Reference Checks:
Validation of Information: One purpose of reference checks is to confirm the accuracy of the information provided by the candidate. This includes validating job titles, employment dates, responsibilities, and accomplishments. This will help confirm the candidate has been honest and forthcoming.
Understanding of Skills: Reference checks can provide valuable insights into a candidate's skills and competencies. Employers can inquire about a candidate's performance, work ethic, and problem-solving abilities. This will help to identify specific examples of the candidate's skills and how they’ve been applied in the real world from another person's perspective.
Assessing Cultural Fit: Reference checks can offer insights into how well a candidate might fit within the organization's culture. Details from a third party can provide a raw, unfiltered idea of the candidate's values, beliefs, and behaviors.
Identifying Red Flags: During a reference check, employers can uncover potential red flags that might not surface during interviews. This information can help organizations avoid hiring mistakes.
Reference checks can play an important role in the hiring process. They provide employers with additional details about their candidates to make an informed decision about their next hire. Minimizing risk and gleaming reference checks will leave both the employer and the candidate feeling confident in progressing through the hiring process.
Written by: Emily Onheiser, Senior Search Consultant at Hunter Crown, LLC
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