So you’re interviewing for a job, and the employer/recruiter asks for professional references. Just like tailoring a resume, the professional references you select can play a huge factor in your success through the hiring process!
Your ideal references should be responsive, well-spoken, and able to give insight on the skill-set that will be required of you in your future role. When possible, select a supervisor who also can offer an honest review of your work style and your dynamic in a team – this insight can help to seriously ease the growing pains of starting out with a new team! Ideally, before handing over their information, you’ve reached out to each of your references to let them know that they’ve been listed and to expect a call on your behalf. This gives your reference time to gather their thoughts on you, and also reflects very well to the hiring team when they are easy to contact and prepared to speak about you!
Much like your resume, your professional references should be current and up-to-date. It can be tempting to list your favorite coworkers from your first job, your high school professor who adored you, or that one boss who you LOVED working for… 10 years ago… but as amazing as those individuals may be, their insight just isn’t all that valuable to your future employers. Your ideal references should have worked directly with you (or better yet, directly supervised you) within the last 3-4 years. Afterall, as we evolve and grow within our careers the advice that our supervisors may give will evolve as well!
And finally, if the rest of this blog hasn’t driven the point home – professional really does mean professional. We all know that your mom, grandpa, best friend (and their dog) think you’re the bee’s knees. Unfortunately, unless this is your first ever job, or the employer has specifically requested a “character reference,” listing a family member or non-work-related friend is strongly discouraged. The purpose of a professional reference is to gain an honest, impartial review of your work ethic and performance in the workplace.
In the equine industry, there’s an extra layer when considering trainers, clients, students, and other equine professionals. Unless the position you’re applying for is specifically related to teaching/training, it’s best to avoid the students/clients as professional references. They often only see you for an hour or two at a time, which is really not enough to be able to provide quality employer feedback – even if they’re a classic “barn rat”! Unless you’ve worked directly for them, your trainer falls into the same category – they may know how to push you better than anyone, but the dynamic between student/teacher is a unique one! If you’re applying for a position in the business sectors of the industry, it’s best to provide references in similar lines of work. The notable exception being if you are transitioning from hands-on to business roles – in which case your best bet is to stick with your direct employers for the most valuable feedback!
In summary – providing professional references can seem like just another hoop to jump through during the application process, but making sure you have the right references and that they’re ready to talk about you can really give you a leg up against the competition!
