Personalized Hiring Manager References Improve Your Personal Brand - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career

Personalized Hiring Manager References Improve Your Personal Brand - Personal Branding Blog - Stand Out In Your Career Your references can mean the difference between being winning the job vs just being a finalist. Can your references increase the chances youll actually win the job over the other finalists? Think about your references from past employers. Sure, all your references probably say great things about you (otherwise you probably wouldnt list them as references, would you?). Just because your references say nice things about you, is that enough to differentiate yourself from other candidates whose references also say nice things about them also? Weve been taught that the level of the person giving the reference is the most important thing. So most of us think that seeking C and V level references from large companies will be the most impressive to our target hiring manager. Sure, if Bill Gates or Warren Buffett are willing to give you a reference, their star power might temporarily impress your target hiring manager. But for most of us, will Bill or Warren really know what its like to work with us, unless they were our direct manager or a one-up (our managers manager)? So while this reference might be exciting, its unlikely one of those references would be able to provide a reference that would cause a candidate to stand out. However, your references might differentiate you if youre lucky enough to find a hiring manager who cares about the things your references are complimenting you about. Then again, your target hiring manager might not care because the things youre being complimented about wont help your hiring manager solve his/her problems. Most of us leave this up to chance We leave it up to chance because we give the same references, who say the same thing to each hiring manager. Some of us just give the same letter of recommendation to each employer Im not knocking letters of recommendation but giving the same letter of recommendation to each employer gives you poor chances that your recommender will correctly guess whats important to the hiring manager. But you dont have to leave it up to chance. Instead, you can increase the odds that your target hiring manager will care about what your references say. 4 ways to help your references to differentiate you Understand the hiring managers priority problems: Once you understand the hiring managers priority problems, youll know what they care about. If a hiring managers goals are to increase revenue, they wont care about references who sing your praises as an awesome cost-cutter. But until you know what your specific hiring managers priority problems are, you and your reference will just guess. Instead, research by talking to people inside your target company to better understand the hiring managers goals, problems, and priorities. Match references to hiring managers: Not every reference is a good match for a specific hiring manager. Industries, job functions are the matches most often chosen, but they are often the least relevant. Instead, look for hiring managers where your accomplishments and the value you provided best match the hiring managers priorities. Matching by story is usually more relevant than by industry/function. Prep each reference: If you did a good job for your reference, there are probably many complimentary things your reference could say about you they are not all created equal in your hiring managers eyes. If you leave it up to the reference to choose what he/she thinks is best, theres much lower odds that the reference will be relevant. Instead, when you prep your reference first, asking them to talk about a specific accomplishment/value provided or personal trait, you have much higher odds that the reference will hit the hiring managers hot button (especially when youve done the right research see point #1 above). You dont need to put words into your references mouth, but can instead guide them about what parts of your work with the reference will be most meaningful to the hiring manager. Have many references: You wont have much choice if you only have one or two references. Your best bet is to have 8-10 references to choose from. Dont make the same mistake I see from many job seekers, who list all 8-10 references, allowing the hiring manger to choose who to call. Instead, list 2-3 references, selected based on hiring manager matching see point #2 above. Your references will appreciate they arent getting calls from every company that sees your resume plus they will be more likely to return reference calls if youre selective about who you give the references name to. By using the above 4 tips, youll be able to customize your references to the hiring managers specific needs. The way youre likely providing references today, you assume one-size-fits-all in a custom fit world. So will you continue to provide all potential employers the same list of references, without customizing the messaging your references add to your personal brand? Or will you decide to actively manage the communication and input your references provide that influence hiring decisions? It all depends if youre satisfied by leaving your odds of getting hired up to chance, or if you want to improve those odds for specific employers. Author: Phil Rosenberg is President of http://www.reCareered.com, a leading job search information website and gives complimentary job search webinars at http://ResumeWebinar.com. Phil also runs the Career Central group, one of Linkedin’s largest groups for job seekers and has built one of the 20 largest personal networks on Linkedin globally.