Before you even go for your interview, you should be ready and think about who to include in your reference page. Beside you professional looking resume, reference page will be the next most important information for your potential new employer.
There are quite a few reasons why you should always armed yourself with your reference page when going for your first interview.
1) For some reason, your interviewer might be really interested in hiring you and want to start contacting your list of references right way. Having your reference page make their life easier to do the background check on you.
2) We are in a fast-paced world and there are companies where interviewers contact your references as they interview you. This could happen when you are speaking to a number of different people in a single interview and one of them will step out to talk to your reference.
When you have your references information ready, it shows that you are a well-organized person.
Separate Document
It is a good idea to separate the reference information so that your resume will look organized and clean. This is much appreciated by many HR professionals who are scanning hundreds of resumes daily.
Reasons To Have a Separate Reference Document
The purpose of keeping your professional reference document separate is to protect the info of those who have agreed to assist you. When someone you know agrees to have their confidential information shared with those who are truly interested in hiring you is very different from allowing their contact info to be submitted to dozens of different businesses who are advertising job openings. I believe you do not want your former co-workers, friends and past employers receiving spam email or calls just because many people have access to their information in your resume.
It is better for you to keep that confidential information secure until you are further along in the interview process. Your resume references should only be allowed to those eyes that are going to use it for its intended purpose only.
People in Your Resume Reference Page
Before putting any person as your references, it is wise to have a call and let them know. If any of your references hesitate about giving you a good recommendation, you have to find out from them why it is so or you have to find another person who can as you want your future potential employer to hear anything bad about you. It is also common courtesy that your reference be aware so that they will not be stunned by any sudden calls. Besides that, it is good to take the opportunity to verify your reference information to ensure that it is up-to-date.
Reference Page For Own Use
Now that you know the importance of a good reference page, it is to your benefits if you always kept it up-to-date. Nowadays, it is quite common to be asked to fill up your reference information when you apply for jobs. Getting ready your reference information comes in handy as it is a much simpler task to out your employment history section and reference section if you kept a list of previous employers and their contact number. Everybody now have a smartphone and it is wise for you to store a copy of your personal reference page in it for easy and quick access.
Reference Page Template
Everything can be found on the internet and this includes your reference page template or you can create your own. As long as there is a place to enter all of your necessary information that were laid out in a way that make sense. What you don't want is a potential employer has difficulties finding your information. Take note also to avoid using a reference page for resume that uses too many graphics or other decorative template. Even if you are in a creative line of work, the person who is checking your references is usually the down to business HR staff. Remember this motto, Keep It Simple Stupid.
Sequencing
Here is something you need to keep in mind, your future employer is not going to call every contact that you have listed but they are likely to call the first one. Always put the first contact as someone who is going to sing your praises. Next, put your flagship reference at the top as this will be your old boss or co-worker who is truly amazed by that great project you have handled or your amazing leadership. Make sure to talk up that relationship and experience during your interview as well so that the interviewer is excited about contacting that person.
Conclusion
Checking information is the simplest part of the whole references creating process but it is also the easiest to screw up. Take your time to check that names are correctly spelled. Double check phone numbers and address to ensure that they are up-to-date. Believe me, you don't want submit any embarrassing mistakes or typos to your potential new boss. Ensure that the interviewer has at least two ways of contacting each of your references.
