Clara Boles 
September 01, 2021
Newsletter Article
Having great references can be critical in securing a job. I spoke with Meredith Shepard, Recruitment Manager with De Lacy Executive Recruitment about some references you should use!
A former employer is one of the most important references you can have! A lot of this has to do with the stage of life you are in. If you recently graduated and have not had many jobs, a reference like this may be harder to get.
If you have been in the workforce for a while, a former supervisor or employer are the best references to have listed. It is important that they are as recent as can be. Remember that you want your reference to speak about your work ethic, how you met goals, and your overall strengths as a worker.
A reference from an advisor is more important for job seekers who may be right out of school. This could be a college advisor, or even a professor! This could also be an advisor to a club you were in.
Maybe you are not right out of school, but you serve on a committee of some sort. This could be a church committee of even a town board, an advisor from an instance like that could work too.
Most people think you must put someone in higher authority as a reference, but really, in some cases, that is unnecessary. Sometimes your coworkers know your work better than a manager might! Make sure this colleague can speak professionally about you. A coworker could even give an employer really great insight into how well you worked on a team and so on.
If you are in school and in the situation where you do not have a lot of work experience, you could use another student as a reference. Make sure this is a student who worked with you on something. It could be an extensive project or even served on a club together. Also make sure this reference can speak professionally about you.
Also, some tips to remember…
A reference should never be a close friend or a family member—try to keep it as professional as you can!
It is ALWAYS important when asking for a reference that you are asking for “positive professional” reference. The last thing you want is an employer calling and hearing that you were not an outstanding employee.
Do not include your references on your resume. If the employer wants references, they will ask. It is important to always have them ready!
Always call your references and let them know they are going to be receiving a call! It doesn’t matter if you called them last month, call them again and give them a heads up. If you can give them an area code or even a name that might call them, this will help them be better prepared to answer the call.
