What type of questions are asked when they contact your listed references. I dont have reliable references. Probably doesnt say much about the industry i am in (backstabbers and prevalent jealousy). How important is references? Any suggestions?
When serving as former co-workers’ references, I’ve been asked: -What was needhelp’s strengths? -What was needhelp’s biggest weakness? -Needhelp said he accomplished X, Y, and Z on his resume, does that sound right to you? -What was needhelp’s greatest accomplishments with your team? -Is there anything you wanted to convey that would support needhelp’s candidacy?
From what I heard, my current employer did in fact contact ALL of my references to confirm my relationship with those references. I did not expect this, especially when they contacted one of the references in the U.S. (I’m in Canada). For a small firm they sure did a lot of due dillegence. As for questions, I don’t know what they asked but I assume they confirm whether you really worked in the specified position on your resume for X amount of time and whether the responsibilities you listed do in fact resemble what you’ve done for your previous employer.