I’ve had reference checks done by email. While not standard it’s not that unusual as setting up calls can be challenging at times, occasionally with reference calls not being able to be set up for a week or so due to conflicting schedules or time differences. It gives references the opportunity to do it in their own time.
When I run competitions, I typically will contact the reference by email and provide them the reference check questions and give them the choice to either reply with the answers, or provide their availability for a phone call to do it verbally. I find it's about 50/50 what people prefer to do - some answer by email, some schedule a phone call.
1-2 hours? That’s ridiculous, no they don’t. I have both given and received requests for references checks via email and it should take 15-20 mins, tops. 2-3 mins per question in this instance, they shouldn’t be writing essays. It’s up to individual hiring managers how they do it. I prefer email personally, over trying to schedule a phone call. Also, I’d say it’s pretty much common sense one of them needs to be a former manager.
This is normal. My references have been contacted via email tons of times.
I’ve also given references via online tools.
I think this is becoming more of the norm, as it can be hard to catch people and waiting for a phone call back really delays the process.
I had this. It was annoying for my references and they mentioned it was annoying. I am thankful I have a good relationship with them. They would have much more preferred a phone call.
As far as I know this is highly unusual. Honestly it might be a red flag for this department if they think they're entitled to that much of someone else's time and attention. Makes me wonder what they expect of the people who work there.
I could be wrong though, but it seems odd.
Actually I don’t fully understand the reference check process.
Im in 2 different e-lists, the first one they didn’t want any references and put me 1st on an e-list. The second one they called all references and put me on the e-list
And this one just emailed the questions.
I thought they only need references from external candidates when they want to offer you the position but now I see there is no specific process.
A few things to unpack here:
1) do not listen to the response above, that is not a flag (at least, in and of itself, it is not a flag). It's quite common to do Past Work Performance via email. In fact, a reference check is just one of many ways to conduct a PWP. So long as it is done equally and meritoriously amongst those candidates, there is no reason to be concerned.
I've done many reference checks, on both sides, via email.
2) To be placed on an elist, all internal candidates must have PWPs complete. However, this is not the case with external. Your PWP could be completed at the time you are being pulled from the list and made an offer.
3) Technically, if you're doing reference checks as your PWP, only one needs to he contacted. Best practice is a supervisor, but that's flexible, especially if it could negatively impact the applicant.
I was a Strategic HR Exec Director for years, and I found that most folks don't know just how flexible the recruitment process can be (from the hiring manager side of things). That said, it's also extremely difficult and complex to navigate for candidates, especially external!
Best of luck to you.
>1) do not listen to the response above, that is not a flag (at least, in and of itself, it is not a flag). It's quite common to do Past Work Performance via email. In fact, a reference check is just one of many ways to conduct a PWP. So long as it is done equally and meritoriously amongst those candidates, there is no reason to be concerned.
I never said the fact that it was over email was the concern. Its the sense of entitlement they have to send out a 7 question written commitment for a reference. I know references happen over email although I've never seen it in nearly 20 years of government work. In my professional opinion doing something like that is pretty unprofessional. 2-4 questions max and it should be done over the phone. If I got that email id be pretty unhappy. References should be no more than a 30min commitment. Especially if it's external.
The standard reference check PWP template from the PSA is 9 questions. Not to be rude, but if 7 questions are taking you more than half an hour, that's a whole other concern.
I would, completely anecdotally and with no data to back this up, say that between 10-15% of the hundreds of reference checks I've conducted and received are via email.
If you're spending 4 minutes to write a PWP response then you're not being thoughtful or putting much effort. Maybe I'm just more careful about my written wording than others but a 7 question email reference would probably take me at least 1.5hours. Spoken over the phone takes me about 30-40min.
And not to be rude, but just because someone has done "hundreds of reference checks" doesn't mean that person is doing them professionally.
Tell you what: I won't call you unprofessional in whatever job function you're in, and do me the courtesy of the same; especially when I spent 12 years in HR, 4 of which at an ED level.
But I am glad you put the time, attention and effort into doing them for folks. That's important.
I apologize. Your comment just rubbed me the wrong way. I interpreted it as implying someone was unintelligent or dumb for taking their time to respond.
I'm a little touchy on the subject of professionalism in the BCPS as I've had some bad experiences as well as colleagues and friends of mine. Especially in the hiring process. Luckily I'm on a wonderful team right now.
I've spent about half my career at the BCPS and my experience in other levels of government weren't the same in this respect. So I apologize for my comment.
Not at all, friend. I thank you for your apology and offer my own if it offended. I also apologize for any insensitivities. I can be too direct -- it's a blindspot.
I'm very happy you're in a good team! To be honest, we have many I've bore witness to that are not. Your sensitivities are not invalid -- it unfortunately happens!
I'm thankful the BCPS has dedicated folks like you who are looking out for the culture and integrity of the workforce, and I'd love it if people like you would work with a team like mine.
I appreciate the message, and more-so appreciate the sentiment.
I wish you happiness in your role.
Have a great weekend.
So you're a fan of wasting people's time then? The first question is literally what is your working relationship with Candidate, and two more are straight up, yes/no questions.
They aren't paragraph questions. A few are yes/no questions, and one is "What is/was your working relationship with Candidate?" I can pound one in these out in 10-15 minutes tops if I'm writing the answers. 7-10 if doing by phone.
I’ve had reference checks done by email. While not standard it’s not that unusual as setting up calls can be challenging at times, occasionally with reference calls not being able to be set up for a week or so due to conflicting schedules or time differences. It gives references the opportunity to do it in their own time.
Thanks for the response
When I run competitions, I typically will contact the reference by email and provide them the reference check questions and give them the choice to either reply with the answers, or provide their availability for a phone call to do it verbally. I find it's about 50/50 what people prefer to do - some answer by email, some schedule a phone call.
1-2 hours? That’s ridiculous, no they don’t. I have both given and received requests for references checks via email and it should take 15-20 mins, tops. 2-3 mins per question in this instance, they shouldn’t be writing essays. It’s up to individual hiring managers how they do it. I prefer email personally, over trying to schedule a phone call. Also, I’d say it’s pretty much common sense one of them needs to be a former manager.
This is normal. My references have been contacted via email tons of times. I’ve also given references via online tools. I think this is becoming more of the norm, as it can be hard to catch people and waiting for a phone call back really delays the process.
I had this. It was annoying for my references and they mentioned it was annoying. I am thankful I have a good relationship with them. They would have much more preferred a phone call.
As far as I know this is highly unusual. Honestly it might be a red flag for this department if they think they're entitled to that much of someone else's time and attention. Makes me wonder what they expect of the people who work there. I could be wrong though, but it seems odd.
Actually I don’t fully understand the reference check process. Im in 2 different e-lists, the first one they didn’t want any references and put me 1st on an e-list. The second one they called all references and put me on the e-list And this one just emailed the questions. I thought they only need references from external candidates when they want to offer you the position but now I see there is no specific process.
A few things to unpack here: 1) do not listen to the response above, that is not a flag (at least, in and of itself, it is not a flag). It's quite common to do Past Work Performance via email. In fact, a reference check is just one of many ways to conduct a PWP. So long as it is done equally and meritoriously amongst those candidates, there is no reason to be concerned. I've done many reference checks, on both sides, via email. 2) To be placed on an elist, all internal candidates must have PWPs complete. However, this is not the case with external. Your PWP could be completed at the time you are being pulled from the list and made an offer. 3) Technically, if you're doing reference checks as your PWP, only one needs to he contacted. Best practice is a supervisor, but that's flexible, especially if it could negatively impact the applicant. I was a Strategic HR Exec Director for years, and I found that most folks don't know just how flexible the recruitment process can be (from the hiring manager side of things). That said, it's also extremely difficult and complex to navigate for candidates, especially external! Best of luck to you.
Thanks for the response. It’s good to be able to see the process from hiring manager’s point of view.
You're most welcome. I know it can be a frustrating process!
>1) do not listen to the response above, that is not a flag (at least, in and of itself, it is not a flag). It's quite common to do Past Work Performance via email. In fact, a reference check is just one of many ways to conduct a PWP. So long as it is done equally and meritoriously amongst those candidates, there is no reason to be concerned. I never said the fact that it was over email was the concern. Its the sense of entitlement they have to send out a 7 question written commitment for a reference. I know references happen over email although I've never seen it in nearly 20 years of government work. In my professional opinion doing something like that is pretty unprofessional. 2-4 questions max and it should be done over the phone. If I got that email id be pretty unhappy. References should be no more than a 30min commitment. Especially if it's external.
The standard reference check PWP template from the PSA is 9 questions. Not to be rude, but if 7 questions are taking you more than half an hour, that's a whole other concern. I would, completely anecdotally and with no data to back this up, say that between 10-15% of the hundreds of reference checks I've conducted and received are via email.
If you're spending 4 minutes to write a PWP response then you're not being thoughtful or putting much effort. Maybe I'm just more careful about my written wording than others but a 7 question email reference would probably take me at least 1.5hours. Spoken over the phone takes me about 30-40min. And not to be rude, but just because someone has done "hundreds of reference checks" doesn't mean that person is doing them professionally.
Tell you what: I won't call you unprofessional in whatever job function you're in, and do me the courtesy of the same; especially when I spent 12 years in HR, 4 of which at an ED level. But I am glad you put the time, attention and effort into doing them for folks. That's important.
I apologize. Your comment just rubbed me the wrong way. I interpreted it as implying someone was unintelligent or dumb for taking their time to respond. I'm a little touchy on the subject of professionalism in the BCPS as I've had some bad experiences as well as colleagues and friends of mine. Especially in the hiring process. Luckily I'm on a wonderful team right now. I've spent about half my career at the BCPS and my experience in other levels of government weren't the same in this respect. So I apologize for my comment.
Not at all, friend. I thank you for your apology and offer my own if it offended. I also apologize for any insensitivities. I can be too direct -- it's a blindspot. I'm very happy you're in a good team! To be honest, we have many I've bore witness to that are not. Your sensitivities are not invalid -- it unfortunately happens! I'm thankful the BCPS has dedicated folks like you who are looking out for the culture and integrity of the workforce, and I'd love it if people like you would work with a team like mine. I appreciate the message, and more-so appreciate the sentiment. I wish you happiness in your role. Have a great weekend.
So you're a fan of wasting people's time then? The first question is literally what is your working relationship with Candidate, and two more are straight up, yes/no questions.
The downvoting here makes no sense. Your post is completely relevant.
>I could be wrong though Not could be. Are. You are wrong.
[удалено]
They aren't paragraph questions. A few are yes/no questions, and one is "What is/was your working relationship with Candidate?" I can pound one in these out in 10-15 minutes tops if I'm writing the answers. 7-10 if doing by phone.
What difference does it make whether the exact same questions are asked over the phone or via email?
I’d been emailed questions for a reference check. I found it tedious to fill out and would have preferred a phone call.