One Very Important Question
October 7, 2008 by Darlene McDaniel
Filed under Careers
One of the most popular posts here at Interview Chatter is called So, You’ve Been Fired. Many people have found this post and the comments helpful. I probably get 2-3 comments per week from someone out there who needs assistance with an interview because they have agreed to leave, mutually with their employer or they have been fired. They struggle with what they should say about the previous job situation and what led to the termination or their departure.
There is one Very Important Question you should ask the HR person on your way out the door - “What will you say about me when a potential employer calls to verify my employment?” This is a critical question and will help you frame your response when asked by a potential hiring manager “why you left the organization?”
Here are some things for you to consider when wrestling with this situation:
1. Most organizations only verify dates of employment, title, salary, and whether you are rehireable.
2. Organizations don’t want to be sued, so if they can’t say something nice, they ususally don’t say anything about performance. See number one above.
Here’s what I want you to take out of this post today. Don’t agonize over what your previous employer will say until you ask the question and get a confirmation from them what they will say. The only time you need to worry about what will be said about you is if you give the wrong person as a reference. In other words, you put “Bobby” or “Suzy” down as a reference, but you have not spoken to them about what they will say about you when they receive that call. You have a responsibility to prepare your employment references so that they don’t mis-speak or misrepresent you to the hiring manager or HR representative that calls.
Short and sweet today, but very important information. I have made this recommendation to many people, and many people fail to ask this critical question. If the organization answers your question then you walk away knowledgeable and it should help you when you are preparing to respond to questions about your previous employment. If you have questions about how to frame your response to the question of “why you are no longer employed”, scroll down and leave a comment and I will respond to you as soon as possible.
