* Puts on reading Glasses*
Beautiful submission wroskian! The floor is now open, let's learn from experts and our experienced friends ...

*Ready2Learn*

amicable09:
* Puts on reading Glasses*
Beautiful submission wroskian! The floor is now open, let's learn from experts and our experienced friends ...

*Ready2Learn*

Yes dear, we can't stop learning. Thanks.

me? expert ke.

let me patiently await our ogas at the top..

nihilist: your input will be appreciated..

I don't supply references until I get an offer of an interview ESPECIALLY, if I'm applying for a job through a 3rd party recruiting agent.

The reason is this: Several agents advertise fake jobs for the purpose of generating leads -if you're leaving your job and put your hiring manager down as a reference, it's logical for recruiters to chase him/her down and try to backfill your position.

Nothing for nothing is my motto. If I'm on the phone to a particularly pushy agent, I always politely inform them that I am happy to provide a reference only after an interview is secured.

Most professional agents understand this. The ones who don't, or refuse to, are probably people you don't want to do business with anyway...

wroskian:
I feel obliged to do this after some of my friends brought up the issue in the chat room. The essence of this thread is to give room for various opinions, especially from experts in the house who wouldn’t mind educating joblanders. Read on:

References are very important when it comes to job applications. Employers use references provided by referees to clarify some of the claims made on CVs and during interviews which might border on a candidate's skills, experience and personality. While references have been the reason some people got confirmed or promoted, it has also been the nemesis of others; so, it is pertinent to choose referees wisely, because your organization might decide to run a background check on you someday. God help you if your referee happens to be your landlord who you owe 6months house rent.



The question is this: Should referee details be listed on CVs or replaced with “Available upon request?”

There are no hard-and-fast rules when it comes to listing of referees on a CV. Though some people advocate stating “Available upon request,” others feel it is necessary to list them.

On one hand, the contents of a CV, is more important to some top-notch (but not limited to them) organizations. They simply ask successful candidates to provide details of their referees at the documentation stage. Most oil companies, banks, insurance companies, outsourcing firms (e.g. Workforce), Big4 companies, some schools, and so on fall into this category. In fact, some of these companies use online application portals as we all know, and what the applicant tracking system (ATS) software will be looking out for is how an applicant is well suited for a role and not referees, though some do have designated spots for referee details on their application portals which candidates are expected to complete.

On the other hand, some organizations, mostly medium and small-scale businesses would like to see contact details of people who can attest to an applicant’s character from the outset of their recruitment process. But, I don’t think any recruiter would disqualify a suitably qualified candidate for not having referee details on his/her CV if it is not explicitly stated in the job advert. My opinion though.
I once applied in person to an organization, and the first thing the elderly man in charge of recruitment asked me was why I didn’t include details of my referees. As a sharp guy knowing fully well he knows nothing about HR, I confidently told him it was the latest in the art of CV writing and also added that my referees prefer their details be submitted separately for reasons best known to them . The man bought this, and I was later invited for a chat. This might not happen in all cases.

Therefore, while some organizations won’t bother about referees at the point of application, others might not overlook it. I think this also depends on HR policy in different organizations. The onus lies at the doorstep of applicants to analyze their prospective employers in order to figure out the category which they belong and do the needful. However, I will suggest referees be included on an applicant’s CV, especially for entry level jobs ONLY if there’s adequate space for it after including necessary details, if otherwise, simply put “Available upon Request”.
In other words, do not leave out vital relevant details about yourself in the name of listing referees. This is my submission.

The floor is now open for discussion, what is your take on this issue?
Experts in the house, please bare your minds.


Davide470
Xfire
Jarus
Amicable09
ProudOlodo
Ksstroud
McShegs
TollyB
DrKul
Busybeei5
Lero15
Jazmiynne
Dahveyson
Adeaks
Debbie

I agree with you.

Pro
1, Sentiment factor - You may be lucky that the recruiter knows someone from your referees list or impressed by the personalities.

Cons
1, Waste of space
2, Revealing people's private info
3, It hardly determines whether you will be hired.

I'm generally inclined to not putting it, eexcept expressly instructed in the advert.

Hmm... Sound responses. **walks away to modify his CV..
I think it's better to leave that section at 'Available upon request". Especially when it's going to consume much space (or increase the number of pages). And also, for the sake of privacy, it's advisable to leave it for the appointed time.

My question:
Is it not possible that HRMs can contact your referee before sending you an interview invite? When that section has 'Available upon request', how then are they to contact your ref?

karleone:


My question:
Is it not possible that HRMs can contact your referee before sending you an interview invite? When that section has 'Available upon request', how then are they to contact your ref?

Well... I don't think that an organization with plans to recruit quite a large number of staff will consider contacting all referees before proceeding to send an invite, as this has never been an expressly stated criteria when calling for applications.

But, a one-off recruiter may do this for careful reasons, which I like to disagree with it. Otherwise, referees won't traditionally be the last thing on a Resume. It being the last thing I want to believe it should come last after every other requirements have been met.

In my own conclusion... adding referees should be subjective and discretional as there might be a misuse of other people's information.


*every referee was a hit, yet no test invite.....

Good one guys

Jamean:

Well... I don't think that an organization with plans to recruit quite a large number of staff will consider contacting all referees before proceeding to send an invite, as this has never been an expressly stated criteria when calling for applications.
But, a one-off recruiter may do this for careful reasons, which I like to disagree with it. Otherwise, referees won't traditionally be the last thing on a Resume. It being the last thing I want to believe it should come last after every other requirements have been met.
In my own conclusion... adding referees should be subjective and discretional as there might be a misuse of other people's information.
*every referee was a hit, yet no test invite.....

I totally agree with the bolded text.

Nihilist:
I don't supply references until I get an offer of an interview ESPECIALLY, if I'm applying for a job through a 3rd party recruiting agent.

The reason is this: Several agents advertise fake jobs for the purpose of generating leads -if you're leaving your job and put your hiring manager down as a reference, it's logical for recruiters to chase him/her down and try to backfill your position.

Nothing for nothing is my motto. If I'm on the phone to a particularly pushy agent, I always politely inform them that I am happy to provide a reference only after an interview is secured.

Most professional agents understand this. The ones who don't, or refuse to, are probably people you don't want to do business with anyway...

Very insightful but I feel this is most suited for experienced hire and in advanced/developed countries. I'll like to know if you did this for entry level jobs when you were just starting out in your career here in Nigeria.

Jamean:


Well... I don't think that an organization with plans to recruit quite a large number of staff will consider contacting all referees before proceeding to send an invite, as this has never been an expressly stated criteria when calling for applications.

But, a one-off recruiter may do this for careful reasons, which I like to disagree with it. Otherwise, referees won't traditionally be the last thing on a Resume. It being the last thing I want to believe it should come last after every other requirements have been met.

In my own conclusion... adding referees should be subjective and discretional as there might be a misuse of other people's information.


*every referee was a hit, yet no test invite.....

Egbon HR, if you want my referee contact, come and collect it and give me job.

I am amazed at the quality of people here on nairaland. Very intelligent folks offering brilliant answers. I have been thoroughly enlightened. Little wonder i made this forum my second home.

Before venturing into CV writing/rewriting service, I did a thorough research on major aspects of CV. I found out that adding. reference or referee was a common preference of applicants in this part of the world and using Nigeria as a point of reference. As a result of its ineffectiveness, I started discouraging my clients from adding it. I however came across a prospective client who insisted I should include his referees and when I studied the supposed CV, I had to agree with him because his referees were heavy weights in Nigerian politics. Being a Niger Deltan, he was asked to submit the CV to one of the top oil servicing companies in his area. He stressed emphatically that without the 'cabals' being mentioned, he may not get the job. I therefore submit that adding referee is relative. If you think it will serve an undeniable purpose, why not? Add it. Otherwise, as some have opined, it would only be a waste.

I actually inputted referees in my CV due to the bandwagon effect and for the sake of formality.

But with the explosion of fake recruiters and agencies these days, i now feel it wont be wise to reveal the contact of your former boss or mentor in your CV under the guise of referees.

i will edit my CV to reflect this change.

Benjom:
Before venturing into CV writing/rewriting service, I did a thorough research on major aspects of CV. I found out that adding. reference or referee was a common preference of applicants in this part of the world and using Nigeria as a point of reference. As a result of its ineffectiveness, I started discouraging my clients from adding it. I however came across a prospective client who insisted I should include his referees and when I studied the supposed CV, I had to agree with him because his referees were heavy weights in Nigerian politics. Being a Niger Deltan, he was asked to submit the CV to one of the top oil servicing companies in his area. He stressed emphatically that without the 'cabals' being mentioned, he may not get the job. I therefore submit that adding referee is relative. If you think it will serve an undeniable purpose, why not? Add it. Otherwise, as some have opined, it would only be a waste.

I share your view sir. Thanks for the enlightenment.

amicable09:

Very insightful but I feel this is most suited for experienced hire and in advanced/developed countries. I'll like to know if you did this for entry level jobs when you were just starting out in your career here in Nigeria.

My career experience in Nigeria is limited to NYSC, and even that was 'worked' if you know what I mean.

That being said, I don't believe that the job market in the UK where I live and work is significantly different to Nigeria. As you might have seen from most of the other responses on here, most of the people who put their references on their CV are doing so merely to impress the readers by the stellar names willing to act as personal referees.

I don't feel that I need to impress anyone based on my contact list, when my CV is good enough to speak for me. Thus, I can afford to withhold my referees until such a time as is necessary. In a worst case scenario, where a job description and remuneration package sound really attractive, but the recruiter is resolutely demanding a reference before getting the ball rolling, I am not above giving a fake name, along with matching fake email address, and phone number(Both of which I have access to)...

Hmm
Entry level is advised to include but if it's an experienced vacancy 'Available upon request' may be in order

Nihilist:


My career experience in Nigeria is limited to NYSC, and even that was 'worked' if you know what I mean.

That being said, I don't believe that the job market in the UK where I live and work is significantly different to Nigeria. As you might have seen from most of the other responses on here, most of the people who put their references on their CV are doing so merely to impress the readers by the stellar names willing to act as personal referees.

I don't feel that I need to impress anyone based on my contact list, when my CV is good enough to speak for me. Thus, I can afford to withhold my referees until such a time as is necessary. In a worst case scenario, where a job description and remuneration package sound really attractive, but the recruiter is resolutely demanding a reference before getting the ball rolling, I am not above giving a fake name, along with matching fake email address, and phone number(Both of which I have access to)...

Ok, I understand.

Just that it's my first time seeing this side of things where it is not advisable to put details of referee on one's CV because we suspect recruiters and HRMs, other than that, I find it difficult to believe the suspicions written here like 'recruiters will go behind my back to contact my referee and I will be displaced' ... It is still possible though.

I don't supply my referee details until requested from the company and that's when I have confirmed they're genuine and probably gotten to maybe interview stage...

Reasons:
Lots of fraudsters in Nigeria; one would hardly know which job is genuine or not and putting details of influential people (my referees) on display is such a risk.. scammers may start calling/emailing them which isn't cool..

Most companies specifically request for referees during job advertisement if need be, so no need including my referees when it hasn't been requested. ...

Any company interested in you will request for additional information if needed

The cons are just bigger than the pros.....

PresVA:
I don't supply my referee details until requested from the company and that's when I have confirmed they're genuine and probably gotten to maybe interview stage...

Reasons:
Lots of fraudsters in Nigeria; one would hardly know which job is genuine or not and putting details of influential people (my referees) on display is such a risk.. scammers may start calling/emailing them which isn't cool..

Most companies specifically request for referees during job advertisement if need be, so no need including my referees when it hasn't been requested. ...

Any company interested in you will request for additional information if needed

The cons are just bigger than the pros.....

I quite agree with the bolded, in this era where peeps apply for anything that looks like a job on any page that looks like a website, care must be taken.

well use available upon request when applying for the job.

when you get to the interview stage or documentation stage you can put your referee.

make scammers no go contact ur referee for your back con scam them!

Nihilist:

I am not above giving a fake name, along with matching fake email address, and phone number(Both of which I have access to)...

That's me in a nutshell

Jamean:


In my own conclusion... adding referees should be subjective and discretional as there might be a misuse of other people's information.

I'm mostly a learner here but I go with this line of thought. Excluding referee information is a new practice for me considering the loads of job scams out there. I equally feel the applicant should be able to ascertain when it will serve well to include or exclude info about referees. But I've always considered the line "available upon request" a remark that could easily be taken as rude. So I'll rather not say anything at all about referees

ProudOlodo:

I'm mostly a learner here but I go with this line of thought. Excluding referee information is a new practice for me considering the loads of job scams out there. I equally feel the applicant should be able to ascertain when it will serve well to include or exclude info about referees. But I've always considered the line "available upon request" a remark that could easily be taken as rude. So I'll rather not say anything at all about referees

oh great.. so there's no referee section at all.

odimbannamdi:
I am amazed at the quality of people here on nairaland. Very intelligent folks offering brilliant answers. I have been thoroughly enlightened. Little wonder i made this forum my second home.

of course
this is not romance section

wroskian:
I feel obliged to do this after some of my friends brought up the issue in the chat room. The essence of this thread is to give room for various opinions, especially from experts in the house who wouldn’t mind educating joblanders. Read on:

References are very important when it comes to job applications. Employers use references provided by referees to clarify some of the claims made on CVs and during interviews which might border on a candidate's skills, experience and personality. While references have been the reason some people got confirmed or promoted, it has also been the nemesis of others; so, it is pertinent to choose referees wisely, because your organization might decide to run a background check on you someday. God help you if your referee happens to be your landlord who you owe 6months house rent.



The question is this: Should referee details be listed on CVs or replaced with “Available upon request?”

There are no hard-and-fast rules when it comes to listing of referees on a CV. Though some people advocate stating “Available upon request,” others feel it is necessary to list them.

On one hand, the contents of a CV, is more important to some top-notch (but not limited to them) organizations. They simply ask successful candidates to provide details of their referees at the documentation stage. Most oil companies, banks, insurance companies, outsourcing firms (e.g. Workforce), Big4 companies, some schools, and so on fall into this category. In fact, some of these companies use online application portals as we all know, and what the applicant tracking system (ATS) software will be looking out for is how an applicant is well suited for a role and not referees, though some do have designated spots for referee details on their application portals which candidates are expected to complete.

On the other hand, some organizations, mostly medium and small-scale businesses would like to see contact details of people who can attest to an applicant’s character from the outset of their recruitment process. But, I don’t think any recruiter would disqualify a suitably qualified candidate for not having referee details on his/her CV if it is not explicitly stated in the job advert. My opinion though.
I once applied in person to an organization, and the first thing the elderly man in charge of recruitment asked me was why I didn’t include details of my referees. As a sharp guy knowing fully well he knows nothing about HR, I confidently told him it was the latest in the art of CV writing and also added that my referees prefer their details be submitted separately for reasons best known to them . The man bought this, and I was later invited for a chat. This might not happen in all cases.

Therefore, while some organizations won’t bother about referees at the point of application, others might not overlook it. I think this also depends on HR policy in different organizations. The onus lies at the doorstep of applicants to analyze their prospective employers in order to figure out the category which they belong and do the needful. However, I will suggest referees be included on an applicant’s CV, especially for entry level jobs ONLY if there’s adequate space for it after including necessary details, if otherwise, simply put “Available upon Request”.
In other words, do not leave out vital relevant details about yourself in the name of listing referees. This is my submission.

The floor is now open for discussion, what is your take on this issue?
Experts in the house, please bare your minds.


Davide470
Xfire
Jarus
Amicable09
ProudOlodo
Ksstroud
McShegs
TollyB
DrKul
Busybeei5
Lero15
Jazmiynne
Dahveyson
Adeaks
Debbie

Wroskian welldone!

**gets a cushion**
I better relax and learn from the elders

#following

Jamean:

of course this is not romance section

Lol epic response!

Jamean:


of course
this is not romance section

still following

Lalasticlala

Jazmiynne:

Wroskian welldone!
**gets a cushion** I better relax and learn from the elders #following

Thanks Jazzy. We can also learn from you