If you despise the process of seeking help as much as we do, then asking for a job referral can feel like one of the most unpleasant experiences of becoming an adult. Most of us hope that a great job will just find us on its own, a recruiter calling on a Tuesday afternoon begging us to take up the opportunity of a lifetime. In reality, job hunting is rarely as easy—it requires us to actively sift through open positions and email out job referral requests to improve our chances of securing a new position. Occasionally, employee referral programs make the process just a little bit easier but very rarely do organizations have such services available. If you’re trying to build up the courage to send out a referral request, then here are some tips that might help.
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How to Ask for a Job Referral?
Making a referral request is difficult for many reasons, but vulnerability probably tops the list of reasons we avoid them. Asking an acquaintance to validate your application and recommend you for a job opens you up to the possibility of rejection, and no one likes to be let down like that. Out of the many people you reach out to seeking a job referral, only a small number of them will willingly vouch for you and that’s a hard pill to swallow. It’s entirely within their right to say no and they might have multiple reasons for avoiding getting involved in the process, but it is still unpleasant when someone says no to the job referral request.
Despite the initial awkwardness though, the benefits that follow after you ask for a job referral are usually worth it in the end. Companies are more likely to consider an employee who comes highly recommended rather than have to select between hundreds of candidates to find the one gem that stands out. Even if it does not automatically secure your role, organizations that want reliable candidates will be more willing to look at your profile if your name comes up through an employee referral program. With these benefits on the line, it is important to learn how to ask for a job referral so you don’t ruin your chances without realizing what’s missing.
Maintain a Good Relationship With Your Contacts
Seeking job referrals is much easier when you actually have a good relationship with the people you want to ask. If you’re someone who only turns up to ask for help but ignores those same people for the rest of the year, then you’re unlikely to get a good referral out of them. Instead of approaching people only when you have a referral request, try to build a good network of contacts and stay in touch with them whenever you have a chance, so your job referral request doesn’t feel out of place.
Create Regular Records of Your Achievements and Work Milestones
Posting on Instagram about your life doesn’t feel as much like bragging as posting on LinkedIn does, but we have to get over that mental block and make the most of professional platforms. By having your achievements recorded in one place, there will be a wider network of people aware of what you’re up to and how your career has been progressing. This increases your reach, widens your network, and allows your contacts to recommend you more easily. Others who see your achievements may reach out with referrals and job offers of their own.
Understand Where You Want To Send the Referral
While generating a job referral request, you might have to consider the organization and position you are seeking a referral for before you get started with asking random people to refer you. If you want to send a referral request to a senior team member for a new position within your company, there may be a set structure on how you make the referral request.
If your referral request is to be sent to an organization with an existing employee referral program, you could check your contacts and reach out to individuals who already work there, just to boost your chances and incentivise them to recommend you as well. Companies with such employee referral programs usually reward their workers if their recommended candidate is hired. Depending on the situation, the process of seeing a job referral will vary.
Decide Who You Want to Ask For a Job Referral
Someone who has worked with you on one project may not be as comfortable responding to your job referral request as opposed to someone like your manager who has seen you work for years now. Additionally, when applying for a role as an HR manager, someone from the senior legal team recommending you won’t have the same impact as another HR professional answering your referral request. Think carefully about who you want to ask and what your relationship with them is like before approaching them with the job referral request.
Explore The Different Channels Available For Seeking Job Referral
Sending a referral request doesn’t necessarily have to happen via email. Depending on your relationship with the individual, you can bring up the initial request over text, on LinkedIn, in person, etc. For the actual process of sharing the referral documents, an email conversation is best, just to keep a fixed record of the interaction.
Share Any Relevant Documents While Seeking a Job Referral
When you ask for a job referral, very rarely will the other person be an expert on your career. Sharing your updated resume, recent certificates, and a brief write-up of your current role are all good to consider. If someone agrees to respond to your job referral request, ask them what information they might need to simplify the process of consolidating the referral. Some people are more comfortable if you just write the referral yourself and then have them sign the document, so ask if they would prefer this method.
Don’t Be Demanding and Be Prepared to Accept a “No”
When you ask for a job referral, remember that you are asking someone for a favor. They may be unable to say yes to the request for varying reasons. That does not have to mean that they don’t think you’re worthy of the role or that you’re underqualified—they might have personal reasons such as a negative experience making such referrals in the past. You must be willing to accept a “no” response graciously and redirect your referral request elsewhere. Remember to say “thank you” for their consideration and try to avoid holding a grudge.
Making a referral request takes some work and getting it right is even harder but you won’t know what works for you unless you try. Ensure that you’re seeking a job referral from the right people and reach out to them in a way that reflects your work relationship with them.