good job reference

<u><font color=#550000>PROVIDE A GOOD JOB REFERENCE</font></u>


Be aware of the following:
� The job candidate may worry if you give a letter that is reasonable
but not an outstanding recommendation.
� Give a clear and precise picture.
� Explain the context of the candidate's accomplishments or research
and give a sense of how that work will contribute to a given job or
field.
� Establish the candidate�s contribution: Explain what a discipline or
your department would have been like if the candidate had never
contributed to it.
� Remember that the person you are recommending is competing with
other applicants who are highly recommended for the same job.
Therefore, any letter without the highest recommendations can look
halfhearted.
� A statement to hint a consideration of a candidate's weakness is a
kiss of death. Avoid the temptation to go there.
� Make it positive to leave a good impression of the Job candidate
because your letter is the last piece of information to greatly impact
the review process.
� You are rendering a professional service to the job candidate and the
search committee/the hiring manager that evaluates the candidate.
� Don�t write a positive letter of recommendation if you can't do so
honestly.
� A letter to recommend hire focuses more on competency, scholarly
or exceptional contribution and performance potentials.
� A letter to recommend focuses on objectively evaluating the work
the job candidate has already completed with 40% praise and 60%
objective assessment of strengths and weaknesses (an evaluation of
impacts, competencies, performance and most important
achievements.)
� The critical comments could give tenure committee a reason to
decline a promotion.
� Don�t leave the reviewers with more questions and many ways of
interpreting your comments. Avoid the following:
1.
"I am thrilled to provide a reference for Jon Doe, whom I
trained and with whom I thereafter collaborated for many
years."
The reviewer: The candidate was to secure a letter from an
objective observer. This won�t cut it. You must establish your
relationship as an objective expert.
2.
"Jon Doe deserves this promotion because he has done 20
workshops and 5 papers on this topic last year.�
The reviewer: We can count but are you too lazy to read and
evaluate the papers? It is best to read a paper or attend a
workshop to directly evaluate and praise the quality of the work
and performance rather than the quantity.
3.
"Jon Doe is really considered to be a remarkable employee."