Should I put reference on my resume? (Not a typical situation)

manpreet Best Answer 2 years ago

I worked in a small company. There were two boss (One is 'X', the other one is 'Y') who were in charge of my duties, but I did not have a good relationship with 'X'. I left the company and start to look for job. I use broadcast letters to approach companies that may need my experience and background. Since I put the name of my last company on my resume, people may call the company. If a potential employer looks for who was in charge my work duties, I guess the receptionist would re-direct the call to 'X'. Therefore I want to know should I put 'Y' contact information directly on my resume in case a potential employer wants to talk to someone in my previous company?

Thanks

manpreet 2 years ago

Don't put references on your resume. It looks either suspicious or naive. Neither of which is good. They generally won't call unless they have interviewed you and then they ask you to give them the references. Usually the HR forms you ask them to fill out will have a space for your supervisor's name, since you worked for both, you can choose which one to put in there. Otherwise, don't ever lie about who your supervisor was. That is too easy to check. Often they will talk to the HR person instead of your boss and if you lie and say you worked for Y when the paperwork in HR says you worked for X , then you will be caught in your lie.

However let this be a lesson to you and learn not to have people at work that you don't want contacted. If you have a boss you didn't get along with, it is as much your fault as his and you need to learn how to get along with people you dislike.

If you know they will be contacting your former boss and there was a problem with him, it is better to be up front about it. Tell them who else inteh company can vouch for you, explain that you had a conflict and then explain how you plabn to avoid such conflicts in the future. But really, in your next job, it should be a priority to get along with your boss no matter what you think of him or her.