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Jewish World Review Jan. 17, 2011 / 13 Shevat, 5771 Referrals and Recommendations By Alan Douglas
http://www.JewishWorldReview.com |
Mention you got a great haircut. Are you engaging in conversation? Or giving a recommendation that encourages someone to get a haircut by your stylist? When you talk about someone, friend or foe, you should be aware of the message you are sending. When we broadcast messages, we have to be very clear as to the reputations or abilities of others. Recommendations given by you have an impact on others. They also reflect on your reputation and can pose legal liabilities.
Helping others by offering to recommend them can be an act of kindness and friendship. Singer, songwriter, actor, and Rhodes Scholar, Kris Kristofferson, when inducted into the Country Hall of Fame, thanked his friend and mentor, Johnny Cash for "Endorsing me back when nobody knew me, and defending me later when everyone did." Recommendations can open doors for the unknown and inexperienced. In a digital world, personal status or a vendor's reputation is often measured by recommendations. Making the extra effort to help others is an honorable effort, but it carries risks.
Most businesses fear giving out any recommendations or job histories for their employees. They stick to providing potential employers with confirmation of past employment dates. An employer who issues a negative report regarding an ex-employee risks law suits. Organizations can be sued for libel, slander, or defamation of character stemming from faulty recommendations. And employers (government, private sector, not-for-profit, and lemonade stands) can be unpleasantly surprised when hostility, friendship and/or sympathy from their workers, motivates their employees to write, without authorization, good or bad "recommendations" for those departing.
Consider when you are writing a reference or recommendation the circumstances and environment where your words will be received. Unless you are a priest, rabbi, lawyer, doctor, etc. with legal privilege- you do NOT have the right to give assurances as to keeping anything "confidential." It may sound silly, but if you are giving a recommendation, be clear by stating what you do and don't know. "I have known John for sixth months…" "We did not work together but based upon…" Let the person requesting the reference know you are giving information or presenting an option, not proposing they hire, retain, or marry the person. Rather than worry about being "all knowing" and "smart" or accused of "passing the buck" you should put your recommendation in context.
In addition to paying damages for harming the ex-employee's reputation the former company can be hit with a claim that a bad recommendation prevented the ex-employee from earning a livelihood. And that can be big bucks. Even if the document is absolutely true it can prompt a costly suit. Corporate counsel or the insurance carrier will settle unjust suits to "make them go away" in a cost effective manner.
Companies even have to worry about giving positive recommendations. A great recommendation can be used against the company in court. A school system recommended a teacher that was departing, a good recommendation even though there had been suspicious behavior. They had no proof as to the allegations and could not defame the teacher without risking a lawsuit. The teacher was discovered at his new teaching job, engaging in inappropriate contact with students. The new school and parents sued the previous school for failing to warn them. The result is that today there is a justifiable fear in giving a good or bad recommendation. Better to be aggressively neutral by confirming only dates of employment, than to find yourself a defendant in a lawsuit. It makes it hard for everyone who wants to give or get a personal recommendation.
The other side of the coin is that you need references for job hunting, for obtaining credit, to be appointed to an office, or for getting a job. Plan ahead and seek testimonials, credentials, and documents that serve as recommendations on your behalf. Remember to act now; don't wait until you need them. Save letters of commendation and praise from your boss. Cultivate customers, clients, association executives, vendors, and others outside your organization that will sing you praises. Hold on to those favorable emails and letters.
Help your friends, but do so in a way that won't comprise the truth or expose you to legal threats. We all like to be asked our opinion. It is a nice boost for our ego. We help others to find new jobs, praise that great plumber and want to be nice. Just make sure you are realistic. Your opinion and evaluation is also a manifestation of your integrity. Remember, giving your opinion about the abilities of other people can be like gargling with nitroglycerine.
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JWR contributor Alan Douglas, an author, media executive, speaker, and attorney, lives con brio- except when he is grumpy.
Woodpecker Frustration
© 2010 Alan Douglas
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Arnold Ahlert | |||||||||||||
