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Can I have a potential employer speak to my boss's boss instead?
whuppins
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
I work in an IT department under a guy named... let's say Brian. His boss (I'll call him George) used to be my boss too, but when Brian was hired, they tried to re-shuffle some of the responsibilities and I ended up under Brian. George and I have always gotten along great, we communicate well, and have a mutual respect for each other. Brian, on the other hand, is a terrible manager and I don't have any respect for him, personally or professionally. He treats our users like morons, is terrible at explaining things, and does exceedingly sloppy work. As a result, a lot of my time at work is spent fixing his mistakes. Also, I usually end up still reporting directly to George since he actually makes an effort to keep tabs on my projects and is still more familiar with the type of work that I do. If it weren't for George reminding him, Brian would probably never do any actual managing.
Recently, I've been looking for a new job. At some point, I imagine that a prospective employer may ask if they can speak to my current boss. I want to know how appropriate it would be to give them George's contact information instead of Brian's.
Let me be clear: Both men will give me a good reference, but George is so much more aware of the work I've done and the sacrifices I've made for our company. We worked together for several years before they hired Brian and he was the one who recognized my talents and lobbied to get me in my current position. If he were speaking honestly, he'd probably admit that Brian has no business managing anyone.
In a nutshell, I feel I'm justified in asking that prospective employers speak to George instead of Brian. Does this break some sort of unwritten rule, though? All personal differences aside, I'm just trying to get them to speak to the person who can give them the most informed answers to their questions.
Recently, I've been looking for a new job. At some point, I imagine that a prospective employer may ask if they can speak to my current boss. I want to know how appropriate it would be to give them George's contact information instead of Brian's.
Let me be clear: Both men will give me a good reference, but George is so much more aware of the work I've done and the sacrifices I've made for our company. We worked together for several years before they hired Brian and he was the one who recognized my talents and lobbied to get me in my current position. If he were speaking honestly, he'd probably admit that Brian has no business managing anyone.
In a nutshell, I feel I'm justified in asking that prospective employers speak to George instead of Brian. Does this break some sort of unwritten rule, though? All personal differences aside, I'm just trying to get them to speak to the person who can give them the most informed answers to their questions.
whuppins on
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I used the boss of a different group before, because I knew my direct supervisor would flip out if he knew I was looking for other work. I also got a professor at the uni I worked at to be a reference for my uni apps rather than my direct supervisor, because, again, I didn't want it to drop that I was looking elsewhere.
Well if you just list one of them as a reference then it sort of solves the problem, yes?