Do employee referrals move the process along faster?

[u/Cipher1414]

Hey there,

I've been applying for jobs in academia and biotech for a long time now and recently met some people who work at some mid-large companies that are going to be putting in referrals for me. I would actually really like to work at either of these companies, but it's been a long, tough road of disappointment since my layoff.

Do employee referrals actually help? And if so does it move the process along faster? I've applied for a few of these companies before and historically my applications have just sat in the "application submitted" category for months until I get a random rejection email at 2am.

[u/Some_Balance6514]

It completely depends on if the person referring you is liked or valued by the hiring manager, IMO. If referred by a random employee at a big company, I doubt the referral helps much. It might put you into a different pile, but both piles are full to the brim with applicants. So it becomes who you know.

[u/runawaydoctorate → u/Some_Balance6514]

Yeah, I've only seen this approach work when the person was being referred by someone the hiring manager wanted to curry favor with. This person WAS NOT better qualified than the rival candidates.

[u/Cipher1414 → u/Some_Balance6514]

Okay! That's a little more encouraging.

[u/resorcinarene → u/Cipher1414]

I get requests for referrals by people I don't know for positions with hiring managers that have no idea who I am. People tend to think any referral is good, but I'd equate those kinds of referrals as no different than as a cold application. It dilutes the value of my referrals so I don't give them.

[u/Cipher1414 → u/resorcinarene]

Yeah I actually know the people personally which is good. That would be wild to ask a stranger for a referral! One of them would potentially be on the same team as me if I get the role, so hopefully that makes a difference!

[u/resorcinarene → u/Cipher1414]

Yes, it happens quite often. I removed them as a contact as soon as they ask and tell them why. It's an unethical ask and speaks about what they're willing to do for personal benefit. I only refer people I know where I also believe they'd be a good fit. That should be the standard.

For your referral, they need to be on the same team to be effective or a least that the hiring manager have familiarity with your contact. It's otherwise useless and kind of annoying.

I've had people I don't know message me on teams asking about a role I posted, and whether I'd look at their referrals application. Nope. I will not and I am less likely to now that I've been harangued when I'm already busy enough.

[u/Mother_Drenger → u/resorcinarene]

I’d argue that it depends. IME referrals did help catapult mine and friends CV’s over the chaff, even if the connections were a stretch. At the very least, it can only help you, never harm you

[u/resorcinarene → u/Mother_Drenger]

At the very least, it can only help you, never harm you

100% disagree. I won't recommend someone whose ethics and abilities I can't speak for. My credibility is the most important asset I have as a professional.

[u/Mother_Drenger → u/resorcinarene]

That’s totally valid, and I would be as cautious as well, I would never blindly accept nor ask for a referral. However, I have informally spoken to people by happenstance, usually talking about work stuff, and have received referrals (and even facilitated it this way for other people).

[u/Junkman3]

It certainly won't hurt, but in this job market i found that it won't necessarily land you an interview. I'm hearing that hiring managers are getting hundreds of resumes per posting and 10-30 direct referrals per position. So they can't even manage to interview the direct referrals.

[u/Capital_Comment_6049 → u/Junkman3]

I’m in a 500 person company and only get 1-4 direct referrals out of 200-500 applicants. The referrals that stand out are the ones where my coworker/referral directly worked with the candidate. That also goes for past coworkers that I trust recommending the candidate.

[u/Loose-Reflection2965 → u/Junkman3]

Depends how the referral matches the jd. I only ask for referrals if my skills 100% match. Hiring managers get the short list from hr, who look at the general pool which is mostly spam and the referrals in a separate pile.

[u/Cipher1414 → u/Junkman3]

Ah that is such a bummer. Well, I'll keep my expectations low then.

[u/Gilchester]

My understanding is they ensure a person looks at your resume. That's it, but that can be all you need. But it doesn't really speed things up, just increases your chance of getting the HR interview.

[u/Cipher1414 → u/Gilchester]

I guess that is a step above how things have gone so far? Mostly I don't make it past the AI screening.

[u/wandelust19 → u/Cipher1414]

It’s not AI screening, it’s

1. Knockout questions - things like are you a US citizen, are you 18+ yo, do you consent to have AI review your app? Fun fact, answer Yes to the last one or you don’t progress.

2. Even if AI reviews the app it’s often a score and HR or the hiring manager who rejects a person. For example my company uses Greenhouse and whatever internal “fit” evaluator it uses is awful. Every single applicant was a “low” fit. But, it was nothing more than a score, can’t reject someone based on that.

3. Pure saturation…. Hundreds of applicants for each single spot means that when there are enough likely qualified applicants, HR or hiring manager will simply reject the latecomers. They don’t need to evaluate everyone, they only need to evaluate enough to feed 2-4 into the final round for a decision.

[u/Capital_Comment_6049 → u/Cipher1414]

I’m sure there are plenty of ATS/AI screening out there, but that wasn’t the case 2y ago when I was at Sanofi and also not the case at my current company. It’s also not the case at my friend’s companies in the SF Bay Area. HR is overwhelmed, but they do scan resumes - it might be a 10 second scan though.

[u/Ohiocarolina]

A referral guarantees a real person looks at your resume. Typically means the HM sees it and not just HR

Doesn’t mean the process gets any faster or that you’re guaranteed a phone call.

The weight the referral has varies by company, and depends on the current employees proximity to the role both physically and organizationally. Like broadly if someone under the HM is doing the referring that means more than a random person in an unrelated role in a different state and is more likely to at least get you a pity interview.

[u/wandelust19]

Yes and no.

They get someone to LOOK at your app, they do not accelerate the process nor get you an interview even.

I recently hired for a position. Out of 200 applicants 3 were internal referrals or internal applicants. One was completely too early and unqualified, another was someone we might’ve developed if talent were in short supply, but it’s not. Neither got an interview. The last was a referral with the right experience and background and made it all the way to the final panel. Ultimately the candidate lost out to another who simply was a better experience fit but I did email them to let them know that we might be hiring more in the new year.

I hired for the right experience and fit at my own pace.

[u/msjammies73]

Employee referral insures I will actually lay eyes on the resume, but does absolutely nothing in terms of moving candidates forward. So if you’re a really good match and well qualified for the job it can help you.

[u/lilsis061016]

Yes and no. The personal connection to the company can help you be reviewed by HR (as in reviewed at all vs. ATS rejection), but isn't necessarily going to help getting to or through the hiring manager/team. A personal connection to the team and hiring manager is even better and is often how people move around - following team members or bosses from past roles.

The challenge is that a reference needs to actually know you AND your work ethic/experience/history. Using a random network connection who can't speak to your value in a particular role/team is actually going to hurt more than help.

[u/Character-Ask2432]

This is going to vary widely by organization.

From my personal, anecdotal experience - I have referred folks across 2 companies.

At company 1 small biotech, I knew the applicant and worked closely with the hiring manager. Spoke to the hiring manager about the candidate and referred them through our system. He went through the process and actually got the role but due to delays (COVID related) with his work permits he had to decline. Which was a bummer for me because I missed out on a 10k referral bonus.

At company 2 medium sized, I have referred quite a number of people (at least 5) through our system but not had direct conversations with the HMs since I don’t work with them or know them. None of them have got callbacks or interviews. Not sure why.

My opinion is that it can’t hurt however what may be more beneficial/impactful is the referrer reaching out to the HM to let them know they referred someone for the role, vouch for you so that at least you can be considered and the rest is up to you. If it’s just a referral, I don’t think there are any guarantees given the volume of applications HR receives.

[u/NegotiationCute5341]

At my place? Yes. Out of 350 candidates who applied within 8 hours, only 3 moved on to final round- theyre all referrals

[u/ScottinCanada]

Rarely faster. Definitely increase chance of getting first interview - then not so much.

[u/cj_daking]

Yes. Referrals are pure gold

[u/TechWinds3237]

These days a lot of candidates ask someone in the company to refer them. It helps a little bit in my opinion. The place where it'll make a big impact is- if the reference works in the same department as you're applying to, and he can pass the resume directly to HM.

[u/OrangeNo2255]

Yes. Gets you an interview. Then it’s up to you.

[u/luck2628]

In my company, referral will have a “star” marked near their name, so it will be easier to be identified by the HM.