A colleague of mine was recently looking for a job. Invariably, she has to provide references, of which I was one. Two companies contacted me to get my opinion on her.
One was very polite, deferent and acutely aware that giving references is a demand on people's time. I was contacted first by email, a phone call was arranged and after a very brief, yet pleasant conversation my job was done. The recruiter displayed the utmost level professionalism, care and empathy.
The second, sent me an impersonal, generic email (even though they had my name) that essentially requested I replied "ASAP" (yes, in all caps) by filling out an attached form. When I asked for more accommodation, I was told "It is the way it is because that's what our client requires".
Needless to say that I happily responded to the first request and not the second one. People justifying their antisocial behaviour by saying "It's always been done that way", demonstrate a lack of critical and creative thinking and/or care about the way their duties are performed. While I get that this person has a hierarchy to answer to, there are many little things that are within his control to make the experience more pleasant, but the lack of care is what made this experience unbearable.
A better experience would get him the answer he needs, would not aggravate me and help his company deliver better value to their client. Now they have to do more work to get references, my day is ruined because of the aggravation and stress (I jest, but barely) and my friend may not get the reference she needs. On top of that, you have to read a blog post about it.
A possible solution to that is developing the ability to empathize with the people we deal with. By putting ourselves in someone else's shoes, we can act in a way that appeals to them, as opposed to making things difficult.
What's your experience been? Share some stories in the comments.
If you landed here by chance or accident, don’t leave yet! We have tons of great content, such as blogs, podcasts and other experiments coming out daily. Click “>>subscribe” at the top left of this page, we’d love to have you as part of our tribe.
If you have questions about this piece, rvltr or want to chat about your strategy and communications, you can leave a comment, share with a friend, or reach us at hello{at}rvltr.studio.