A few years ago, one of our associates was doing a reference report on a job candidate applying to be a construction worker for a construction company. At the end of what seemed to be a fairly positive interview, the reference asked if we knew where the candidate might be found. Naturally, we didn’t know, much to the disappointment of the reference, who said, “Gee, I was hoping you might know, because he stole my truck when he left and the sheriff is still out looking for him!”
The point is that occasionally unsolicited information is provided by a reference that can put the candidate’s employability in an entirely different light—and potentially adversely impact the final hiring decision!