A recommendation letter can make or break the chances of someone getting the job they want. When you are asked to write a recommendation letter, you have been chosen because they believe that you have had a chance to observe how they work closely, so they expect a personalized letter. It may sound easy, but it does need some thought to be put into it.
First, decide whether or not you feel like you are the right person to be writing it. If you feel like you won’t be able to write an honest letter of recommendation that could get them the desired job, it is best to be upfront about it. If you have more negative opinions of the person than positive, declining the responsibility will keep you from being ingenuine and running the person’s chance at the job.
Tips To follow While Writing A Recommendation Letter:
Keep in touch with the Concerned Person:
Before you start out, talk to the person you are writing a recommendation for. Ask for details you could add to the letter. Like the company and position they are applying for. Is it for the person to be able to get into the same industry and role or to move onto something different? This will help you tailor it accordingly.
Mention your Credibility:
Open with the relationship you had with the person. If you were their colleague, manager or whatever designation you held at the company. Also, point out how long and in what capacity you worked with the person. The person reading the letter wants to, first of all, know what qualifies you to be writing the reference.
Highlight with Examples:
Anyone can throw around a few adjectives that describe the employee. But what would make your recommendation valuable and credible is when there are instances to back up your word. So, with the fancy adjectives do add in examples to show how the person you are recommending has showcased those qualities in the past. Also, add a few qualities that made the person a pleasure to work with. No one wants to work with a grumpy and negative person, however, skilled they may be!
Tailor make It:
A credible recommendation is one that is honest and does justice to the employee. It should be personalized; highlighting how they have contributed; their significant achievements; and how they can and have added value when they worked for you.
Another important point is to mention their scope for learning by adding their progress in the time that they have worked for you — How they started out and how they got better; How they would benefit from hiring him as an asset. Though a recommendation letter should be tailor made mentioning the strengths and accomplishments, here is a simple way to draft it so that you don’t have to put in more effort than mentioning their contributions.
Your Recommendation Letter draft can look something like this.
Recommendation Letter Template
Dear Mr./Mrs/Ms.
I deem it my pleasure to be writing this recommendation for [Name] to take up the position of [Position] in your [Company Name].
I worked closely with [Name] from [2013 to 2016] as his/her supervisor and saw that he/she has immense potential. He was a [Designation] and fulfilled his duties beyond expectation.
[Here is where you would have to pitch in to say what projects they have worked; on what their primary responsibilities were and how they went about tackling it. It would make sense, also, to highlight their prominent qualities that you noticed, for example, you could say –>]
“Rahul’s eye for detail has given him the edge over others to give us quality work. He has generated quality reports that needed the least amount of editing from my side.
His communication skills impressed me to no end. He began working on something only after he was satisfied that he had understood the requirements and our expectations. Rahul was a great fit for the MIS team because of his ability to tackle any extra changes needed, with patience. He was always eager to complete the work only with 100% quality to his credit.
A prompt worker who is self-motivated and ready to take up any challenge, I noticed this when he would meet deadlines even with a heavy workload. With his personal flair to the reports that he created, he brought a fresh perspective to the team. Which is what encouraged the team to seek his input.
This was Rahul at his peak. When he started out, Rahul was a keen learner, very observant. He picked up on the training quickly but concentrated on quality over quantity until he got the hang of the work. Once he had a grip on how to plan the work he delivered both in numbers and quality. At any capacity, Rahul was the top performer in the team. I saw him motivating others in the team with his ability to take on more work. He had a good rapport the team and his feedback was always taken positively during team meetings.
Without hesitation, I would recommend Rahul as a valuable addition to your team at [Company]. You will only benefit from a hard worker like Rahul.
If there is any need for further discussion of Rahul’s experience and qualification, feel free to contact me on [Contact details like email ID and phone number, if required, should be provided]”
Best Wishes,
[Your Name]
[Designation and Company Name]
Always end by furnishing details that can be used to contact you later if the hiring managers have any further queries. It is preferable to write this on a letter-head with complete details of your company .
In the above example, you will notice how I have given an instance to highlight each character I mentioned of the employee. By all means, go ahead and make it more personalized. A maximum of three instances is enough to give the new employer a fair idea of how their candidate you have mentioned will be like. With this, you will have given your former employee a strong recommendation that they will be extremely grateful for.
You can have a look at a few more Employment Recommendation Letters at EssaySmith.
With this, you will have given your former employee a strong recommendation that they will be extremely grateful for.
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