Many candidates find it extremely difficult to ask someone to be a reference. I find one of the primary reasons is that the candidate doesn’t want to bother past supervisors. After all, providing a reference can be time-consuming.

As a supervisor myself, I can honestly say it would never be a burden for me to serve as a reference for one of my top performers. So is the worry of bothering a past supervisor a valid concern?

There are many other reasons candidates are anxious when it comes to asking someone to serve as a reference. Perhaps they haven’t kept up with their past supervisors, and therefore aren’t sure how to find their contact information. Additionally, in many cases, candidates may be worried the reference would simply decline, not being willing to speak on their behalf.

And the biggest fear…what will they say?

I recently presented a webinar where one of the attendees asked if it was appropriate to include her references on her resume.

No. No, it isn’t.

And what about those candidates who provide references without first asking their permission? Eek…that isn’t a smart approach either.

So what is the best practice when it comes to asking someone to serve as your reference? This week’s roundtable provides advice on how to nurture your network so you always have references available. We also give tips on how to ask someone to be a reference, as well as how to prepare your reference in a way that makes you feel confident in what they will say about you.

We receive the question of ‘how to become a Sr CRA so frequently, we recently recorded a roundtable providing tangible advice on how to progress into the role. But due to the frequency of the question, I felt it would be important to ask one of my own:

Do junior-level candidates understand the good, bad, and ugly of being a Sr CRA?

Maybe…maybe not. As I coach junior-level candidates and aspiring CRAs, it often becomes apparent to me that they have a romanticized view of the senior CRA role. Therefore, in order to demystify the role (as well as reinforce how to successfully progress into it), we felt we had to go to the source.

We partnered up with a dear friend and highly respected senior-level industry consultant, Mashaan Guy. We asked him what his advice would be to those who want to progress into the Sr CRA role.

He does a deep dive into what he believes are important skills you should develop. Additionally, he offers advice on what types of experiences you should gain in order to compete in the role. He also throws some reality your way, being very direct about the good, bad, and ugly of the role. If you have ever considered what it would take for you to progress to the senior CRA position and perform it effectively, this podcast absolutely has to be on your ‘must listen’ list.

I was recently conducting a coaching session when someone asked what skills or experiences she needed to advance into a Senior CRA role.

It seems like a simple question but the answer can be quite complex. Should you focus on gaining foundational experience? And if so, what clinical research foundational experience is most important? Does your job tenure matter? Should you have a bachelor’s, master’s, or doctorate? And if yes, what field should your degree be in? What, if any, certifications do you need? Do you need experience across various therapeutics? What type of technology systems do you need to be able to use?

And we can’t forget about soft skills. How do you hone your leadership skills so you are able to handle the senior CRA role? Is the ability to quickly and effectively build relationships as important as being able to handle conflict? And what about communication…how do you make sure your communication skills are strong enough to be effective in the role?

Finally, once you have developed the hard and soft skills needed to be successful in the role, how do you go about showing others you are ready? How important is networking? And how do you leverage your network to gain advancement into the Senior CRA role?

All great questions. And we tackle them in this week’s roundtable so that you can be supported in obtaining your career goals.