Background check

Hi everyone,

I recently received an offer for a graduate position in a BB in Europe.
I will be entering the background check phase and am really stressed about it.
I had a burnout during my last internship and quit one month in, my coworkers and my boss were nice but I hated the work. When applying to the BB position I still listed this experience, and was asked to give the contact information of my previous managers (I just gave them emails).
Now I'm afraid my manager will try to take revenge on me when he is contacted for the background check. Do you think I should tell him he is going to be contacted?
I know me leaving really pissed him off as he unfollowed me on linkedin just after, so I'm afraid to make things worse by sending him a text saying: "Oh hey, I'm sorry for leaving you in a bad position when I quit ..... oh just so you know I gave your name for my background check at XX".

Thanks for your help.

9 Comments
 

Tricky situation. Kind of depends on your read on guy I would say. If he's a decent person I don't think he'll intentionally sabotage for you, and it that case it might be better that he receives the call expecting it. If it comes out of the blue he might say something he hasn't thought through. On the other hand, if he holds a genuine grudge (most people don't but it's possible), it could be the other way around. That's just my take

 

With that said, I have no idea whether a “bad reference” could pose a problem in bc or only dishonesty could, so if you’ve said the internship lasted 1 month then perhaps it doesn’t matter at all and you don’t have anything to worry about

 

The guy was actually a great boss and very nice, but I have the feeling he felt betrayed for the same reasons (he always treated me well and gave me advice), and myself felt terribly bad too for leaving. That's why I feel that if I just contact him again just to tell him about the background check he will probably think I'm a two-faced ingrate and who just contacted him to save his own hide (since I haven't talked to him since I left, part of the reason being I felt so bad for leaving).
For the resume, I listed the dates transparently (May-June) but didn't mention that I started mid May and left mid June.

 

Any update on how this played out? In a similar situation - would really appreciate it

 
Most Helpful

@both of you.

The background check is just there to check you didn't lie. If the dates you worked are accurate and the position title is accurate then there will be no problem. All the background check company does (and I've seen the emails they send to prev employers) is ask "did X work here" "when did X work here" "what was X's position". As long as that all matches up with what you've put on your CV/told the background check company, you're gucci. There is literally no chance to give a review of your performance. 

 

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