| I don't think anyone has addressed references yet, so as a member of many hiring teams, I'll take a stab at it. A positive way to look at being fired is that your company was having problems and your managers were stressed. You set a goal to stick it out for a year and you achieved that goal. Rather than only giving the usual two weeks notice, you let your managers know in advance that you were planning to seek other opportunities. They decided that you didn't need to work a notice period and released you immediately. We hope things have improved for them. You didn't do anything wrong. They didn't fire you because you stole from the company or were accused of sexual harassment. I will say that 20 years ago, particularly in large software companies, it was common that you would give your notice and security would escort you to the door. Companies didn't want you to work through a notice period because you were deemed "disloyal." Maybe your manager didn't grow out of this mindset. In terms of a reference, if they are smart they won't say anything negative. Most companies won't simply because they want to avoid litigation. It sounds like they have much more important things to worry about than damaging your career. Hopefully you worked with other people who can be references for you... probably worked with you more than your managers. LinkedIn is a good resource for this. You can still use references outside your employer... from school, from volunteer work, etc. Personal projects you work on can also be excellent examples of how you do things when not influenced by office politics. As best you can, build and document a case that you do/did good work. The company won't be around long to be a reference in the future. I'm sorry you had a miserable experience, but as a hiring manager it wouldn't detract from my view of you. On the side, I'd think you would appreciate working for me more since you had a bad experience somewhere else. Be thankful that you were there, yet thankful that you aren't there any longer. I appreciate that you stuck it out and that you are willing to ask for advice when you aren't sure. I think you have good qualities that I look for when hiring. Best of luck in your career. |