What they are really asking

The company wants to check what you've told them with someone who knows your work. That's fair. But there's a real risk for you: if your current boss doesn't know you're looking, a call from another company can make things awkward, or worse. Interviewers understand this, and most of them expect some candidates to ask them to wait.

So you're allowed to say "not yet." What matters is how you say it. You want to sound open and cooperative, not like someone with something to hide. The usual solution is to agree to the contact later, after an offer or at the final stage, and to give other people they can talk to now, like a former manager or a senior colleague.

A shape that works

Yes, or "yes, later," plus an alternative. If your employer knows you're leaving, say yes and name the best person to call. If they don't, explain briefly and politely, suggest a point in the process when contact would be fine, and offer other references in the meantime. Keep the reason short and neutral; never suggest there's a problem with your current job.

Model answers

Listen to how each answer is built, then make it yours.

Answer 1: a researcher in Edinburgh whose contract is ending
Answer 2: a product manager in Tokyo who asks to wait
Answer 3: a sales associate in New York who suggests timing

Check yourself

1Why might a candidate ask the company not to call their current employer yet?
2What should you offer when you ask them to wait?
3Why does Answer 3 say "I'll let my manager know first"?

Practice · 3 min

Record the "yes, later" version in under thirty seconds: say you'd prefer they wait, give a short neutral reason, suggest when contact is fine, and name one other reference. Listen back and check that nothing you said makes your current job sound bad.

Your recording stays on this device. Nothing is uploaded.

Say it today

Use it once in a real conversation before tomorrow. Out loud counts, even to yourself.