Reference checks: how to do them so they are worth doing

Reference checking is the stage most companies treat as paperwork. Someone calls a number the candidate provided, asks whether they would rehire, hears yes, and ticks a box.

Done that way it is genuinely worthless. Done properly it is one of the few chances you get to hear about a candidate from someone who watched them work for a year.

Talk to the right people

The reference list a candidate gives you is a curated list of people who like them. That is not a criticism, it is what anyone would do.

So ask specifically: "I would like to speak with the person you reported to directly at [company]." A direct manager saw the work. A friendly colleague saw the person.

If a candidate cannot produce any former direct manager across several roles, that pattern is worth understanding. There are legitimate explanations, including companies that have closed or managers who have moved on. Ask.

Do it at the right time

Reference checks belong after you have decided you want to hire someone and before you extend a formal offer, so the conversation can still change your decision.

Never contact a current employer without explicit permission. A candidate who is still employed can lose their job over it, and you have no right to create that risk.

Questions that produce information

Skip the yes or no questions. They invite a polite yes.

"What was she actually responsible for?" Compares against what the candidate claimed.
"How did his work compare to others doing the same job?" A relative question is easier to answer honestly than an absolute one.
"What kind of environment does she do her best work in?" Tells you about fit and often reveals what she struggles with.
"What would you have wanted him to get better at?" The version of the weakness question that a reference will actually answer.
"If you were hiring for a role like this, what would you want to know?" An open door, and the question that most often surfaces something real.
"Is there anything I have not asked that I should?" Ask this last, every time.

Listen to the shape of the answer

References rarely say anything damaging outright, particularly where employers are cautious about legal exposure. The information is in the pattern.

Enthusiasm that drops when you move from personality to performance is a signal. Long pauses before a simple question. Answers that stay carefully generic when you asked for specifics. A reference who is warm about someone as a person and vague about their work is telling you something without saying it.

Equally, notice genuine specificity. A reference who immediately gives you a detailed example of good work is a stronger endorsement than one who calls someone great five times.

Stay on the right side of the line

Reference checking is subject to privacy and employment law, and the details vary by country. Some general principles hold broadly:

Get the candidate's consent before contacting anyone.
Ask about job performance, not personal characteristics. Health, family, religion, and similar topics are off limits.
Do not ask about salary history where local law restricts it.
Keep notes factual, because they may be disclosable.

If you are hiring across borders, check the rules for the country the reference sits in, not just your own.

Verify the basics separately

References are for judgement. Facts should be verified as facts: dates of employment, job title, and any qualification the role genuinely requires. In a small market like Costa Rica, informal verification is often straightforward, and precisely because the market is small it is worth doing accurately rather than by rumour.

Be willing to act on it

The main reason reference checks fail is that companies do them after they have emotionally committed. If two independent references raise the same concern, treat it as real information rather than an obstacle to the decision you already made.

We conduct reference checks as part of every search and report what we actually heard, including when it is inconvenient.