Reference Check Questionnaire & Report
Role-specific referee questions, the candidate’s consent and a scored summary report.
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Reference checks Questionnaire · consent form · scored report
Candidate and role
Consent
Need it in writing? Choose “Consent form” beside the documents: it lists the referees for the candidate to sign.
Rated questions
Every questionnaire also asks the referee to confirm the job, dates and re-employment, and asks for strengths and areas to develop. Up to 30 rated questions.
Paste questions from a spreadsheet Question, Competency, Weight
Referees
Up to 5 referees.
Answers
When a questionnaire comes back, enter the referee’s ratings here. The report scores them; your notes go into it as written.
Your entries
The page does not keep your entries: save them as a file to open them here again later. Nothing is uploaded.
Documents
How the score works
Our own rule: an answer of 1 to 5 counts 0%, 25%, 50%, 75% or 100%; a question scores the average of its answers; the overall score weights the questions 1 to 3. 80% or more is strong, 60% positive, 40% mixed, below that a concern. A referee who would not re-employ, unconfirmed dates and any rating of 1 or 2 are flagged whatever the score. A summary to help you decide, not a decision.
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How this tool is checked
- Based on
- the method set out under ‘How the score is worked out’.
- Tests
- 15 automated tests check its results.
- Found an error?
- Report a problem or write to support@mysmartcopilot.com, with what you entered and the result you expected.
About the Reference Check Questionnaire & Report
A reference check works best when every referee is asked the same questions, in writing, about the things that matter for the role, and when the answers are put side by side before you decide. This tool gives you all three documents of that process: the referee questionnaire, the candidate’s consent form, and the scored summary report.
Pick the role family (sales and account management, customer service and retail, software, it and engineering, management and leadership, health and social care, finance and accounting, teaching and education, skilled trades, operations and logistics, hospitality and food, or any role) and you get rated questions for it, after five that every role has in common: reliability, quality of work, teamwork, communication and integrity. Edit, weight or remove any question, add your own, or import them from a CSV or Excel file. Add the referees, and when their answers come back, enter each rating: the report averages every question across the referees, weights them, gives an overall score and flags what to follow up (a referee who would not re-employ, a job or dates not confirmed, a low rating). Your details stay on your device.
Without a pass every document is a free preview: each page as an image marked “not for use”, with your details readable and the first part of the wording; the clean PDF and Word file, Copy and Print unlock with a Premium pass.
How to use it
- Enter the candidate, the role and the role family, and who is doing the check.
- Record the candidate’s consent to contact their referees: the date and how they gave it. The consent form is ready for them to sign if you need one.
- Check the questions: keep, edit, weight (1 to 3) or untick any of them, add your own or import a list.
- Add each referee and choose who the questionnaire is for; send it to the referee by email or post.
- Enter each referee’s ratings and answers under Answers and open the report. Without a pass each document shows as a marked free preview; unlock it with a Premium pass to download the PDF or Word file, copy or print it.
Examples
Nine rated questions; 17 answers (one “not able to say”); question scores from 62.5% to 87.5%; overall 75%, positive; nothing to follow up.
Whatever the score, the report lists “would not employ or work with the candidate again” first, under Points to follow up.
Common uses
- A small business that checks references by email and wants the same questions for every candidate.
- An HR team that needs a record of the candidate’s consent and of what each referee said.
- A recruiter comparing two or three references for a shortlisted candidate.
- A hiring manager in care, education or finance who needs role-specific questions.
How the score is worked out
Each rated question is answered from 1 (well below what the referee expected) to 5 (outstanding), or “not able to say”. An answer counts as 0%, 25%, 50%, 75% or 100%. A question’s score is the average of the referees who answered it, and the overall score is the average of the question scores, weighted 1 to 3 as you set them.
- 80% or more: strong
- 60% to under 80%: positive
- 40% to under 60%: mixed
- under 40%: a concern
The score never hides a warning sign: a referee who would not employ the candidate again, a job title or dates not confirmed, and any rating of 1 or 2 are listed under Points to follow up whatever the score.
What the questionnaire asks
- Part A confirms the facts: how the referee knows the candidate, the job title, duties and dates, why they left (only if the referee’s policy allows it) and whether they would employ them again.
- Part B is the rated questions for the role, each with room for a comment.
- Part C asks for strengths, areas to develop and anything else relevant to the role, then the referee’s declaration and signature.
Consent and fairness
Ask the candidate before you contact anyone, and keep a record of when and how they agreed: the consent form lists the referees they named. Use the answers only for this application, ask every candidate’s referees the same questions, and give a candidate the chance to explain a difference between what they told you and what a referee says. Data protection and employment law differ from country to country; check what applies where you hire.
Limitations
- It does not contact referees for you: you send the questionnaire and enter the answers yourself.
- The score is a summary of the ratings, not a decision; read the answers and talk to the candidate before you decide.
- Up to 5 referees and 30 rated questions in one check.
- The page does not keep your entries: save them as a file to open them here again later.
- Not legal advice: some countries limit what a referee may say or what an employer may ask; check the rules where you hire.
Privacy
On this device: nothing is sent
The candidate’s and referees’ details, the answers and the scores stay in this browser: nothing is uploaded or stored on a server.
Frequently asked questions
What do I get without a pass?
Without a pass, Reference Check Questionnaire & Report shows every page with your details, the first part of the wording readable and the rest hidden, marked “MySmartCoPilot preview · not for use”. Until you unlock it, the result can’t be downloaded, copied or printed. A Premium or Ultimate pass, a one-time payment unless you choose automatic renewal, unlocks the full result. The pricing page lists the passes and their prices.
What questions should I ask in a reference check?
Confirm the facts first (how they know the candidate, the job, the dates, re-employment), then ask about the work the role needs, rated so the answers can be compared, and end with open questions about strengths and areas to develop. The tool gives you a set for each role family to start from.
Do I need the candidate’s consent to contact referees?
Ask first and keep a record of it, and check the data protection rules where you hire. The consent section records the date and how consent was given, and the consent form is ready for the candidate to sign.
How is the overall score calculated?
Each answer from 1 to 5 counts 0% to 100% in steps of 25%; each question’s score is the average of the referees’ answers, and the overall score is the weighted average of the question scores. “Not able to say” is left out.
Can I use my own questions?
Yes. Edit any question, add your own, or import a list from a CSV or Excel file with the columns Question, Competency and Weight; you can also paste the rows.
What if a referee will not answer some questions?
Choose “not able to say”: the question is scored from the other referees, or left out of the score if nobody answered it.
Is anything sent to a server?
No. Everything is worked out in your browser; save your entries as a file if you want to continue later.