--- title: How to do reference checks for a startup hire description: Use reference checks to test the doubts your interviews left open. Who to call, how to backchannel ethically, and questions that get honest answers. image: https://funded.club/hubfs/og_image_funded.png --- [![Primary\_logo](https://funded.club/hubfs/Primary_logo.svg)](https://funded.club/) [Book a call](https://funded.club/contact-us) - [Hire](https://funded.club) - [Pricing](https://funded.club/pricing) - [Find a job](https://funded.club/startupjobs) - [Case Studies](https://funded.club/case-studies) - [Locally](https://funded.club/case-studies/locally) - [Supernova](https://funded.club/case-studies/supernova) - [Isolocity](https://funded.club/case-studies/isolocity) - [WeTravel](https://funded.club/case-studies/wetravel) - [Digital Science](https://funded.club/case-studies/digital-science) - [Blog](https://funded.club/blog-results) - [Resources](https://funded.club/resources) - [Predict success](https://signup.predict.ventures/) - [Growth Planner](https://funded.club/growth-planner) - [Glossary](https://funded.club/glossary) - [FAQ](https://funded.club/faq) - [Contact us](https://funded.club/contact-us) [Book a call](https://funded.club/contact-us) - Engagement options: - [Hiring solutions](https://funded.club) - [Pay-as-you-go](https://funded.club/pricing) - Membership plan # How to do reference checks for a startup hire [Ray Gibson](https://funded.club/blog/author/ray-gibson) Nov 4, 2026, 5:57:51 PM *Updated November 2026* Do reference checks after your final interview and before you sign, and use them to test the one or two specific doubts your interviews left open, not to confirm that you like the candidate. Speak to two or three people who managed or worked closely with them, ask for concrete situations, and never contact a current employer without the candidate's consent. Most founders treat references as a formality and hear what they expected. The approach here is to arrive with one written doubt and build every call around it, because referees rarely volunteer a weakness but will often describe one inside a real situation. ## Write down the doubt before you pick up the phone Illustrative, swap in your own details. Elena is a seed-stage founder with a team of eleven, hiring her first head of operations. Her preferred candidate interviewed well, but every previous role was at a company of several hundred people with a finance team behind them. Elena needs someone who will run payroll, contracts and the books by hand for the first year. She wrote it as one sentence: "Will this person do the hands-on work themselves when there is nobody to delegate to?" If you finish interviews with no doubt at all, ask each interviewer for the weakest part of the candidate's answers and use that. | Doubt from interviews | Question that tests it | | --- | --- | | Can they work without a team behind them? | "Tell me about a time they had to do the work themselves because nobody else could. What did they do?" | | Are they as senior as the title suggests? | "Which decisions were theirs to make, and which did they bring to you?" | | Will they cope with constant change? | "What happened the last time their priorities were thrown out mid-quarter?" | ## Choose referees on purpose, and backchannel carefully Ask the candidate for a former manager and a peer, and say which doubt you want them to speak to. Candidates often pick a better referee once they know what you are checking. WHO TO CALL (SUGGESTED) Across: who chose the referee. Down: whether the candidate knows and agrees. NAMED BY CANDIDATE, WITH CONSENT Former managers and peers Your core calls. Ask for one person who saw them handle the thing you doubt. YOUR CHOICE, WITH CONSENT Backchannel you tell them about A former colleague you know. Say you will do this and give them the chance to flag anyone. NAMED BY CANDIDATE, NO CONSENT YET Anyone at the current employer Do not call. Wait until the candidate says yes, usually after the offer is accepted. YOUR CHOICE, NO CONSENT Secret backchannel Avoid. One unchecked voice, a real risk of outing a quiet job search, and no way for the candidate to respond. A backchannel call to someone you find yourself can be the most useful reference you get. Tell the candidate you plan one and ask whether there is anyone they would rather you avoided, and why; how they answer tells you something too. Never contact anyone at a current employer without explicit consent, because a leak can cost someone their job. LEGAL NOTE Rules on references differ by country and state: whether you need the candidate's consent, what former employers may say, what you can ask, and how long you can keep your notes. Many employers only confirm dates and job title as policy. Keep questions to work performance, never health, family, age or other personal matters, and check your process with an employment lawyer where you hire. ## Questions that get honest answers Referees default to praise because they want to help, so ask in ways that make detail easier than praise. Questions about a specific event beat questions about character. Comparisons beat ratings, because "how do they compare with the best operations person you have worked with?" forces a real answer where "were they good?" does not. Listen for what is missing. A manager who talks warmly about attitude but goes quiet on output is telling you something, and a pause before "would you hire them again?" matters more than the yes that follows. Checklist for a 20-minute reference call Confirm how and when they worked together Ask one warm-up question, then go straight to your open doubt Ask for a specific situation, not an opinion Ask "would you hire them again, and into what job?" Close with "what should I have asked that I did not?" Write the notes within the hour, quoting their words Founders rarely do this next part. If a call raises a new concern, put it to the candidate before deciding, without naming the source, because their answer often settles it. ## How Elena's calls played out Elena made three calls. The former manager described the candidate rebuilding a supplier contract process alone during a hiring freeze. A peer said the candidate "likes a clear owner for every task", which was a fair flag rather than a red one. The backchannel, a former colleague Elena knew from an earlier job, said the candidate had run the books at a small company early in their career. Elena raised it with the candidate, who described the work in detail. She made the offer, and agreed a part-time bookkeeper for the first months so the hands-on load would not land all at once. ## Where Funded.club fits We run each search with one dedicated recruiter, from sourcing and headhunting to screening and support through offer. By the final round that recruiter knows the candidate well and can help you turn open doubts into reference questions. If the role is your first operations lead, our guide to [hiring a COO or head of operations](https://funded.club/blog/hire-coo-head-of-operations-startup) covers what to test in interviews. Our fee is fixed and agreed upfront, averaging 6 to 9% of salary. For a head of operations on an illustrative $120,000 salary, that is $11,500, with part paid as an advance and the balance when the candidate accepts. See [pricing](https://funded.club/pricing) for the full bands, or browse our [free hiring tools](https://funded.club/free-hiring-tools). ## Frequently asked questions ### How many references should a startup check? Two or three is usually enough for most startup hires, as long as each call targets a specific doubt. For leadership roles, add a backchannel call with the candidate's knowledge. ### When in the hiring process should I check references? After the final interview and before the offer is signed. Some founders make an offer conditional on references so the candidate can give consent to contact a current employer at that point. Check how conditional offers work where you hire with an employment lawyer. ### What if a reference is negative? Treat one negative reference as a question to investigate. Ask the referee for a specific example, check it with another referee, and put it to the candidate without naming the source. Worth a brief chat about your next hire? [Book a free call](https://funded.club/contact-us). ## Hiring after a funding round? First candidates in 7 days. Fixed-fee, no commission. [See pricing](https://funded.club/pricing) [Book a free call](https://funded.club/contact-us) [Try the Growth Planner](https://funded.club/growth-planner) [![Primary\_logo](https://funded.club/hubfs/funded-images2022/Primary_logo.svg)](https://funded.club) © 2019-2026 Funded.club B.V. All Rights Reserved. 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