Candidate reference check pack

Purpose

Turn reference-call evidence into a comparable pack for a named candidate and role. Preserve what the referee actually said, distinguish observation from interpretation, and expose unanswered questions before a hiring decision.

Scope

Cover referee identity and relationship, dates and role held, question-by-question answers, examples of performance, strengths, development areas, rehire eligibility, and discrepancies across referees. Excluded: contacting a referee, inferring protected characteristics, making the hiring decision, or treating an unverified allegation as fact.

Data basis

• Reference notes or transcripts with speaker labels, dates, and page or timestamp locations.
• Candidate profile, job description, competency rubric, and interview scorecard.
• Prior reference packs for the same candidate when explicitly in scope.
• HR privacy and retention policy.

Result

A reference evidence sheet with one row per question or claim and a concise decision pack summarising corroborated strengths, concerns, gaps, and suggested follow-up questions.

Quality criteria

• Every claim cites the transcript timestamp, note heading, or document page.
• Each referee’s relationship, period of supervision, and answer status is recorded.
• “Not asked”, “not answered”, and “negative answer” are separate values.
• Evidence is mapped to the role rubric without inventing a rating.
• Conflicting accounts remain visible with both citations.

Instructions

Use the job description and rubric as the comparison frame. Quote only short decisive phrases and preserve the referee’s qualification, such as “I did not observe”. Treat a rehire answer as a separate field from overall endorsement. Do not convert praise into a score unless the supplied rubric defines the mapping. Minimize personal data, exclude protected-trait information from the outputs, and label allegations as unverified. A recommendation may propose a follow-up question but may not state that a candidate should be hired or rejected.

Adapt before use

• Add the role description, competency rubric, and approved reference-question set.
• Set privacy, retention, redaction, and access rules for referee material.
• Define rating labels, escalation owners, and the minimum number of references.