In a reference check, the referees an applicant has listed receive an email with a personal link to a short questionnaire. Referees do not need to sign in anywhere. The answers are saved on the application's References tab, and Laura notifies you when a reference has arrived.
The feature works like this:
You enable reference requests in the recruitment and decide how referee details are collected.
You edit the questionnaire if needed.
You select the applicants whose references you want and send the requests.
The referee confirms their consent and answers the questionnaire.
You read the answers on the application.
Enable reference requests in a recruitment
Reference requests are set per recruitment. They are off by default, and you can enable them at any stage of the recruitment, including after the application period has ended.
Open the recruitment and go to editing it.
Open the References tab.
Select Enable reference requests.
Under Collecting referee details, choose how contact details are collected:
On the application form: the applicant is asked for their referees' details when they apply. You can also ask for the details later.
Later: referee details are requested from the applicant while applications are handled.
Review the questionnaire and edit it if needed (see the next section).
Save the recruitment.
When you choose On the application form, a Referees section is added to the application form. An applicant can list up to five referees.
You can turn reference requests off by selecting Disable. Reference requests that have already been sent are not removed, but no new requests or reminders are sent. Referees' links expire when their validity period runs out.
Editing the questionnaire
On the recruitment's References tab you see the questionnaire as the referee sees it. It starts as Laura's default questionnaire, which you can use as it is or adapt.
The questionnaire has three parts:
Locked sections are always included and cannot be removed or edited. They are
Referee details (name, email, job title and organisation)
Background. The Background section asks about the applicant's role and the period you worked together, the referee's relationship with the applicant, whether the referee would be willing to work with the applicant again, and what a future employer might find useful to know. The answer to the question about working together again is the only required question, so that every reference carries a comparable overall assessment.
Editable sections are, by default,
Performance (ratings on a scale of 1–5: overall performance, quality of work, ability to work independently, and collaboration and teamwork) and two open questions about the applicant's strengths and room for growth.
To edit your own sections:
Select Edit section on the section you want to edit. Only one section is open at a time.
Edit the section's heading and description, or the question texts.
Choose the Question type: Short answer, Open answer, Multiple choice, Dropdown.
Add answer options to choice questions with Add option.
Select Required if the referee must answer the question.
Add a new question with Add question, or remove a question, option or section with the bin icon (Remove question, Remove option, Remove section).
Change the order of the sections with Move up and Move down.
Select Done when you are happy with the section.
Save the recruitment. Your changes to the questionnaire are saved together with the recruitment.
The questionnaire cannot be saved if the text of any question or answer option is empty, or if a choice question has no options.
You can restore Laura's default questionnaire by selecting Restore default questionnaire and confirming with Confirm restore. Your changes to the questionnaire are discarded. Each reference request stores the questionnaire as it was when the request was sent. Editing the questionnaire therefore does not change requests that have already been sent; the changes apply only to new ones.
Languages
The questionnaire has its own language version for every language the recruitment is published in. Switch languages with the language selectors above the questionnaire. Each language version shows only the texts in that language, so questions that have not been translated appear empty. Laura's default questionnaire is already translated into Finnish, English and Swedish.
If a question is missing in the referee's language, they see it in another language so that no question is left blank. Write all the texts in every language the recruitment is published in.
Ask applicants to list their referees
If an applicant has not listed their referees on the application, you can ask them for the details. The applicant receives an email with a link and adds their referees on the Referees tab in the applicant portal. Applicants can add referees even after the recruitment has ended.
Asking several applicants for referees at once
Select the applicants in the recruitment's list of applicants.
Select the Request referee details button in the toolbar.
Check the recipients and the message preview, and select Send requests.
Asking one applicant for referees
Open the application and go to the References tab.
Select Request details from the applicant.
Each applicant receives the message in the language of their application. The message is also saved in the application's conversation, where you can see what the applicant was sent. If the applicant has been asked before, Laura tells you before sending and sends a new request once you confirm.
Once the details have been requested, the application shows the status Waiting for the applicant's details. You can also request details when the applicant already has referees. The applicant is then asked to check and complete the details.
If the applicant does not add the details within 14 days, the request expires and the application shows The applicant did not add their referees' details. You can ask again with Request the details again.
The reference request is sent to the applicants' referees when you request references separately. This way you keep the decision over which applicants you request references for.
Referee consent
As soon as the applicant has added a referee, the referee receives an email that says who has applied for which position and asks whether it is fine to contact them. The referee can agree or decline. The reply is shown next to the referee on the application's References tab:
Agreed to give a reference (date)
Declined to give a reference (date)
Has not yet answered the consent request
If the referee does not reply, you can still send the request. A referee who has declined, however, is not sent a reference request, and one cannot be sent to them again. If a referee declines only after the questionnaire has already been sent, their earlier link stops working.
Requesting references
Once the referees' details have been collected, you can send reference requests in two ways.
In bulk
In the recruitment's list of applicants, select the applicants whose references you want. You can select up to 25 applicants at a time.
Select the Request references button in the toolbar. The button becomes active only once you have selected at least one applicant.
Check the recipients. For each referee you see what will happen: will be invited, request already sent, link expired – will be sent again or declined to take part.
Select Send requests.
For each applicant, Laura does the following:
Every referee who has not yet been sent a request receives an email and a personal link to the questionnaire.
A referee who has already been sent a request or has already answered it is sent nothing.
A referee whose earlier link has expired is sent a new link.
If the application has no referee details, the applicant is asked for them. Once the applicant has added their referees, the questionnaires go out to the referees automatically and you do not need to do anything.
After sending, you see a summary of the requests that were sent. If sending any email fails, Laura tells you in the summary.
Individually
Open the application and go to the References tab.
Select Request a reference next to the referee you want.
Choose the Language of the message and the questionnaire if needed. By default the applicant's language is used, if the recruitment is published in it. Otherwise the first language the recruitment is published in is used. The preview updates when you change the language.
Check the message preview and select Send reference request.
You can also send a request to just one referee, even if the applicant has several. The other referees are sent nothing.
The referee's point of view
The referee receives an email that says who has named them as a referee and for which position. The message contains a personal, secure link that is valid for 14 days. The link opens the questionnaire in the browser. The referee does not need to create an account or sign in.
The referee's name and email address are pre-filled from the invitation. The name can be corrected with Edit details. The email address cannot be changed.
The referee answers the questions. Required questions are marked.
The referee sends the answers with Submit reference.
A reference can be given only once. After the answers have been submitted, the same link shows the message Reference already submitted and no longer shows the questions or answers. If the link has expired, the referee sees the message The link has expired.
The referee also receives a confirmation email that the reference has been saved.
Follow the status of references
On the application's References tab you see the applicant's referees and the status of each reference request:
Status | Meaning |
Not sent | No request has been sent to the referee yet. |
Awaiting a reply | The request has been sent, but the referee has not yet replied. |
Answered | The referee has submitted their reference. The answers are shown next to the referee. |
Declined | The referee does not want to take part. |
Expired | The link is no longer valid. You can send a new one with Request a reference. |
Next to the status you see the date of the event, for example Requested, Opened, Reminded or Answered. You can also see whether the referee was added on the application form or in the applicant portal. If the applicant has removed a referee from their details, a reference that has already been given remains visible.
Reminders: If the referee has not replied within five days, Laura sends them one reminder. The reminder's link replaces the earlier one: the old link stops working, and the referee continues from the new link. If the referee has just opened the questionnaire, the reminder is postponed by a day so that they do not lose their answers halfway through.
Expiry: If the referee does not reply within 14 days, the link expires. No new request is sent automatically. If you still want the reference, send the request again with Request a reference.
Reading references and notifications
When a referee has replied, Laura notifies the recruitment's creator and participants with the notification Reference received. The notification arrives in Laura and by email according to your own settings. You can change the setting under Notification settings, in the Applications group, on the row A referee submitted a reference. Several references received for the same application are grouped into one notification.
The reference is shown next to the referee on the application's References tab. You see the referee's name, contact details, job title and organisation, and all the answers question by question.
Who can see references?
References are confidential statements by a third party about the applicant, so their visibility is more restricted than other application data. Only the recruitment's creator, the recruitment's participants and the organisation's administrators can see references and send reference requests. Other users in the organisation do not see the recruitment's References tab.
Questions and answers
I can't see the Request references button.
Check that reference requests have been enabled on the recruitment's References tab and that you have access to the recruitment (creator, participant or administrator). The button is greyed out until you have selected at least one applicant.
The applicant has no referees. What happens if I request references?
The applicant is asked for their referees' details. Once they have added them, the reference requests are sent to the referees automatically.
The referee can't find the email.
Ask them to check their spam folder. While the earlier link is still valid, a new request cannot be sent, but Laura sends the referee a reminder after five days. If the link has time to expire, you can send the request again.
The referee's link no longer works.
The link is valid for 14 days, and a reminder replaces the earlier link. Send the request again with Request a reference.
Can I change the questionnaire after I have sent requests?
Yes, but the changes apply only to new requests. Requests that have already been sent use the questionnaire as it was when they were sent.
Can the referee edit their answers after submitting them?
No. A reference can be given only once.