01
Tell us who you may work for
Share the manager, company, role, and your decision deadline. We never contact the hiring company.
Independent manager diligence
Know who you’re working for before you say yes.
Confidential reference checks on your prospective manager—built from interviews with verified former direct reports.
No contact with your employer Pay only if we find sources
Illustrative brief
Prospective manager review
03
sources
4.2 yrs
avg. tenure
100%
verified
Decision quality88% aligned
Sets a high bar and explains why the work matters.
Team development76% aligned
Invests in strong performers; feedback is direct.
Pressure behavior58% aligned
Can become less available during executive escalations.
Candidate-confidentialYour identity stays protected.
Relationship-verifiedSame company is not enough.
Offer-deadline awareTypically delivered in 5–7 days.
How it works
Better diligence, before a high-stakes yes.
Employers reference-check candidates. ReverseRef gives senior candidates the same advantage—without involving the hiring team.
02
We find former direct reports
We independently source people whose reporting relationship can be verified—not hand-picked references.
03
You receive a decision brief
We synthesize structured interviews into a concise report on patterns, strengths, tradeoffs, and questions to ask.
What you receive
Signal you can actually use.
Not a star rating or anonymous gossip. A decision-ready brief that separates repeated patterns from one-off opinions.
- Executive summary and confidence level
- Repeated strengths and watch-outs
- Role-specific fit considerations
- Questions to ask before you sign
Sample excerpt · fictional
Working style: synthesis
Consistent pattern
Gives senior ICs broad ownership and expects them to surface risk early. All three sources described considerable autonomy.
Tradeoff to explore
Feedback is candid but can arrive late. Two sources learned to ask for explicit checkpoints on ambiguous work.
Question to ask before accepting
“When a senior hire is off track, how do you prefer to surface it—and how quickly?”
Based on 3 verified former direct-report interviews. Identities withheld.
Why direct reports
The people closest to the day-to-day know what interviews cannot show.
They saw the pattern
Not one polished interview—a manager’s choices across launches, conflict, pressure, and change.
They felt the impact
They can describe how expectations, feedback, air cover, and promotions worked in practice.
They are independently sourced
The manager does not choose the references, reducing selection bias.
Their context is weighted
Recency, tenure, role similarity, and independence shape how much weight each account receives.
Confidentiality by design
Your search stays yours.
We never contact the hiring manager or company. Sources are told only what they need to know, and your identity is not disclosed without permission.
- No employer contact
- No candidate identity shared
- No public reviews or searchable profiles
Relationship verification
Proximity matters.
Working at the same company is not enough. We verify reporting lines using overlapping dates, role history, team context, and interview corroboration.
- Direct relationship confirmed
- Dates and roles triangulated
- Ambiguity excluded or clearly labeled
Founding price
Small diligence for a very large decision.
Complete Reverse Reference
$499one time
For senior candidates evaluating an active offer or late-stage opportunity.
Request a reviewIncluded
- Independent source research
- 2–4 verified direct-report interviews
- Structured decision brief
- Role-specific questions to ask
- 5–7 business day target
Source guarantee: If we cannot verify and interview at least two former direct reports, you pay nothing.
FAQ
The questions we would ask, too.
Will my prospective manager know?+
No. We do not contact your prospective manager, their current company, or anyone you identify as part of the active hiring process.
How do you verify a direct-report relationship?+
We triangulate dates, titles, team structure, and the source’s description of the reporting line. Ambiguous relationships are excluded or clearly labeled.
What if you cannot find enough sources?+
If we cannot verify and interview at least two former direct reports, you pay nothing.
How long does it take?+
Most reviews are completed in 5–7 business days. Tell us if your offer deadline is sooner and we will confirm what is realistic before starting.
Is this a background check?+
No. ReverseRef is decision support for candidates, focused on what it was like to report to a specific leader. It is not an employment, credit, or consumer report.
Can my company reimburse this?+
Possibly. Some candidates use career-development or legal-benefit budgets, but reimbursement policies vary. We can provide a simple receipt.
Request a Reverse Reference
Make the decision with your eyes open.
Send the basics. We will reply with availability, timing, and next steps before any work begins.
Your submission goes directly to ReverseRef and is never shared with the prospective employer.