Your experience matters
Firsthand context about a former manager’s working style can help a candidate ask better questions and assess fit.
For reference participants
Give the next candidate useful context.
Choosing a role is a consequential decision. A short, candid conversation can help another person evaluate the working relationship with better information.
Your name stays out of the report
Your name and direct contact details are not included in the candidate report. ReverseRef does not build a manager dossier or publish public reviews.
You speak with a human
A person verifies your relationship and conducts a live, audio-only interview. Cameras stay off. No recording, automated transcript, or AI interviewer is used.
Why people participate
Specific context helps someone decide.
Former reports can offer context that is difficult to gather during a hiring process. Their perspective can help a candidate understand the working environment, ask more useful questions, and make an informed decision.
Different accounts may highlight different working styles, expectations, and tradeoffs. The useful part is specificity, context, and firsthand experience, not a label or verdict about the manager.
A fair thank-you
Your time can be recognized without buying your opinion.
Founding participants may be offered priority access or a fixed credit toward one future ReverseRef request. Any benefit is agreed before the interview and recognizes the time involved, not the content of the conversation.
- The benefit is the same regardless of what you share or how your experience is characterized.
- You may skip questions and correct, narrow, or remove your contribution before delivery.
- A benefit never depends on producing a quotable statement or allowing your contribution into the final report.
- If a case includes participant benefits, the report discloses that at the case level without tying it to a source.
What to expect
A voluntary, focused conversation.
1. A human reaches out
The invitation explains ReverseRef, why you may be relevant, and how to ask questions before deciding.
2. We verify the relationship
We confirm dates, roles, team context, and that you directly reported to the manager. If public information is not enough, we may ask for redacted proof of employment.
3. You choose whether to join
Participation is voluntary. You can decline, skip a question, or end the conversation.
4. A human interviews you
The current interview is a live, audio-only conversation. The candidate is not present. Cameras stay off, and ReverseRef does not record or automatically transcribe the call.
5. We prepare a de-identified synthesis
Your name and direct contact details are omitted. Candidate-facing findings require support from at least two verified participants, and identifying context is removed.
6. You review your contribution
You see how your interview was synthesized and may correct, narrow, or remove it before delivery.
7. One candidate receives it
The private report supports a specific candidate’s decision. It is not a public rating or employer product.
How the interview works
A private conversation without video or recording.
The participant speaks one-to-one with a ReverseRef interviewer. The requesting candidate does not attend. Cameras stay off, and no AI voice, chatbot, meeting bot, or automated interviewer joins the conversation.
Audio only
The conversation is live and focused. Video is not used to verify identity or conduct the interview.
No recording or transcript
ReverseRef does not make an audio or video recording or create an automated transcript. Everyone on the call is asked not to record it.
Structured notes and review
The interviewer takes focused notes under a source ID. You review the de-identified synthesis before it may be used in the report.
Proof of employment
Sometimes an extra check protects everyone.
If we cannot confidently verify your employment through professional history and corroboration, we may ask for a redacted employment document. An employment verification letter, pay statement, tax form, or similar record can confirm the employer and relevant dates.
We also connect the invitation to an established professional profile or contact channel and confirm limited employment details at the start of the call. Video and facial recognition are not used as proof of identity. If the available information conflicts or the relationship remains unclear, the source is excluded.
Please hide compensation, tax and national identification numbers, home address, birth date, banking details, and anything else unrelated. We use the document only to validate the relevant employment details and delete it after verification unless it must be retained for a legal, security, or dispute reason.
You remain in control
Nothing from your interview is delivered without your review.
You can ask to see the current synthesis based on your conversation at any time. Before delivery, you receive the de-identified version and can correct wording, remove a detail, narrow what may be used, or withdraw your contribution entirely.
Your interview is specific to this case. ReverseRef does not carry it into another case without asking again and receiving fresh, case-specific consent. After delivery, you may ask us to delete retained interview material, subject to legal and operational requirements. We cannot retrieve a report copy already delivered to a candidate, so your review happens before anything is shared.
Speak from experience
Keep confidential information out of the conversation.
ReverseRef asks about what it was like to work for a manager: expectations, feedback, decision-making, support, growth, and behavior under pressure. We do not solicit trade secrets, customer information, unreleased financials, source code, security details, coworker personal data, or other confidential or proprietary material.
Your obligations still apply. You remain responsible for any confidentiality, nondisclosure, non-disparagement, or other agreement that applies to you. ReverseRef cannot interpret your agreement or guarantee that participating creates no legal or professional risk. When uncertain, leave the detail out and consider seeking your own advice.
Privacy limits
De-identified, with no absolute promises.
ReverseRef removes names, direct contact details, and unnecessary identifying context from reports. No candidate-facing finding relies on fewer than two independently verified participants. We omit or generalize distinctive single-source events, quotations, and timelines, and we do not tell the candidate how many eligible people declined or failed to respond.
Two participants may still be too few on a small team. We may require more participants or decline the case when a manager could reasonably infer who spoke. No process can eliminate inference completely, so we will discuss any material concern with you before delivery.
- No persistent manager dossier or public review
- No participant name or direct contact details in the report
- No single-source candidate-facing finding
- Review and removal before report delivery
Received an invitation?
Reply to the person who contacted you or email hello@reverseref.com. Ask anything before deciding. Read more about our trust practices or privacy terms.