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AI Reference Checks

How to collect and manage candidate references

Written by Lex Ituarte

AI Reference Checks in Zipline allow you to collect information from a candidate’s references to support their application. References are asked to complete a short form via a secure link, helping both the candidate and admin verify work history and suitability.

🔗 How Reference Checks Work

When a Reference Check is included in an application, candidates are asked to provide details of their referees. Once references are added, invites can either be sent manually by an admin or automatically by the system, depending on your configuration.

  • Manual invite – Candidate or admin adds the required number of references. The admin must manually trigger the invitation to be sent.

  • Automatic invite – Candidate or admin adds the required number of references. The system automatically sends an invitation to each referee as soon as the candidate or admin saves their details.

✅ Reference Requirements

You can configure:

  • Required references – The minimum number of references that must be provided.

  • Optional references – Additional references that can be added but are not mandatory.

Example: 2 required and 1 optional reference.

Configurable Requirement Groups

Reference check templates can now be organised into named requirement groups. Each group has its own minimum and maximum referee counts, and can be restricted to specific relationship types — for example, requiring a minimum number of professional referees separately from personal referees. The portal settings UI has been redesigned to make this easy to configure.

Admin Actions

  • Send a change request if additional references are needed to strengthen the background check.

  • Cancel references (e.g., if details are incorrect or unsuitable). When references are cancelled, the candidate or admin can add the equivalent number of new references.

📋 Reference Fields

Reference Checks can collect the following information:

  • Full name (required by default)

  • Mobile phone (required by default, unless marked as not available)

  • Email (configurable as Required or Optional)

  • Organisation (optional)

  • Relationship (optional) - note, the options available can be restricted.

  • Position (optional)

  • Position duration (optional)

💡 If a reference does not have a mobile number (e.g., based overseas), the candidate can select “No number available” in the worker app and instead provide only an email address.

📧 Email Settings

Email addresses can be configured as:

  • Required – Candidate must provide an email address for every reference.

  • Optional – Candidate can choose whether to provide an email or not.

🔄 Statuses of a Reference Check

  1. Pending – The Reference Check is waiting for the candidate to add the required number of references.

  2. In Progress – The required number of references has been added.

  3. Reviewing – The required number of references have completed their checks.

  4. Outcome (Approved, Exempted, or Rejected) – Once the Reference Check is finalised, any incomplete references are automatically cancelled.

Reference Communications

🚀 Invitation Sending

We use intelligent scheduling to prevent late-night SMS spam! The system respects AEST business hours (7am-9pm) and implements smart delays. Invitations sent outside business hours are automatically queued until the next morning (7-8:30am).

⏰ Reminders

We automatically send reminder emails to referees to help you get timely responses without manual follow-ups.

When reminders send

  • Days: Monday to Saturday (no reminders on Sundays)

  • Time window: 10:00am–2:00pm AEST

  • No same-day reminders: We won’t send a reminder on the same day the invitation is issued

Who receives them

  • Only referees who are still active and haven’t completed the reference

  • Only when the overall reference check is Pending or In Progress

  • Your organisation must have email notifications enabled

When they stop

  • As soon as the referee submits the form or declines to participate

Notes

  • Timing and schedule aren’t configurable

  • Org-wide disable is available: we can turn reminders off for your organisation if needed—contact [email protected]

  • Reminders are not currently shown in the Activity log.

Reminders To Candidates

Candidates will continue to receive reminders when their required references are outstanding. This is so they may follow up with or change their references should there be delays in completing the reference check.

Additional Communications

Additional communication can be sent to candidates – so they can in term follow up unresponsive references, and get their reference check complete faster. The intent is to keep the candidate accountable for referee responsiveness without requiring admin intervention.

Turn on our recommended proactive follow-up candidate nudges (email/SMS) for:

  • When a reference is completed (this makes progress visible - making any uncompleted references more obvious)

  • When a reference is taking more than 48 hours to complete their reference.
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Note: The wording of these messages has been optimised for maximum impact and cannot be customised.

The wording may change based on the situation, but representative examples are below.

🔒 Fraud Detection with IP Tracking

Reference Checks have built-in capability to help detect potential fraudulent activity by monitoring IP addresses used to complete reference forms.

  • If multiple references are completed from the same IP address as the candidate, the system may flag it as suspicious.

  • This helps prevent candidates from completing their own references or asking someone else to impersonate references.

  • IP tracking gives admins an additional layer of confidence that references are genuine, strengthening the integrity of the hiring and compliance process.

⚠️ While not foolproof (e.g., shared networks, VPNs), IP tracking is a valuable safeguard against fraudulent reference submissions.

⚙️ Template Management

  • Any changes to Reference Check questions or templates must be facilitated by contacting Support.

  • Updates to a Reference Check template will only apply to new applications created after the change.

  • Existing applications will continue to use the template that was active at the time they were created.

🔎 Example System Behaviour

  • Candidate adds 2 required references and 1 optional reference.

  • If Automatic invite is enabled, each reference immediately receives an email invitation once their details are entered.

  • If Manual invite is enabled, the admin reviews the references and manually sends invitations at the appropriate time.

  • Admin decides to cancel one (or more) reference (incorrect details or taking to long to respond). Candidate or admin can add a replacement reference.

  • Once 2 references complete their forms, the check automatically moves to Reviewing.

  • When the admin finalises the check (e.g., Approved), all incomplete references are automatically cancelled.

⚠️ Current Limitations

Re-hire scenarios – The system may still pick up old references and templates from a candidate’s previous application.

  • Newly completed references may remain stuck in Invited status.

  • The summary may also remain stuck, showing the old reference check result.

This is a known limitation. To work around it, we recommend that admins either:

  • Contact Support for assistance in resolving the issue, or

  • Create a new flow that includes only the intended Reference Check Template, then send this as a separate application to the candidate.

This ensures that only the correct template and newly provided references are used, avoiding issues with old references being carried over.

By configuring Reference Checks correctly and leveraging fraud detection, you ensure smooth collection of reference feedback, improved compliance, and higher confidence in the authenticity of candidate references.

? FAQs

Can questions be multiple choice?

No. Referees answer every question in free text. If you need a specific answer, list the options in the question, for example "(enter one of: Manager / Supervisor, Colleague, Academic Referee…)".

How many questions should we include?

Keep it short. The AI asks follow-up questions when an answer doesn't have enough detail, so a 20-question template can quickly get much longer and fewer referees finish it. See the Reference Check Playbook for best practice.

Can we use different questions for different roles or relationship types?

Yes. Each set of questions is its own template, and each template is linked to a reference check. Contact Support to set up extra templates.

What placeholders can we use in invite emails and SMS?

  • {{refereeName}}

  • {{candidateName}}

  • {{organisationName}}

  • {{linkUrl}}

The Welcome Message doesn't support placeholders, and the role or position isn't available as one yet.

Can we change the sender name on referee messages?

Support can set the email display name to your organisation's name. The SMS sender name can't be changed yet.

Can the AI agent have a custom name or profile picture?

Not currently.

Can we edit or preview the messages sent to candidates about their referees?

No. The candidate nudge messages are fixed. Example screenshots are in the Additional Communications section above.

Can referee email and mobile both be mandatory?

Yes. Contact Support and we'll make both fields required.
While references are being collected

Can a recruiter fill in a reference for a referee, e.g. after a phone call?

Yes. Open the referee's link and enter their answers. The system doesn't record that it was done on the referee's behalf, so add a note to the check.

If we update a referee's contact details, is a new invite sent?

Yes. The original invite is cancelled and a new one goes to the updated details.

Can referees or admins attach documents to a Reference Check?

Not currently.

Can we stop candidates entering their own email as a referee?

Not currently. However, if a reference is completed from the same IP address as the candidate, it's flagged as suspicious (see Fraud Detection above).

What if a referee legitimately shares a network with the candidate, like a manager at the same workplace?

The IP flag can't tell these cases apart yet. Treat it as a prompt to review the reference, not an automatic rejection.

Can referees edit an answer before they submit?

Not currently. This feedback has been passed to our product team.

Do referees need to log in or complete MFA?

No. Referees only need their secure link.

We request optional referees. Will more than the required number be completed?

No. The first referees to finish, up to the required number, are accepted. After that, the remaining referees can't complete the check.

What do referees see if they open their link after the check is complete?

A message saying the reference is no longer needed. This wording can't be customised yet.

Can we turn off the "interested in similar roles" alert from referees?

This setting applies to your whole organisation, not to individual templates or ad hoc checks. Contact Support to turn it off.
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Can we approve a reference check with no references?

Yes. Admins can approve manually as an override at any time.

Can reference checks be approved automatically?

No. All reference checks go to your team for review.

Is the score shown per referee?

No. The score combines all completed references.

Can we export a reference check?

Yes, as a PDF from the check in the portal. If the download button is greyed out after references are completed, contact Support.

Do you collect feedback from referees about their experience?

Not currently.

Testing in staging: will referees get real messages?

Yes. Staging sends to real email addresses and phone numbers, so use test contact details or set invites to Manual.

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