# Reference check questions for startup founders

> These reference check questions help a venture investor learn how a founder works from people who have seen it: former managers, colleagues, reports and customers. The template has an opening script, twelve questions on work, judgement, people and growth, five questions for customer references, topics not to raise, and a note-taking guide. Use it for 20-minute calls, and mix references the founder suggests with ones you find.

Source: https://delsivo.com/templates/reference-check-questions · Updated 2026-11-06

## Key takeaways

- Ask for examples, not adjectives: "tell me about a time" beats "are they good".
- Mix founder-suggested references with ones you find, and tell founders you do.
- Separate what the reference saw directly from what they heard.
- Keep deal terms and confidential company information out of the call.

## Reference check questions to copy

Questions 4 and 7 usually tell you the most. Let silences run; references often add the useful detail after a pause.

Reference check questions (plain text):

```text
REFERENCE CHECK QUESTIONS
Founder: [ ]    Reference: [name, relationship]    Suggested by founder: [yes / no]    Called by: [ ]    Date: [ ]

OPENING (say this first)
"Thanks for making time. I'm [name] from [fund]. We're considering an investment in [company], and [founder] has [given us your name / agreed that we speak to people they've worked with]. This will take about 20 minutes. I'll keep what you say confidential within our investment team. Is that all right?"

CONTEXT
1. How do you know [founder], and for how long?
2. What was their role, and what were they responsible for?

WORK AND JUDGEMENT
3. What is the best piece of work you saw them do? What made it good?
4. Tell me about a time they got something wrong. What did they do next?
5. How do they make decisions when the information is incomplete?
6. How do they handle disagreement, with peers and with people who report to them?

PEOPLE
7. Would you work for them, or hire them again? Why?
8. Who did they hire or bring with them, and how did those people do?

GROWTH
9. What should they get better at in the next two years?
10. What kind of support would help them most?

CLOSING
11. Is there anything I should have asked but didn't?
12. Who else should I speak to about them?

FOR CUSTOMER REFERENCES, ASK INSTEAD
- What problem were you trying to solve when you started using [company]?
- What would you do if the product disappeared tomorrow?
- How do you measure its value, and what number would you put on it?
- What has gone wrong, and how did the team respond?
- Are you paying for it today, and do you plan to renew?

DO NOT ASK
Age, health, family, religion, nationality, or anything unrelated to how they work. Do not share deal terms or other confidential information about the company.

NOTES
What the reference said, in their words where possible. Separate what they saw directly from what they heard from others.
```

## When to run reference checks

During diligence, after the fund is seriously considering the deal and before a final decision. Earlier calls waste references' goodwill on deals you may not pursue. Two or three references per founder plus two customer calls is a common minimum at seed.

## What to change

- For a technical founder, add a question on how they make architecture trade-offs.
- For a first-time founder, ask about ownership of projects in previous roles.
- For co-founders, ask each reference how the founders split decisions.
- Shorten the script for customers, who usually have less time than former colleagues.

## What to leave out

Don't ask about a founder's health, family, age, religion or nationality, and stop a reference who volunteers it. Don't reveal the valuation, other investors or anything the founder shared in confidence. Back-channel references, ones the founder didn't suggest, are common; telling founders you do them up front is fairer and avoids surprises.

## Recording references without special software

A notes document per founder is enough. Record what each reference said and whether they saw it directly. In Delsivo, a statement from a reference can support or dispute a claim: the [claim tracker](https://delsivo.com/claims-and-evidence), planned for the Pilot release, labels claims Founder reported, Corroborated, Disputed or Unresolved, and keeps earlier versions.

## Frequently asked questions

### How many references should a VC check for a founder?

Two or three per founder is a common minimum at seed, including at least one the founder did not suggest, plus a couple of customer calls.

### Should I tell a founder I'm doing back-channel references?

Yes. Saying so at the start of diligence is fairer and avoids damaging trust if they hear about it later.

### What is the most useful reference question?

Asking about a time the founder got something wrong and what they did next usually reveals more than any question about strengths.

## Related pages

- [Founder interview questions](https://delsivo.com/templates/founder-interview-questions)
- [VC due diligence checklist](https://delsivo.com/templates/vc-due-diligence-checklist)
- [Due diligence](https://delsivo.com/glossary/due-diligence)
- [Claims and evidence](https://delsivo.com/claims-and-evidence)