Reference Check Questions for Finance Positions

For both large and growing companies, financial analysts and corporate finance professionals are necessary to help you mitigate risk, forecast earnings, and determine the impact of potential investments. Financial reps help translate large amounts of data into key recommendations, insights, and models that inform important business decisions. 

If you’re in need of a financial analyst, you can’t afford to make the wrong hire. According to the U.S. Department of Labor, the average cost of a bad hire is at least 30 percent of that individual’s annual salary. And those numbers can get a lot higher if you don’t have the right persona managing your business’s finances. 

Finding the right hire requires a proactive and holistic hiring process, and one of the most important aspects of that process will be your reference checking practices.

The Importance of Reference Check Questions for Finance Positions

Team leaders, recruiters, HR teams, and managers have to make difficult hiring decisions to meet the needs of their business. Sometimes, this can lead to bad hires that end up hurting the organization in the long run. A CareerBuilder survey found that 43 percent of companies make bad hires because they had to land the hire quickly. Another 21 percent said they lacked the skills to hire people effectively. 

Advanced reference checks can help solve these problems in a number of ways. For one, modern reference check technology is faster and more accurate than traditional methods. You could have your reference check responses within only a day or two, allowing you to make an informed decision even under a time crunch. 

Before we look at how you don’t have to sacrifice quality of hire for time or efficiency, let’s look at some reference check questions you can use for finance positions.

Reference Check Questions for Finance Positions

How long did _____ work for your organization? What kind of role did they play in your Finance team?

This is a great opening question that will help verify some basic facts about the candidate’s resume and get the reference thinking about their experiences with the candidate.

What were _____’ main duties and responsibilities as a finance rep?

From junior analysts to bigger roles in corporate finance, finance comes with a wide range of roles and responsibilities. This question will help you get an idea of the candidate’s range of responsibilities and experiences

How would you describe _____’s level of experience and expertise with financial planning, forecasting, and risk management?

Again, this is another opportunity for the reference to speak to the candidate’s skill set and expertise.

How detailed and organized would you say _____ is in their role?

Attention to detail and a fastidious eye are essential for these roles. This question will help your reference expand on the candidate’s organizational skills. 

Did _____ exhibit effective communication and interpersonal skills?

Finance reps need to give reports, delegate tasks, and, usually, work with a team of other analysts. You want to ensure they can communicate clearly and effectively with those around them. 

How was _____’s relationship with their leaders, peers, and team members?

This is another essential question that will tell you what kind of contribution this individual made to the workplace and company culture. You want individuals who work well with peers, respond well to their own managers, and contribute to your team in a positive way. 

Would you rehire _____? Why or why not?

This is one of the most important questions you could ask anyone for a reference check, regardless of what position you need to fill. It’s a polarizing question that asks the former employer/manager to identify any red (or green) flags. 

Should You Conduct Reference Checks at the Beginning or End of the Hiring Process for Finance Positions?

Here are a few reasons why it’s best to conduct your reference check at the beginning of the hiring process. 

• Reference checks conducted at the beginning of the hiring process will help you identify red flags as quickly as possible. You don’t want to spend time, resources, and expectations on a candidate, only to find out they lied about something important on their resume.
• Reference check answers give you fodder for the interview. You can use your reference check answers to inform your interview questions, compare candidate answers to your answers, and directly question your candidate about reference check responses. 
• Waiting on reference checks might slow down the hiring process. Even with automated reference checks, it could take some time for the references to respond if they’re unavailable. The sooner you send out your questions, the sooner you’ll get your responses and be able to make a decision.

Automating the Reference Check Process for Finance Positions

Traditional reference check methods take long and aren’t as effective at verifying the 50 percent of resumes that contain lies or exaggerate their information. Automated reference checks provide you with the speed you need without losing out on quality or accuracy.

Automated reference check tools, like Crosschq, allow you to:

• Aggregate data on candidate skills, strengths, and weaknesses
• Gather candidate reports within 48 hours
• Streamline your efforts directly from your ATS
• Compare reference check scores with self-reference scores
• Reduce your overall hiring turnaround time by 85 percent

The Importance of Reference Checking Finance Positions and Quality of Hire

The right finance reps will give your organization the due diligence it needs to make investments, assess risks, forecast future performance, and more. While reference checks aren’t everything that goes into the hiring process, they’re an important step that allow you to verify valuable candidate information and gain key insights from past performance. And with Crosschq, you can maintain your quality of hire while benefiting from streamlined reference checks. 

Crosschq’s “Q” Report looked at 24+ million pre-hire and post-hire decisions we’ve helped leaders make, along with the radical insights from those data points that can help you hire, retain, and develop talent. Our insights are essential to maintaining quality at every step of the hiring, onboarding, and development process.

If you want to learn more about how Crosschq can help you attract, retain, and measure the performance of top talent, sign up for a demo today.