How to Write a Work Recommendation?

Approximate reading time: 6m 3s

How to Write a Work Recommendation

Recommendation from an employer. When employees leave a job, they sometimes request that a recommendation for an employee or employee reference be written for them, showing the way they work and the qualities they possess. According to Article 128a of the Labor Code, the employer is obliged to issue and provide the employee with the necessary documents certifying facts related to the employment relationship within 14 days of the request. According to the same code, the employer is obliged within this period to provide an objective and fair characterization of the employee's professional qualities and results of their work or an objective and fair recommendation when applying for a job with another employer. In other words, if you are a manager or team leader, you cannot get out of this obligation if an employee requests it from you.

If you are an employee and want to start a new job, you can read the articles "How to Leave a Job - Resignation Letter", 
"The Most Effective Ways to Look for a Job" and "How to Negotiate a Better Salary"

How do employers respond when they are asked for a recommendation for work well done?

There are usually two common ways managers respond.

One is to agree, but ask the employee to write the recommendation themselves, and the managers have no objection to signing it in their name. This can be justified by a lack of time, but above all it shows the employee a lack of willingness and disrespect for their time and work in the company. Moreover, in this case the recommendation is unlikely to be fully objective and may not sound entirely realistic. Keep in mind that the recommendation will probably include your contact details, and if someone calls you for an opinion after you have signed a recommendation, it will be unpleasant if you express a different opinion from what you stated in the recommendation. This will say a lot about you as a professional. Do not forget that writing a recommendation shows both the employee's work and qualities, and it can also create an impression of your work and qualities. Therefore, it would be more reasonable to make an effort and write the recommendation properly according to the rules and requirements.

The second option, which is better, is for the employer or manager to write the recommendation themselves (the reference), using real examples from the employee's work, indicating the qualities that he/she truly possesses, so that the reference sounds much more credible and will be of greater benefit to the employee when applying for a new job.

If you have chosen to write the recommendation yourself and are not sure what it should look like and what it should include, this article will give you more clarity. Ask your colleagues whether there is a sample work recommendation to help you remember how to format the reference.

 Course “Team Management”.

Recommendation from an employer. Where should you start writing a work recommendation?

First of all, you should know that a recommendation is part of business correspondence and although it is defined as a free-text testimonial, it should still be formatted professionally using a business style of expression and comply with the rules for drafting a business letter.

Recommendations for well-done work can be prepared for repeated use when applying for a job or intended for a specific position and company where the employee is applying for work. Before you start drafting the recommendation, it is a good idea to clarify with the employee whether the recommendation will be general or for a specific job. This determines which qualities and skills of the employee you will point out so that the recommendation is as useful and targeted as possible.

It is important to say here that if you do not have good feelings or an opinion about the employee, it is better to ask someone else who is satisfied with the employee's work to write the reference for the employee. After all, the idea of the recommendation is to focus on well-done work and the employee's good qualities. Moreover, if you write negative reviews and present the candidate's incompetence, the question is why you worked with this person in the first place and what that says about you as a professional.

How many pages should a recommendation be? Recommendations should be neither too short nor too long – up to one and a half pages.

After you have clarified in advance with the employee for which position or for which specific company the recommendation will be prepared, it is time for the main part – to write the recommendation.

 Course „Business Correspondence“.

What should a work recommendation from an employer for an employee contain?

The work recommendation (employee reference)  contains some mandatory elements.

1) Names, position, and contact details of the employer/manager who prepares the recommendation.

2) Document title and the employee's full name, to whom it refers, and the position for which they are recommended (if any).

3) Recipient (if the employee recommendation is for a specific company) - name, position, institution, recipient's address.

4) Content

• The professional status of the author of the reference and how they know the person they are recommending; the period in which the employee worked in the company and the position or positions held by the employee.
• The candidate's professional qualities, skills, and character traits are described. It is good to present specific examples from the employee's work and the results they achieved. Projects or activities in which the employee participated may be mentioned.
• A recommendation for the position the candidate may take.

5) Conclusion - expresses confidence that the recommendation will be useful. Here you can include a phone number or email in case of questions.

6) Place and date of drafting.

7) Initials of the author, signature, and stamp.

Below you can use a sample work recommendation:

Work Recommendation Template Sample 

In Conclusion

A recommendation from an employer can be provided in paper form or in electronic format. 

After you have written the text, do not forget to check again for spelling or factual errors, because this would create a bad impression both for you and for the candidate.

As you understand, writing work recommendations is a responsible task that presents both the employee and you as a professional and builds an opinion about the entire company you work for. In addition, the way you prepare work recommendations will show other employees how you treat the staff and whether they can count on you, whether you value them and respect their work even when they move in another direction. Therefore, the advice is to take this task seriously and responsibly.

Always send the work recommendation in PDF format

Here you can download a sample work recommendation:   Work Recommendation PDF

"Evaluation is a wonderful thing: it makes what is excellent in others belong to us as well." - Voltaire

     We are looking for talents, apply for a job with us!

 If you want to learn more about writing business texts and documents and what they should contain, take a look at the training „Business Correspondence“, which contains many examples and useful tips.