The first page of the document DocMake makes from the sample values on this page.
HR
Reference Letter
A reference letter is an opinion supported by examples. It is not an employment verification letter: verification states facts a payroll system can confirm, while a reference asks a former manager to vouch for somebody and explain why.
The examples carry the letter. A hiring manager skims the opening, stops at the paragraph describing something the candidate actually did, and reads that one twice, so each strength gets a short claim with a concrete instance beside it.
The relationship line matters as much as the praise. Saying how the signer knows the candidate, in what role, and over what period tells the reader how much weight the rest deserves.
Managers who write these write several a year and the structure never changes. Holding the fixed wording in the template leaves only the name, the relationship, and the examples to think about, and the signature block stays correct every time.
Blanks to fill
| letter_date | Letter date |
| recipient_name | Recipient |
| recipient_title | Recipient title |
| recipient_organization | Recipient organization |
| summary_statement | Opening |
| relationship | How you worked together |
| candidate_name | Candidate |
| candidate_role | Role the candidate held |
| worked_together_from | Worked together from |
| worked_together_to | Worked together until |
| recommendation_statement | Recommendation |
| signer_phone | Your phone |
| signer_email | Your email |
| signer_name | Your name |
| signer_title | Your title |
| signer_organization | Your organization |
| strengths[] | One per item, so a row is added for every item in the list |
The data behind the preview
This is the exact JSON that produced the document above. Change the values, POST them to the API, and you get your version back as DOCX or PDF. Lists grow and shrink with your data; the layout adapts.
- 01 Sign up free and duplicate this template into your workspace.
- 02 Adjust the wording and branding in the visual editor.
- 03 Fill it in the app, share it as a form link, or call the API.
{
"letter_date": "September 15, 2026",
"recipient_name": "Laura Bennett",
"recipient_title": "Head of Engineering",
"recipient_organization": "Contoso Logistics",
"candidate_name": "Marcus Hale",
"candidate_role": "Product Designer",
"relationship": "I was the direct manager of Marcus Hale at Northwind Software.",
"worked_together_from": "February 2023",
"worked_together_to": "July 2026",
"summary_statement": "I am glad to recommend Marcus Hale for the senior design role at Contoso Logistics. He reported to me for three and a half years on a team of nine, and he leaves with my full support.",
"strengths": [
{
"trait": "Turns vague problems into testable designs",
"example": "Given a complaint that our onboarding was confusing, he interviewed eleven customers, found that the failure was a permissions step rather than the layout, and shipped a fix that cut support tickets about setup noticeably in the following quarter."
},
{
"trait": "Works well with engineers",
"example": "He sat in sprint planning by choice, kept a shared component library current, and rarely handed over a design that could not be built as drawn."
},
{
"trait": "Takes feedback without defensiveness",
"example": "After a design review went badly he asked for a second session, brought three revised options, and the team adopted one of them the same week."
},
{
"trait": "Reliable under deadline pressure",
"example": "During the platform relaunch he covered two workstreams for six weeks while a colleague was on leave, and neither slipped."
}
],
"recommendation_statement": "Marcus would be an asset to your team. He left us only because we could not offer the design leadership role he is ready for. I would rehire him without hesitation.",
"signer_name": "Elena Fischer",
"signer_title": "Director of Product",
"signer_organization": "Northwind Software Inc.",
"signer_email": "elena.fischer@northwind.example",
"signer_phone": "+1 206 555 0117"
}Generate this document via the API
One template plus changing data is the whole point. The list of blanks above is the contract, and every new set of values comes back in the same layout: fill it in the app, hand someone a form link, or POST the JSON and get the file straight back.
The request below carries this page's own values, so it runs as soon as the template exists in your workspace. Swap the values for yours and the response is your document.
curl -X POST https://app.docmake.io/api/v1/render \
-H "Authorization: Bearer $DOCMAKE_API_KEY" \
-H "Content-Type: application/json" \
-H "Accept: application/json" \
--output reference-letter.pdf \
--data-binary @- <<'JSON'
{
"template_id": "tmpl_your_template_id",
"format": "pdf",
"data": {
"letter_date": "September 15, 2026",
"recipient_name": "Laura Bennett",
"recipient_title": "Head of Engineering",
"recipient_organization": "Contoso Logistics",
"candidate_name": "Marcus Hale",
"candidate_role": "Product Designer",
"relationship": "I was the direct manager of Marcus Hale at Northwind Software.",
"worked_together_from": "February 2023",
"worked_together_to": "July 2026",
"summary_statement": "I am glad to recommend Marcus Hale for the senior design role at Contoso Logistics. He reported to me for three and a half years on a team of nine, and he leaves with my full support.",
"strengths": [
{
"trait": "Turns vague problems into testable designs",
"example": "Given a complaint that our onboarding was confusing, he interviewed eleven customers, found that the failure was a permissions step rather than the layout, and shipped a fix that cut support tickets about setup noticeably in the following quarter."
},
{
"trait": "Works well with engineers",
"example": "He sat in sprint planning by choice, kept a shared component library current, and rarely handed over a design that could not be built as drawn."
},
{
"trait": "Takes feedback without defensiveness",
"example": "After a design review went badly he asked for a second session, brought three revised options, and the team adopted one of them the same week."
},
{
"trait": "Reliable under deadline pressure",
"example": "During the platform relaunch he covered two workstreams for six weeks while a colleague was on leave, and neither slipped."
}
],
"recommendation_statement": "Marcus would be an asset to your team. He left us only because we could not offer the design leadership role he is ready for. I would rehire him without hesitation.",
"signer_name": "Elena Fischer",
"signer_title": "Director of Product",
"signer_organization": "Northwind Software Inc.",
"signer_email": "elena.fischer@northwind.example",
"signer_phone": "+1 206 555 0117"
}
}
JSON tmpl_your_template_id is
a stand-in: build this template in the visual editor and copy the id it shows, or create one with POST /api/v1/templates. Keys, formats, strict mode and batches are in the API reference.
Or let an AI assistant do it
The DocMake MCP server lets Claude and other assistants make this document the same way. Install it once:
claude mcp add docmake \
--env DOCMAKE_API_KEY=dm_your_api_key \
-- npx -y @docmake/mcp@latestThen ask for the document in plain words:
Make a PDF from my Reference Letter template with letter date "September 15, 2026" and recipient "Laura Bennett".
More hr templates
Certificate of Completion
A one page certificate naming the person, the course, the hours and the day they finished, with a line for the tutor to sign.
View template →Employment Verification Letter
A letter confirming that somebody works for you, since when and in what role, with the salary line you can turn off.
View template →Job Offer Letter
A warm letter offering the role, with the pay, the start day and the day the offer runs out, and a line to accept on.
View template →