Founder of RefNow. refnow.com

Automate reference checking. Get references in 36 hours (not 1 week). No more chasing. No more bottlenecks. Fraud detection included. Push completed references to your ATS.

500,000+ references processed. 350+ customers. $1M ARR. Zero funding.

Sign up today at refnow.com.

DM me with any questions.

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Bootstrapped to $1M ARR as Founder.

We help hiring teams eliminate manual reference chasing, speed up hiring by 80%, and catch fraudulent references before they become bad hires.

Before RefNow, I was a Senior Software Engineer at Gamesys and Bally's. Built an automation tool used company-wide that eliminated hours of manual work. Saw firsthand how removing boring tasks transforms people's work lives.

Built community features used by thousands of players daily. Learned that great UX beats powerful features every time.

Started RefNow in 2020 with my co-founders. We're a lean 3-person team building a profitable, bootstrapped SaaS that solves real problems.

I write content for LinkedIn about SaaS growth, automation, and bootstrapping.

Follow me to watch us build a profitable SaaS in public.

Ben Adams

They hired tens of thousands of police officers.

Without checking a single reference.

Let that sink in.

For six years, forces including the Met, Greater Manchester, Lancashire, Merseyside and Cumbria simply switched off pre-employment reference checks.

The result?

130+ officers and staff went on to commit crimes or misconduct. Including David Carrick, now serving 37 life sentences. And Cliff Mitchell, a serial rapist.

These aren't admin roles. These are officers with powers of arrest. Access to sensitive data. Public trust.

All because someone decided references were optional.

Here's what frustrates me:

Reference checking isn't complicated. It's not expensive. It doesn't take weeks.
But when you're under pressure to hit recruitment targets, corners get cut. And the "boring admin stuff" is always first to go.

Except references aren't boring admin. They're the last line of defence before someone enters your organisation.

If a nursery or care home skipped references, Ofsted would shut them down. But somehow police forces got away with it for years.

This isn't a technology problem. It's a priorities problem.

And until organisations treat pre-employment checks as non-negotiable, we'll keep reading headlines like this.

Founder @ RefNow | Stop Chasing References | Get Them Back in 36 Hours, Automatically

Work experience is cool and all.

But tell me what you do for fun.

As a candidate, I thought the hobby section of my CV was filler. Who cares that I like football, padel, or reading business books?

How does that make me any better at my job?

Turns out, it does.

Hiring is one of the most critical decisions any business makes. Get it wrong, and it costs you months.

Here's what I've learned from the other side of the table:

Skills get you the interview. Culture fit gets you the job.

When I'm reviewing a CV, I read the hobby section carefully.

Team sports? Probably works well with others.

Marathons or triathlons? Likely disciplined and self-motivated.

Reads business books? Curious, invests in themselves, and probably thinks about growth when no one's watching.

None of this is a guarantee. But it's signal.

And when you're a small team where one bad hire can derail everything, signals matter.

If you're a candidate, don't treat your hobbies as filler. Use them to show who you are beyond the job title.

If you're hiring, don't skip this section. It might tell you more than experience ever could.

HR teams spend 6+ hours chasing references every week.

In 2026, that's embarrassing.

I've spent the last few years talking to hundreds of HR teams about their reference process.

Here's what I keep hearing:

"It's all manual."
"I'm constantly chasing people."
"I have no idea where we're at with any candidate."

Sound familiar?

The problem isn't that reference checking is hard. It's that most teams are still doing it like it's 2010.

Emails. Phone calls. Spreadsheets. WhatsApp messages to candidates asking them to chase their own referees.

Meanwhile, time-to-hire stretches out. Candidates get frustrated. And sometimes you lose great people to competitors who moved faster.

Here's what we've learned building RefNow:

Automation isn't about removing the human element. It's about removing the admin so humans can focus on what matters.

When you cut collection time from 2 weeks to 32 hours, three things happen:

Candidates feel valued (not stuck in limbo)
HR teams stop playing inbox tennis
You actually spot fraud before it becomes your problem

The shift from manual to automated reference checking isn't about technology. It's about respecting everyone's time.

Yours. Your candidates'. Your referees'.

Self Employed

Freelance Designer and Art Director

White Label LIVE X

Working as the Creative Lead on a large event for a global client, I managed the creative from the beginning to end which included proposing the creative direction, presenting directly to the client, creating visuals and mockups, liaising with partners and suppliers and coordinating freelance support through to production.

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Hot Pickle

Freelance Experiential Designer

Treeapp

I was responsible for all product design (design system, interface design, user testing, prototyping) for the mobile app Treeapp, an app which allows users to plant a tree for free, everyday, in less than a minute. 

I was also responsible for creating all printed and digital marketing collateral, designing their website (including a new B2B mini site) and addition business development collateral including investment decks and impact reports.

It is available to download here: https://thetreeapp.page.link/in

Design Lead (Product - UX/UI) 

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Industry Branding

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Freelance Graphic Designer

madeleinedann.com

With over seven years of experience as a freelance designer and art director, I have developed a versatile and adaptable skill set that enables me to create seamless design outputs for diverse clients and projects. I combine conceptual thinking with curated art direction and technical ability.

My passion lies in branding and brand experience, with much of my work being experiential design for activations and events. I have worked on projects for global clients such as Magnum, McDonald's and Pokemon, managing the creative process from proposal to production. 

I also have experience in branding strategy and identity creation, motion graphics, and UI/UX for apps and websites. 

I am always keen to challenge myself with new briefs and opportunities, so please do get in touch if you'd like to discuss an upcoming project.

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The Battle

Ben Adams

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