Letter of recommendation from individual entrepreneur Why do banks ask for letters of recommendation when opening an account? Components of a document

In some cases, for a successful transfer or employment to a new job, it may be important for an employee not only a personal portfolio, but also a letter of recommendation, the sample of which depends on the specific situation. It is impossible to give a general formula for drawing up such documents of a largely creative nature, however, there are a number of features that should be taken into account when drawing it up in any case.

Currently, such a document is not widespread enough in the practice of business correspondence between firms or government agencies to claim that there are some standards for its preparation. Of all the documents, along with a resume, a letter of recommendation can be considered the most creative in nature, so it is advisable to compose it in conditions of sufficient time, and not in a hurry. In addition, the psychological attitude is important - the better the text is thought out and felt, the more it reflects the real achievements of the employee, the more benefits it can give him.

It is initially compiled as a positive review of an extended nature, which is devoted to:

employee (in most cases);
the entire organization or its department.

A header indicating the full name of the organization, its details, contacts, and also (if available) its logo - most often companies have letterheads on which all official correspondence is printed, including letters of recommendation to employees according to established templates.
Last name, first name, patronymic, contact details and position of the person to whom the recommendation was given.
An introductory part, which indicates in what period of time and in what position the employee worked in the company (links are provided to the relevant internal regulatory documents - orders).

EXAMPLE. Anzhelika Viktorovna Lagutina worked at Aldi LLC for 4 years (from May 212 to November 2016). Initially, she was approved as a sales manager, then in September 2015 she was transferred to the position of deputy head of the sales department due to the conscientious performance of her duties and the constant implementation of the sales plan (Order No. ABV-32 dated 09/05/2015).

Information about the person or company or department to which the recommendation is given. In relation to the employee, personal data is provided here (education, work experience, qualifications, personal and professional qualities that allowed him to achieve specific success). The employee’s job responsibilities and what projects he participated in, including on personal initiative, are also described.

During the entire period of work, the employee showed himself to be exceptionally good. Lagutina was responsible in the sales department for achieving sales targets for the time periods established by internal regulations: month, quarter and year. Even during a difficult economic situation in the segment, the employee demonstrated himself as an effective manager who was able to find the right solutions in non-standard situations.

During her work, the sales plan was constantly exceeded by an average of 25%, in which the management of the department and the company sees, first of all, the personal merit of the employee. Lagutina has demonstrated her ability to accurately comply with internal standards and regulations. No cases of lateness or violation of labor discipline were recorded.

Lagutina has a higher professional education in the specialty “organizational management” (2008), took part in many seminars to increase the level of sales within our company, for which she has the appropriate certificates. She speaks English at the Intermediate level, so in August 2014 she was sent to represent our company at a meeting with foreign (Canadian and Finnish) suppliers, for which she also has relevant supporting documents.

Reasons for dismissal from position. As a rule, the company willingly gives recommendations to an employee if his dismissal is due to exceptionally unfavorable economic circumstances: bankruptcy of the company, optimization of staff. In other cases, especially when an employee leaves for a competing company, a request to draw up a letter of recommendation for an employee, even if he has a ready-made sample that just needs to be filled out, may be rejected.

Lagutin's employee is leaving due to staff reduction. The decision to optimize staffing was made at the highest level of the company, so it is not possible to revise it at the moment. In this regard, the company is forced to part with some employees, including Lagutina.

It should be understood that under labor law the employer is not required to draw up such documents. In addition, in order to inspire the trust of the future employer, it is better for the employee to indicate some objective reasons for dismissal:

moving to another city/new place in the city due to personal circumstances;
loss of interest in work due to the fact that functional responsibilities do not change for a long time, and there are virtually no prospects for career growth;
impossibility of continuing work due to changes in personnel, economic policy of the company, due to which the employee cannot perform his previous work, etc.

The final part of the recommendation should directly indicate recommendations that relate to the personal and business qualities of the employee. It is best to directly answer the question of why, in the opinion of authorized representatives of the company, the employee is suitable for the position for which he is currently applying.

We recommend Lagutina A.V. for the position of sales manager at Blagodar and we ask you to pay special attention to her candidacy. In our opinion, she has a number of competitive advantages that allow her to stand out from most other candidates.

Finally, in the complementary part of the letter, the employer can, if he wishes, indicate how grateful he is to the employee for the efforts and specific results that he has achieved throughout the entire period of cooperation.

At the end of the letter, as usual, the contact information of the organization and the person who compiled and signed the document is indicated, dated, stamped and signed.

NOTE. The presence of contact information in the letter is a fundamental requirement, since without specifying information about the organization, a justified mistrust almost always arises in the letter: an unscrupulous employee could falsify the company data and write the text himself. Therefore, it is best to provide the contact (including personal) of the employee who knows you well and who took part in drafting the letter, so that a potential employer can easily and at any time contact him to confirm the specified information.

Sometimes the employees and employers who draw it up do not take such a document seriously, believing that the new employer is able to independently give an objective assessment of whether the candidate is suitable for him or not, based on an analysis of his work record, portfolio with documents confirming personal achievements, as well as during an oral interview or testing.

However, as practice shows, some employers themselves directly indicate that they would like to see recommendations from a previous place of work. Therefore, the employee and his company should take a closer look at how to correctly compose a letter of recommendation, understanding the fact that it is not enough to simply download a sample and fill it out.

unlike a work book, a letter can reflect in more detail and informatively (rather than formally) the employee’s experience in a given position and his specific work achievements;
a letter of recommendation can reflect the personal and business qualities of an employee that are not indicated in certificates, diplomas, etc.;
finally, a recommendation can be made specifically for the desired situation: a specific employer, a specific vacancy and a specific set of job responsibilities.

The text of the letter must be in a formal business style.
At the same time, you should avoid a large number of bureaucracies and cliches - “dry”, unnatural expressions.
It is better to draw up a letter on personal letterhead, and if the company does not use one, try to give the document a more official character using artistic elements.
In terms of text volume: it should not be too large (2 or more pages) and too small (less than half a page). Visually it should resemble a regular statement, and in text it should take about a page.
The letter should be printed in a clear, readable font: neither large nor small.
Long, dense sentences that are difficult to read should be avoided.
The letter should include as many specific numbers and statements about the employee as possible. It should be assumed that the recommendation essentially provides a detailed and complete answer to the question of why this particular employee is optimally suited for this position.
In the text, it is better to avoid banal statements, common expressions and epithets, for example “hardworking”, “not afraid of difficulties”, “effectively copes with his responsibilities, etc.).
If the letter is addressed to a foreign company, you should take care of a competent, professional translation of the text by contacting a competent translator.
Finally, you need to understand that a recommendation is not a boast. Here it is inappropriate to use too lofty words, as well as constructions that clearly exaggerate the qualities of an employee: “very good”, “excellently copes with his duties”, “irreplaceable”, “excellent, wonderful”, etc. Such statements will, at the very least, cause distrust or even a negative reaction.

In fact, it is quite easy to write a letter of recommendation for an employee who has managed to maintain a good relationship with the employer and is not leaving for direct competitors, but has chosen to change his field of activity or leave for a new position, based primarily on the motives of personal development. However, you can convince your employer of such honest intentions only if you have established a truly trusting relationship with him.

In general, no extensive practice has developed regarding the business turnover of letters of recommendation, so the real statistics of their use by employees can only be judged on the basis of individual Internet surveys, which, of course, do not reflect the full picture, but nevertheless serve as a definite a reference point.

A different attitude towards letters of recommendation for employees has developed in a number of Western companies (and in some large domestic ones): for them it serves as a certain sample, on the basis of which they can form a first impression of the candidate. However, even in this case, such a document is used only in cases when it comes to appointment to a responsible position:

leadership;
unique in its tasks (creative positions: musicians, journalists, artists, etc.);
a position related to representing the interests of the company before public structures and in the media (PR);
legal support of the company’s activities;
sales, finance and audit.

However, in any case, no adequate employer’s letter of recommendation to an employee, regardless of the sample in which it was drawn up, will cause a negative reaction, except in extreme cases: when it is drawn up in an overly laudatory, incorrect form, contrary to basic business etiquette.

Therefore, composing such a letter will always be useful - this is an additional competitive advantage that can play an additional or even decisive role in finding a job.

Since 2015, many banks, when accepting documents to open an account for a legal entity, began to require the provision of letters of recommendation or letters of business reputation of the organization from partners, counterparties of organizations wishing to be serviced by the bank. This is due to the tightening of the requirements of the Central Bank and Rosfinmonitoring in the field of identifying clients when accepting services.

Banks must know their customer. Today, it is not enough to provide a package of constituent documents; it is necessary to prove to the bank that the client does not take part in combating money laundering and the financing of terrorism. And banks begin work on studying a potential client, including by studying the circle of partners.

One way is to receive a letter from the client about his business reputation. As a rule, there is no standard form for these letters. However, there are a number of requirements that banks welcome.

The letter must be official, i.e., written on the organization’s letterhead, assigning an outgoing number and date, indicating the TIN, ORGN, and legal address.
It must be signed by the general/director, with the obligatory seal of the organization.

The text can indicate how long ago and in what area the companies have been cooperating, whether obligations under agreements/contracts are fulfilled on time, whether there are financial claims, how the parties evaluate business cooperation.

Such a letter, of course, will not convince the bank that this is a crystal-clear client with whom you can start cooperation without fear. However, it allows you to obtain information about the potential client’s counterparty, because according to the data contained in the letter form itself, you can study an extract from the Unified State Register of Legal Entities, see how often changes are made to the composition of participants, how often legal addresses and general directors change. And just check for the presence of negative information in relation to the founders and the manager.

Therefore it is important provide a letter to the bank from a company that actually operates on the market, with a good reputation and a real, not nominal director.

If a banking organization requires its provision, then our sample letter of recommendation to the bank from a counterparty will be useful. A form is also attached. This form is not the only correct one, but it reflects all the necessary points.

FILES

Recently, banks began to turn to legal entities with a request to provide a letter of recommendation from one of their counterparties. Bankers can be understood, because clients often use the loans provided, purchase leasing services for large objects, etc. A letter of recommendation in these cases minimizes the risk of forming a bad debt obligation.

As for the legal justification of such a procedure, it is provided for in Bank of Russia Directives No. 3179-U dated January 21, 2014.

Thus, a banking organization has the right to request letters of recommendation from counterparties in any volume.

Who to choose as a counterparty

In order to provide what the bank wants, it is not necessary to conduct a survey among all counterparties with whom the organization has ever dealt. You can select several, guided by the following principles:

The recommending counterparty is serviced by the same bank to which the application is submitted (and which sent the request for a letter of recommendation). This way, bank employees have the opportunity to verify the recommender’s responsible attitude in financial matters and monitor the movement of his funds under their jurisdiction.
The recommender has worked extensively and for a long time with the organization. There are no problems, delays, litigation or other “adventures” with him. Still, the timing of cooperation plays a big role in proving a responsible approach to business.
The counterparty is known, is in good standing with banks, and has no problems concluding transactions. In principle, any large organization that has established a good reputation will do.

If there are no counterparties with such characteristics, then you will have to choose from what is available.

It is worth noting that if there is insufficient support from counterparties or if there is no response to a request for a letter of recommendation from a counterparty, the bank has the right to refuse service to its client and suspend ongoing operations. So you need to be responsible when requesting any documentation.

Components of a document

The letter of recommendation is drawn up in free form. When writing it, you should be guided by the general rules established for business correspondence. At the top, the details of the counterparty are written down (it is best to fill it out on a specialized form of this organization), as well as the date. Without indicating the latter, the bank may not accept the document, since it needs fresh letters of recommendation (this is implied during the request, although it may not be indicated in its text itself).

The main thing that interests employees of a banking organization is how much they should trust a particular current or potential client. So it is advisable to address the following points in the recommendation:

Details and names of both organizations.
Are the companies counterparties to each other?
An agreement concluded between organizations. Its number and date of signing are indicated.
How long have the companies been cooperating?
Were there any irresponsible steps or complaints on the part of the recommended person (since this is a letter of recommendation, it is assumed by default that there were none).
Whether the counterparty fulfilled its debt obligations, if such arose between the counterparties.

The paper ends with the signature of the head of the recommending counterparty and the date. If possible, a “live” seal is placed. This touch adds weight to the recommendation. Although since 2014, attitudes towards the press have changed significantly.

Possible errors during compilation

When an organization collects the requested package of recommendations, there is no need to collect signatures from different counterparties, using the same text with identical and vague wording such as “long-term cooperation.”

For example, the different number of contracts concluded with the counterparty and the different duration of cooperation should be indicated. It would be useful to indicate additional points characterizing the interacting parties as responsible business partners fulfilling their obligations.

New organizations

If a company's business reputation is at the stage of formation, it makes no sense to request letters of recommendation from a counterparty to the bank. This point must be clarified immediately when business correspondence occurs with a bank employee. But even in a situation where provision is impossible, it is worth answering the request correctly, using specific wording.

Perhaps the bank will be satisfied with the reputation of an individual - the head of the applying organization. It is worth discussing these points, trying to come to a constructive solution that satisfies both parties.

Perhaps, when an individual entrepreneur or legal entity begins to emerge, it makes sense to contact smaller banking organizations that do not request letters of recommendation.

Applications

Copies of the agreements specified in the letter may be attached as the basis for assurances. The larger the amounts and the longer the relationship, the better. You should also not hide anything from bank employees. Perhaps a change in wording will suffice.

For example, if there were some minor complaints during the interaction between counterparties, then it is worth writing in the letter that no major complaints were identified under any of the contracts. On the one hand, this is a positive characteristic, on the other hand, the fact of minor complaints is not hidden.

In general, a sample letter of recommendation to a bank from a counterparty, attached at the top of the text, is the best option. It can be edited to suit a specific situation and the nature of interaction between counterparties. All the main points will be properly described.

The purpose of a counterparty's review of business reputation

These issues are covered in more detail in other materials on our website, for example in the articles:

However, this requirement of banks is not accidental: the Central Bank obliges credit organizations to inspect companies even before accepting them for service (subclause 1, clause 1, article 7 of the law “On combating the legalization (laundering) of proceeds from crime and the financing of terrorism” dated 07.08. 2001 No. 115-FZ, hereinafter referred to as Law No. 115-FZ).

The content of the general provisions of this law is supplemented by special provisions of the Central Bank of the Russian Federation. In particular, clause 2.8 of Appendix 2 to the Bank of Russia Regulation “On Identification of Clients by Credit Institutions...” dated October 15, 2015 No. 499-P (hereinafter referred to as Regulation No. 499-P) regulates that reviews about a given client from other bank clients or other credit institutions refer to information that the bank may request in order to fulfill the requirements of sub. 1 clause 1 art. 7 of Law No. 115-FZ. In addition, with the help of reviews about the company’s business reputation, you can exclude the so-called. fly-by-night companies.

Subsequently, the submitted reviews are checked for their compliance with the truth by special services of the bank.

There are no special legal requirements for the case where recommendations are requested by private companies before concluding a transaction. The following articles will tell you how else you can check a potential counterparty:

Review of business reputation: content

A unified/standard sample of such a review/letter of recommendation has not been approved at the legislative level. In addition, clause 2.8 of Appendix 2 to Regulation No. 499-P, for example, directly states that reviews are compiled in free form.

Taking this into account, the composition of the information included in the letter of recommendation / review of the partner’s business reputation is determined by the entity itself presenting such information.

Taking into account the purpose of this document, we can propose the following structure of a letter of recommendation:

Information about the person submitting the review: name, INN, OGRN, legal address, contact information (another option is to print the text of the review on the organization’s letterhead).
Information about the entity in respect of which the review/letter of recommendation is being submitted: name, INN, OGRN, legal address, contact information. In addition, it is also not prohibited to give separate characteristics to the head of the organization, his deputy or chief accountant.
A statement of facts that could characterize the quality of the relationship between the person providing the review and the audited counterparty. Although the list of such facts is not fixed at the legislative level and is usually not regulated by the local documentation of the organization, the following is most often indicated as information about the subject being characterized:

term of cooperation between the parties;
the nature of business relationships;
general qualitative characteristics of cooperation;
some factual examples that could support the conclusions of the person giving the feedback about the audited entity as a counterparty.

Recommendation of the person in respect of whom the review is submitted as a respectable counterparty.
Signature of the authorized person of the subject submitting the review, seal (if available).

A sample of such a document can be drawn up based on the template we offer, which is located below at the link: Review of the business reputation of the counterparty - sample.

Such a review is usually prepared in 1 copy and sent without return to the person who requested information about the business reputation of the relevant counterparty. As a rule, the signature of the head or other authorized person of the organization on such a review and a seal (if any) is sufficient to certify the information contained in it.

Submission of this review/letter of recommendation usually does not entail any legal consequences for the person who submitted it, since the information contained in it is often of an evaluative nature and not subject to verification. However, the bank's security service checks the very fact of the existence of business ties between these counterparties and the duration of such ties.

If the stated facts are not confirmed, the bank will refuse to accept the potential client for service (see also the article Refusal of the bank to open an account for a legal entity). The reputation of the company that provided false recommendations will also be questioned.

So, letters of recommendation / reviews of the business reputation of a potential counterparty are drawn up in any form, certified by the signature of an authorized person of the organization that provided the review and its seal (if any).

The composition of the information in such a document is not regulated, but usually comes down to information about the parties to the relevant legal relationship and the qualitative characteristics of the counterparty in the role of a business partner.

To reflect the advantages of a particular company and its business characteristics, a letter of recommendation is prepared. This document does not have a prescribed form. However, when compiling it, it is worth focusing on the general rules that are relevant for business papers. At the end of the article you can download a sample sample.

The following plan is used for preparation.

Addressee data (relevant in cases where he is known). The entry is located at the top, in the right corner of the page.
Title (“Letter of Recommendation”). Indicated at the center of the new line.
Main part. It is written arbitrarily. In most cases it represents feedback from a supplier, customer, business partner, etc. It is worth indicating the relationship between organizations and the features of cooperation.
Details of the writer of the letter of recommendation for the organization. Enter your full name and position.
Date the letter was written.
Seal of the organization and signature of the originator.

It is worth using the official form of the organization.
The text is in a business style.
It is advisable to avoid common phrases.
In the main part, it is better to provide specific dates of cooperation and examples of the company’s work.
It is worth indicating contact information in the document so that, if necessary, the addressee can clarify unclear points.

Important! It is preferable to present the text of the letter on one page, this makes it easier to understand.

According to the law, such characteristics are not among the required documents for an enterprise. However, a competent recommendation will increase the competitiveness of the company and contribute to the creation of a certain image.

What to write in the main body

The parts are arranged as required for all business documents. At the same time, the main text is compiled in any form. What should you include there?

To add specifics, it is worth mentioning how the company’s employees feel about the assigned work and the requirements presented. At the end, you can indicate whether the writer of the letter would like to continue working with this company.

It is useful to include characteristics in the following areas:

professionalism of employees;
attitude towards counterparties and clients;
the degree to which the enterprise is equipped with modern equipment;
level of stability of the company;
presence of trends towards expansion of the organization;
staff experience.

We emphasize: it is important to indicate specific facts in the document. If we are talking about reaching certain heights, it is worth pointing out the reasons for the growth. After analyzing them, the recipient will be able to draw a conclusion about the advisability of working with this company.

To understand the design of the characteristics, it is useful to familiarize yourself with the templates. The following is a list of the most common wording that contains sample letters of recommendation from an organization for an organization.

(Name of organization) is our permanent partner in the field of (specify field of activity). Throughout the cooperation, the high professionalism and activity of the staff was demonstrated. The assigned tasks were completed within the allotted time frame, while the quality of products (services) met the established criteria. We are satisfied with the level of service of this company and are ready to recommend it for ongoing cooperation.
(Name of organization) during the period of (indicate the dates of cooperation) assumed obligations to manufacture (enter the type of products or services performed). Throughout our collaboration, the company has established itself as a reliable partner, ready to cope with the most difficult tasks. We are satisfied with the result. We recommend (name of organization) as a responsible executor.
By this letter I confirm that during the period of (indicate dates of joint work) the company (name of your company) actually collaborated with (name of partner organization) in the field of (enter field of activity). During this time, we were able to verify the reliability, responsibility and professionalism of our employees. Difficulties that arose during the execution of tasks were promptly resolved. We would like to especially note the creative approach of our employees to solving problems. We confirm that the results of the work (name of organization) meet the stated requirements.