A referral circle only works if you actually trust the people in it — you're putting your own reputation behind every introduction you make. Referna curates each circle from non-competing professionals, then matches you to the right peers with AI-ranked recommendations built from your real onboarding profile — and nothing happens without your say. Here's exactly how that works, and what it doesn't include.
Curated, then matched — not open enrollment
There's no observer mode and no sitting in as a guest before you apply, because there's no single moment of judgment to sit in on. Referna curates each circle from professionals who serve the same kind of client without competing with each other. From there, matching is AI-ranked: your onboarding profile and materials are scored against the rest of the circle, and you see recommended candidates individually — not a group interview panel.
Every introduction requires a yes from both sides
This is the real vetting mechanism: you review each recommended match yourself — their profile, what they do, how they work — and decide yes or no. An introduction only happens once both sides agree. Nobody is added to your circle automatically, and nobody meets you without your approval first. By the time you're actually talking to someone, you've already decided you trust the introduction.
Who ends up in a circle
A Referna circle is 8 to 12 non-competing independent professionals who all serve the same kind of client but do different things. Picture a startup founder's bench of go-to people: a fractional CFO, a startup lawyer, a technical recruiter, a brand designer, a growth marketer. None of them compete for the same work, but they all talk to the same clients, and each regularly hears about a need one of the others could fill. That non-competing structure is deliberate — it means a referral inside your circle is never a conflict of interest, only an opportunity for both sides.
What the vetting actually establishes
- Real profiles, not guesswork. Matching runs on real onboarding data — the same information Referna uses to route referrals — not a resume or a self-reported pitch.
- Your own review, every time. You personally see and approve every recommended match before an introduction happens — no admin or algorithm adds someone to your circle without your yes.
- Curated composition. The Referna team builds each circle from non-competing professionals serving the same kind of client, so the pool you're matched against is deliberate, not random signups.
- Non-competing fit. A candidate only joins if they serve the circle's client type without competing with anyone already in it.
What it doesn't include
To be direct about the limits: this isn't a background check, credential audit, or licensing verification, and there's no group interview panel judging you before you're let in. Trust here comes from AI-matched relevance plus your own review of every introduction — the same diligence you'd already apply before referring a client to someone, just made systematic instead of left to chance.