Understanding Reference Numbers in Offer Letters: Why Do They Matter and Should They Change?

Understanding Reference Numbers in Offer Letters

Would you please let me know the importance of a Ref No in an offer letter and whether the Ref No should change with every new offer letter? Also, what is the difference between a Ref No and an Employee Code?

Thanks & Regards,
Pooja

The reference number is purely for our office use, and by the reference number, you are able to identify or locate the concerned paper. For example: Int(Mktg)/0022/032012. This relates to the interview letter of the Marketing department organized in the month of March 2012, and the serial number of the candidate is 22.

The Employee code number is different from the reference number. The code number is related to the employee who joins after completion of all formalities, and it is his identity with respect to his employment in the industry. EC is the identity of the employee until he quits the employment in the organization.

Regards,
Kamesh

Advantages of Reference Numbers

The advantages will be:

When a large number of letters are issued in a day, all of them bear the same date, making it difficult to determine from a consolidated record like a letters register whether a particular letter was issued. The reference number indicating the name, place, or subject makes it easily identifiable.

Regards,
B. Saikumar

Having a reference number in any letter (or, for that matter, in an Offer Letter) is not mandatory. However, for the ease of record-keeping, filing, and future referencing, it is recommended. If your organization is small and you issue Offer Letters infrequently (e.g., once a week, fortnight, or month), you can omit the reference number and instead identify such letters or correspondence by the date of issue. I hope this clarifies the matter.

Warm regards,
Raj Kumar

Having a reference number is important for each and every correspondence as it helps us to refer back at a later stage. Whether our company is big or small, a reference number is mandatory and will definitely assist us in the future.

In my experience, something that may seem unimportant today can become crucial and necessary in the future. Therefore, it is essential not to underestimate the importance of such details when communicating with others.

Thank you.

Regards,
Chandrasekaran R

A reference letter number, as conveyed by all our friends, helps to track the same at a later date. The alphanumeric system is normally used. The reference number gives some idea to all concerned about what the letter pertains to. It is individualized as per the organization or department.

Even in a smaller organization, it does help to bring about some order and system in place as far as correspondence is concerned.

I think you are also speaking from an HR perspective—an offer letter to a prospective candidate can have some nomenclature in series—but this is totally as per your department's convenience.

Employee code, as mentioned by others, pertains to a specific code allotted to the employee by the organization.

Hope this answers your queries.

Regards,
H Prasad
Senior Training Consultant

Understanding Reference Numbers in Offer Letters

Reference numbers are usually used to track the hard copy of the letter and determine the file in which it is stored. By reading the office procedures book, you will learn how to assign File Numbers, Filing Numbers, and Reference Numbers.

Regards

Mentioning a reference number on any official document is important. When we handle a large number of documents or letters, we assign reference numbers to them so that we can easily locate them in the future. Please remember to include the Reference Number on the offer letter.

With best regards,

Thank you all, but in my organization, no reference number has been allotted properly previously. Now, how should I start it suddenly? Would you please let me know how to allot it (meaning, what should I mention in that)?

So far as offer letters are concerned, as HR, you want to know:

1) For which post the offer letter has been issued and to whom it was issued. Since a candidate's identity is linked to a place always, you can cite the abbreviated forms of place and post in the reference number. It should invariably reflect the name of the department which issues such a letter. If the filing of hard copies is made post-wise, you can retrieve them easily.

For example, if you want to issue an offer letter to a candidate from Mumbai who is selected for the post of Marketing Executive on 10-3-2012, your reference number and date on the offer letter shall be:

HR/Mum/mkt/1 (indicative of the serial number of the letter) dated 10-03-12,

B. Saikumar
HR & Labour Law Advisor
Mumbai