Reference letters. Clear. Fair. Compliant.
Solution · SME6 min readFor management & fiduciaries
Solutions · SME

Work references for Swiss SMEs

When management and fiduciaries write the references themselves, there is often no time for legal research. ZeugnisPilot takes over the research and form — you retain professional responsibility.

  • From CHF 5.– per reference (single reference)
  • CHF 29.–/month — 10 references included
  • HR integration: bexio · Personio · SuccessFactors
Four recurring themes

Typical pain points in SMEs

We hear these points in every sales conversation with Swiss SMEs.

No in-house HR

Management and fiduciaries write references on the side — it costs hours and often ends with empty phrases that help no one.

Uncertainty around Art. 330a CO

What absolutely must be included? What can be left out? Who is liable if the next employer complains? Without a legal briefing, every reference feels like a risk.

No template maintenance

The old Word template from 2019 is passed from employee to employee — with an outdated letterhead, the wrong workload and copy-paste errors.

No recognisability

Every reference looks different. Recipients remember layouts — inconsistent documents come across as unprofessional.

Functions, not platitudes

What ZeugnisPilot takes off your hands

Straight from bexio

OAuth integration with your bexio account. Employee, role, start date and workload come through automatically — no retyping.

Kompass standard

Structured 5-field assessment with a controlled verbal scale instead of codes. Legally robust, fair, modern.

Pre-publish compliance check

AI checks your draft against Art. 330a CO, secret codes, form and discrimination risks. You see the findings before the PDF goes out.

PDF with QR verification

Every reference is given a unique doc ID, a content fingerprint and a QR code. Recipients can verify authenticity in 5 seconds.

Four-eyes workflow

Two signatures (e.g. management + HR) are catered for in the layout. The audit trail documents every change.

Swiss data residency

Hosting in the Zurich region (europe-west6). Personal data does not leave Switzerland.

"We are a fiduciary team — work references were the item that was left lying around every week. With ZeugnisPilot it is a Wednesday-afternoon job, no longer a weekend marathon."
HR lead, Swiss SME with 18 employees
Fig. 01The finished A4 PDF: letterhead, body text, signature fields, QR code with content fingerprint. Print-ready immediately.
How a reference is created

Workflow in 15 minutes

  • Select employee — directly from bexio. Role, workload and start date come along.
  • Select standard — Classic or Kompass v1.0 (recommended).
  • Enter assessment — grade 1–5, task keywords, strengths, behaviour.
  • Generate — ZeugnisPilotAI drafts the text in 8–15 s in Swiss Standard German.
  • Compliance check — AI checks against Art. 330a CO, codes, form, discrimination.
  • Apply corrections — decide on each finding individually.
  • Editor fine-tuning — revise manually, with a live preview on the right.
  • PDF + QR — download with doc ID, content fingerprint and verification code.
Transparent pricing

What it costs

Single reference (CHF 5.– each): No monthly subscription, ideal for very rare use — you only pay when you create a reference. Starter (CHF 29.–/month): 10 references included, overage CHF 5.– per reference up to #100, then CHF 4.– (volume discount). Professional (CHF 49.–/month): 20 references included, otherwise the same overage tariff as Starter, with multilingualism and priority support. All plans cancellable monthly, no setup fee. → Full pricing overview

FAQ

Frequently asked questions

Do we need bexio for ZeugnisPilot?
No. You can also start without bexio — employees are then entered manually. With bexio, you save 5–10 minutes of data entry per reference because role, workload, start and end dates are taken over directly.
What does ZeugnisPilot cost for an SME with 8–25 employees?
Three options: single reference at CHF 5.– each (no subscription, ideal for very rare use), Starter at CHF 29.–/month with 10 references included (overage CHF 5.– per item up to #100), or Professional at CHF 49.–/month with 20 references included. All plans cancellable monthly, no setup fee.
Who is legally responsible for the finished reference?
As with any issued work reference, responsibility remains with the issuing employer. ZeugnisPilot is a writing and review tool — the HR sign-off before dispatch is done by you.
How long does a reference take from start to PDF?
With existing bexio data typically 12–18 minutes: select employee, select standard, enter assessment, generation (8–15 s), compliance check (6–12 s), editor fine-tuning, PDF download.
Can we store templates or our letterhead?
Yes. In the Pro plan you can store the logo, company address and signature data once — they appear automatically on every PDF in the letterhead.
What happens to old references if we cancel ZeugnisPilot again?
The generated PDFs belong to you and are stored locally with you. We only store the verification metadata (doc ID + fingerprint) on the server side. Upon cancellation, you can export this verification data or have it deleted.
What does Swiss data residency look like?
The backend runs on Google Cloud Run in the europe-west6 region (Zurich). Anthropic Claude is used as a sub-processor in the EU. We sign a DPA with Pro and Enterprise customers.

Your first reference in 15 minutes

Starter plan without a credit card. Upgrade to Pro at any time if needed.