Facebook friends as job references?

Recommendation dos and don'ts
These are all great tools, but beware of recommendation hoarding, either getting too many or giving too many.

If you have a bunch of your non-work pals writing testimonials on Jobster, or recommending you on LinkedIn, employers may be turned off if they call your cyber connections to find out what kind of employee you may be, only to find out that you were just drinking buddies.

“This opens the door for the prospective employer to request to speak to these references, thinking that the relationship is professional in nature, to validate claims made by the candidate during the interview process about their achievements and experiences,” says Lee B. Salz, author of “Soar Despite Your Dodo Sales Manager.” “When they find that the reference is personal instead of professional, a trust issue develops between the employer and prospective employee.”

For managers who give out recommendations on social networking sites, the rules of reference non-engagement still apply. Companies have for some years put the kibosh on bosses giving out good or bad recommendations for fear of being sued by former employees, and cyberspace should be no exception, says Rich Falcone, an employment attorney with Payne & Fears in San Francisco.

“Some managers may have the feeling of freedom in cyberspace, doing things from home when they don’t feel the restraints of the office with the HR person looking over their shoulder,” he says, “but we recommend they just give out name, rank and serial number.”

You also don’t want to give a recommendation to every Tom, Dick and Harry. Recommending someone who’s incompetent could undermine your credibility in an industry or a company, says Diane Danielson, CEO of career networking site, Downtown Women’s Club and author of “The Savvy Gal's Guide to Online Networking (or What Would Jane Austen Do?)”

But you want to make sure you have some recommendations on your site. Danielson suggests having at least three recommendations but no more than 10.

Honing your references
Creating a list of recommendations on your site helps give you back a bit of control, says CBIZ’s Berman. “A lot of hiring managers are kind a lazy, so if you give them a lot of good information, odds are they will be less aggressive in finding things out on their own,” she adds.

Be sure to hone your references to people who are specific to the industry you want to enter, and place the most influential contacts at the top of your list.

That said, don’t get mired in cyberspace. Just because you have a long list of virtual recommendations doesn’t mean you should be dropping the ball on the traditional development of your three-person reference list, which is still a key hiring tool for many human resource managers.

As Chuck Pappalardo, managing director of Trilogy Search, a retained executive recruitment firm headquartered in the San Francisco Bay Area, says: “At this juncture, Facebook is simply not a serious site for business at the level I place folks. LinkedIn, however, is becoming increasingly more useful as a networking tool and in identifying candidates. But any posted reference can’t be taken seriously on any level.”

Since the references on these sites are often solicited, many have come to realize such references may not always be the most honest reflection of an individual.

“While some of the comments are certainly genuine with regard to service or capability, to truly check references and be satisfied that we have a 360-degree view of the candidate, we need to go beyond the obvious,” Pappalardo says. “And this means making phone calls and speaking directly to those who know the candidate, including not only relying on provided reference information.”

Ambassador's Alvarez says he uses the information he gets from social networking sites as just one piece of his hiring strategy.

“I won’t rule out someone who’s not on Facebook or LinkedIn, but having recommendations and references up on networking sites can only help you,” he says.

Also in msnbc.com business Your Career: Tips for job hunting during the holidays Frustrated shoppers put credit cards away, pay cash MotorHead: New Audi R8 is a refined land rocket Open House: Homes for sale in a winter wonderland   Video: Retailers, shoppers play cat and mouse with deals

MORE FROM CAREERS

Careers Section Front

Your Career: 7 job-hunting tips for the holidays Single tweet earns man a new job The states where women earn the most Next hot job? Keeping tabs on financial firms Think twice before giving the boss a gift Overqualified, but happy to have a holiday job Your Career: Job fears fuel gossip at work Survey: Surgeons top list of stressful jobs Your Career: Can your name affect your career? Generation X is increasingly ‘whatever’ at work Careers Section Front   Add Careers headlines to your news reader: