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I remember back in the day when cell phones came out. My mother thought they were absolutely ridiculous and refused to get one for our family…two years later, when I started driving (yes, I’m still in my twenties), I wasn’t allowed to leave home without it. My how the tides turn.

That aversion to cell phones in the 90s kind of reminds me of the way many of us in corporate America have been cautiously approaching social networking sites: particularly the big two: LinkedIn and Facebook. Well, I came across an article on MSNBC“Facebook friends as job references?”, which reminded me yet again, that these sites are here to stay…and they’re only going to get bigger!Hiring managers no longer need to pick up the phone to find out if a candidate is viable. They can just check his LinkedIn profile for some references and call it a day. Or, if a hiring manager is feeling adventurous he can take a look at a candidate’s friends on Facebook, see if he knows any of the friends and then email that person’sFacebook “friend” directly, requesting a reference. As an attorney in the article states, “The old days of a page with three references and three phone numbers on it…are over.”

So, is this fair?

Maybe not, but it is legal, so there’s nothing we can do about it. The article points out several issues with these new social network recruiting methods, a few I’d like to point out. 

• I “Friend” therefore, I Reference-Using a person’s Facebook “friends” list to pull out people to e-mail for references seems a little too aggressive, in my opinion. A good portion of Facebook users, such as myself, are somewhat recent college graduates who merely joined the site, back in college, as a way to keep in touch with friends. It first came out when I was a junior in college, and I resisted joining (like my mom did with cell phones) for quite a while. But, finally, closer to graduation, I joined, in hopes of keeping in touch with friends. When I started working, people started to send me friend requests that I barely knew. Some of them were coworkers, some of them were people I met out and about. Bottom line, in no way, when I accepted those Friend Requests did I intend to have these people are job references. 
• Thanks for the reference, buuudddy.- LinkedIn provides an option for former coworkers, clients, etc. to give a job reference. I’ve always thought this is a great feature. I know I’ve read some references on some of the people in my LinkedIn network and thought, “Wow, I’d sure like that person on my team!” But the flipside, is that sometimes people get references from their friends, rather than coworkers, clients, et. And sometimes, it is painfully obviousthat the reference is a friend. For example, if I received a reference from my friend in Omaha, Nebraska who works in accounting at Deloitte, I imagine it would look a little suspicious, considering I’ve never worked in Omaha, and I’ve never worked in accounting either. My advice: Only get references on LinkedIn from people you’ve worked with. Otherwise, you end up looking unprofessional and a little bit desperate.
• Just Say No…sometimes-This article brought up an interesting point, in regards to LinkedIn references. Sometimes, managers need to be cautious about giving references on LinkedIn. Some companies have polices about references, and they most likely probably apply to online references as well. In addition, making too many references or recommending someone who is incompetent can take away from the credibility of a manage

Facebook Not Going Anywhere!

I think it’s clear that like cell phones, social networking sites are not going anywhere! In fact, 10 years from now, the face of recruiting will probably have changed completely and both recruiters and candidates will wonder what they ever did without their trusty Facebook account. AND like cell phones, these little sites will probably evolve from the “Zach Morris” phone to the illustrious IPhone.

But, a caution for both recruiters and candidates: Be careful! Treat your Facebook and LinkedIn accounts like networking tools. If you have a former coworker that you want a reference from, great! But don’t ask your best friend for a reference. Set those privacy settings appropriately! And remember, its okay to say no to reference requests.

This image was taken from Lunch 2.0

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