Are character references useless?

Besides confirming dates of employment, are character references from a job/intern applicant essentially useless? No applicant is going to list sent a reference that is going to say anything bad about the person, so I don't even bother asking character questions.

When hiring in the past, i've asked for references, but only use them to confirm that the person was there. Regarding contacting his/her former employer, I know there are liability issues regarding what they can say about the person - so this isn't of much help either.

Besides a background check, linkedin/google search etc, what are some ways to do due diligence for a new applicant?

How highly do you value letters of recommendation?

3 Comments
 

I mean.. if it's a character reference from Hank Paulson, it probably isn't useless..

In all seriousness, it most likely won't hurt you, and if you have something "non-standard" on your resume or other special circumstance, a character reference may be helpful in assuaging an employer's concerns. But to be honest, I don't imagine that it will make much of a difference in most cases.

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