All too often, not enough thought is given to this part of the CV, perhaps because there is an incorrect perception that references are just a formality tacked on to the end of the selection process.

Natasha Keating, director of Sigmar Recruitment's Cork office, says that the majority of employers are careful about checking references before making a final decision on a candidate.

"References are very important and often prevent a candidate from getting a job offer, " she says. "If, for some reason, you can only provide one referee, a company is likely to go for another candidate. The only exception is if you have a reasonable excuse, for example if you have only had one job.

In such a case, you might be allowed to use a peer referee or college lecturer. The more experience you acquire, the more senior a role you'll be applying for and, at that level, companies are very thorough about checking references.

After all, once they've hired someone, it can be very difficult to let them go."

Keating's advice is not to include referees' details on your CV but to put a note in to say that they can be provided on request.

"Once you put those details down you are giving the company permission to contact them directly, " says Keating. "And it is very important that you contact them yourself before any potential employer contacts them."

This is a common misconception , , that references only come into the hiring process at a late stage, when the decision has more or less been made. Not so, says Keating: "Many opt to give their current employer as a referee. This is not a good idea, as you are indicating that your prospective employer can contact your current employer for a reference. Reference checking is not left to the very end of the decision-making process; it is part of it."

Gerry McLarnon, founder of International Human Resources Consultancy, says that contacting your chosen referees is the most important thing to remember when writing your CV. This is both for courtesy reasons and also to give them a chance to remember who you are and be prepared. They are more likely to give you a positive reference if they are forewarned than if they are contacted out of the blue. And if, a year or two down the line, you decide to apply for a new job again and want to keep the same referees on your CV, you should contact them again.

"Candidates should also make sure that they choose someone they can rely on to give a good report about them, " says McLarnon.

On this point, Keating warns against always automatically going for your two most recent employers, as they might not necessarily be able to give the most suitable references for the job you are applying for.

"For example, if you are applying for a team leader role and your last job had no team leading element to it but your previous two jobs did, then you would be better off using referees from those two jobs, " she says. "There are no hard and fast rules as to who to select. You need to pick those who will give most insight into the skills you have that are relevant for the job."

While it is illegal to write a bad reference, there are ways and means to get a negative message across and most companies know how to do it.

And a final word of advice?

As with the rest of your CV, be honest. "Never give a false reference by, for example, saying that a particular person was your boss when in fact they were just a colleague you went to lunch with regularly, " warns Keating.