It's also frustrating even if it does matter. I was applying for a job where they informed me I may need to provide references, and I was having a hard time try

It's also frustrating even if it does matter. I was applying for a job where they informed me I may need to provide references, and I was having a hard time trying to come up with people I wasn't currently working with, who could speak to my skills, who I also thought were good enough writers or speakers to convey that, and were also someone I was willing to impose upon to do that for me. I've been in the industry for ten years, but if I had to narrow down to the folks I'm not currently working with who worked closely with me, it's not that many people, unless we're going to people from 5+ years ago, and at that point, if I was on the receiving end of that, I don't know if I'd trust a reference that was that out-of-date.