I know that I have had my profile checked when applying for a job. They took a look at recommendations and what not. Its a good way an employer to validate a resume. If someone said they worked for a company for x years and were a top employee, but they are not connected to anyone from that company and they have no recommendations for the work, it will raise suspicion.
I have also seen it useful for people looking to fill a specific role. They change their status to “Looking for an Affiliate Manager in Germany” or something and their network will see it. If any of them is or knows of an affiliate manager willing to live in Germany, they might just give a shout out.
As for affiliates, I’m still trying to figure this one out… I think it might be a good source of connecting to other affiliates you’ve partnered with or done business with to show trust. It might also be a good way to have aff managers recommend an affiliate so when that affiliate signs up for another program they have an easier time. But managers don’t want to loose their top employees, so…