In today's job search, is having a LinkedIn account a must? Does it improve your chances of getting hired, even if it's freshly made? Been at Verizon for over two decades and I never thought I'd need it, but I'm not so sure anymore.
4 replies (most recent on top)
@OP - It's not a must, but a serious "gotta have". Activity, history and quality of connections matter too. If you have not interviewed or applied for positions for really long time, the hiring evolution may surprise you. Start with a resume. One page should be fine since you are working for just one employer. Creating a lnkd profile will be easier after the fact. Complete every section, short sentences, simple words. Use a professional head shot, get it from your local studio. Never pay for any resume service. Get resume/interview help from your town/county outplacement service.
I do not have lnkd profile. Had five jobs in last couple decades. Cold applications using company website every time. No referral, knew no one in the company, large or small. Withdrawn application if the hiring manager did not "vibe", accepted a job on my terms, decided to leave in a year without another job lined up. On the other hand, my application to interview ratio was always below 5%, the jobs that I really liked and fit did not respond to my application, recruiter asked me question they shouldn't have, was ghosted countless time before ghosting was a thing, offer withdrawn after leaving a steady job. If I had linkedin and networking skills, my employment experience might be albeit more "stable". Does not bother me really. Everywhere I worked there were people with good intentions and many I could not relate to. I worked with them and kept work at work once out the building, for that day or forever, that is just my individual preference.
As much as "friends hire friends" is true, so are "people buy from people" and skill/experience get you a job. Easier with friends and connections true, but easy is not for everyone.
It's just a very difficult job market unfortunately. If you worked at one place for two decades, and survived many rounds of structuring, you have better people skill. You will be all right. Good luck.
Linkedin presence is important, but not as important to put every last resume accomplishment into a profile. Many people use it like the business Facebook (i.e., "Look at Me!").
Unfortunately though, it was founded by a Co-mieBoy so I don't use it much and lean to other sites.
Please research account creation best practices, even look at others profiles for reference. As a younger VTeamer I see too many "boomer" out of date and not useful profile setups that don't do you any favors. Need descriptions on jobs and added skills. A well created new LinkedIn profile is a quick glance baseline for recruiters that lean to LinkedIn Recruiting (recruiting tool). Shouldn't take long!
Yes I think you need a profile. Add the URL to your resume