You’re a job seeker ready for the search—updated resume, cover letter, and list of employers you’re interested in working for in hand.
But did you incorporate LinkedIn in your job-searching toolkit?
Cultivate relationships with your LinkedIn connections to accelerate your job hunt, widen your professional network, and find your next opportunity.
Complete Your LinkedIn Profile
LinkedIn can help you develop your digital work portfolio. Before you start networking and looking for opportunities on the platform, make sure your profile has a complete headline, an about section, and details about who you are as a professional and possible employee or candidate.
Connect with Your Current Company
Make it easy for yourself when growing your LinkedIn connections. Your current company can be a starting point to build your network. Link with co-workers and beyond your immediate team. Connect with others across departments and even former employees of the company.
Connect with Others Throughout Your Career History
After you connect with professionals in your current company, it’s time to reconnect with some of your past contacts. Re-establish relationships with co-workers and leadership at former companies if you’re on good terms. If you have little or no work experience, connect with friends, family members, college alums, colleagues from associations or volunteer organizations, or former high school faculty and staff.
Connect with Recruiters and Hiring Managers
LinkedIn offers a feature in its job listings section where you can meet the hiring team for a job you’re interested in. Take advantage of this by connecting or messaging the hiring team about your interest in potentially working for them. You can also connect with employees who work for the company by utilizing LinkedIn’s search tool. Don’t forget Express is here to help! Connect with our company pages and recruiters to find your next opportunity.
It’s important to build your LinkedIn connections and engage with them. Remember, the goal of the connection is to establish or reignite a relationship, get career advice, or even a recommendation. You can start the conversation on LinkedIn by:
- Introducing or reintroducing yourself by messaging your connection
- Sharing your career goals
- Asking your connection about their career journey
- Asking for a recommendation or referral
- Commenting on or share your connection’s posts
Looking for another way to maximize your time as a job seeker on LinkedIn? Once you start applying for opportunities, a recruiter or hiring manager’s first perception of you may be based solely on what they see on your LinkedIn profile. Read this article for five ways to stand out as an all-star with your profile picture.
