Recruiters, talent acquisition, hiring companies all turn to LinkedIn at some point during a hiring process and the more populated with relevant key and buzz words a profile is, the stronger the chance it has of being found.  If you are serious about having your LinkedIn profile found then this is what you need to do today:

• Contact section – put your email address, home location and phone numbers in so you can be easily contacted about job opportunities – even if they are not the right role for you or timing is not right for you, it feels good to be approached and hey, you may even want to throw your hat in the ring!
• About section – copy/paste your CV profile and use this in the About section – but make sure you bring the section to life, use buzz words and key words which will help sell you.  Don’t just say what you do but what your skills mean to you and how they could help a future employer.
• Experience – copy/paste your CV career history so people can easily see your experience – before you do this, make sure it is up to date and your responsibilities are backed up with outcomes and achievements.
• Skills and endorsements – ask colleagues or stakeholder parties you work well with to endorse your skills – this will really give your profile kudos.
• Recommendations – ask people to recommend you – if you know you have delivered great work to them or worked effectively as a team unit they will want to endorse you and sing your praises, again giving your profile kudos.
• Turn on your job alert toggle so you get to hear about opportunities – to create a job alert: search for a job on LinkedIn.  At the top left of the job search results page switch the Job alert toggle to On to create a job alert for your current search criteria. Switch the toggle to Off to turn off the job alert.
• If you are part of an alumni or on a committee or chair of something then include this in activities.
• Finally – let hiring companies and recruiters know you are open to hearing from them,  click the Me icon at the top of your LinkedIn homepage.  Select Settings & Privacy from the dropdown.  Click the Privacy tab at the top of the page.  Under the Job seeking preferences section, click Change next to Let recruiters know you’re open to opportunities.

Trust me, as a recruitment specialist if a candidate submits their CV to me speculatively I will automatically look them up on LinkedIn.  When I am headhunting I will turn to LinkedIn.  If you are serious about being found, or would simply like to be kept informed of potentially exciting job opportunities you cannot afford to not have an updated, fully populated LinkedIn profile.

If you would like further information or need help with your Profile please contact me.