I received an email from LinkedIn this week asking me to share my story about getting a new job. I notice they used variable attributes in the email for my name, title, and company name.
LinkedIn is now a primary tool in my professional career to facilitate communication and networking. I’ve used LinkedIn since the early days when it was simply a professional address book. Today, my LinkedIn profile:
- Doubles as my resume.
- Maintains a current list of my professional network. It helps to me know when connections are promoted and if they change jobs.
- Creates a connection chain to specific companies.
- Provides membership to affinity and interest groups.
- Gives me a place to answer and contribute to community questions about business and technology topics.
I thought it would be nice to document how LinkedIn was a key factor in my recent job change. It provides a good record for my own history and provides a nice fit into the subject theme for The Merchant Stand blog. Here is a copy of how I responded to the LinkedIn email inquiry:
A recruiter from Curtis 1000 pulled my profile during a keyword search for a couple of open marketing positions. She reached out to me to see if I might be interested in the either of the two positions or if I knew someone that I could refer to her. I didn’t feel that either of the two positions was a good fit for my skill set or future interests. However, I did refer a former co-worker to her that I thought would be a great fit for the job. LinkedIn had opened a connection that would become important.
Two days later I noticed a job posting at Curtis 1000 for VP of Technology and Systems Solutions in the screen section labeled “Jobs you may be interested in”. The posting showed because I was already using the ‘follow company’ feature on LinkedIn for Curtis 1000. The job description and summary both matched my previous professional experience and contained areas that I wanted to grow towards. Since I already had an open connection with the recruiter I reached out to her expressing my interest.
Three months later, after several interviews and discussions, I accepted and started the new job. LinkedIn was the tool that created the initial professional connection and the tool that suggested a relevant job description based on my profile and interests. Thanks LinkedIn!