Ask a recruiter - LinkedIn Edition

The second edition of Ask a recruiter brings you insights on your linkedin Profile. What do recruiters look for in your LinkedIn Profile. This article is a little bit different because I want you to read what the experts say themselves. We asked our experts a few questions and their responses are below: 

1. What is the first thing you scroll to when you look at a job seekers profile?

   To me, the first thing I look at is your experience. Everything else is secondary. This was the consensus with our experts as well. In the experience section they look for career trajectory, it’s not always about promotions but about skills. 

   “That doesn’t mean you need to have every bit of experience listed on the job description or that transferable skills don’t count, by the way.” - Matt Hearnden

   “Have you diversified your skills, or are you just clocking in and out? Show me your journey, not just your titles”, said Desiree Goldey

2. What happens when you pull up someone’s profile and it doesn't go beyond job titles, company names, and dates?

   While this isn’t a red flag for our recruiters but can be a deterrent for hiring managers. It’s more than listing basic information. They want to know what you achieved. Not just the What, Where, When but also the how. Companies are hiring people who are going to produce for them, so they want to know how you achieved the accomplishment. 

   “'I did stuff at places for some time.' Details matter. What did you achieve? How did you make an impact? I want to know the 'how' and 'why,' not just the 'what' and 'when.’” - Desiree

   “For higher-volume roles that are in demand right now, I would likely not reach out, as so many other qualified folks have taken the time to provide me with more detail upfront so that I know whether it would be a good use of my time to reach out to them or not based on the details in their profile” - Emily Mucken

3. How important is a summary on a profile?

   Summary to me is only important on a linkedin profile if you’re switching careers or industries, otherwise your experience should do the talking. 

   Summary is one of the most important parts of your profile, as it gives people a quick overview of who you are, what you do, and what you can offer. A well-written summary can make a big difference in how people perceive you and how they decide to engage with your profile, especially for us recruiters. - Sim

   I think they can really help - but only if it’s written in a way that’s of benefit to a recruiter/hiring manager/company. If it’s just a summary of what you’re looking for, it’s probably not worth it. As with a CV, think about the following: “What does the hiring manager need to see to invite me to interview?” - Matt

4. Does a good LinkedIn headline make a difference in whether you contact the candidate or not? 

   A good headline can make a difference if you’re switching your careers or industries. It also helps when the candidate doesn’t have much on their profile. 

   Yes, it makes my job a lot easier as a good headline dictates what type of roles they are looking for. If they didn't have the headline I would still look at their experience section to determine if I would contact them or not if that gave me the information I need. The key is having the proper and relevant information listed.  - Sim

   LinkedIn does a pretty good job of walking people through how to optimize their profile.  If they follow LinkedIns guidance they will appear in most recruiter searches.  Whether the recruiter is using boolean or the advanced search features put forth by LinkedIn it all comes down to keywords and filling out the profile for industry/job titles etc.  The more quality information they put in, the more likely they are to appear at the top of a targeted search.  - Cameron

5. What do you believe a job seeker can do to optimize their profile to appear on more recruiter searches? 

   Keywords, keywords, keywords! LinkedIn does use keyword matching to rank profiles in recruiter searches and this is where your keywords matter. 

   Make sure that you're using common terms and job titles in your industry on your profile. If your company calls you a "software genius" but you are a software engineer, update your LinkedIn to what the industry would look for you and know you by more commonly. - Emily

   Have a good headline (AKA list the job titles/roles they are seeking), have an updated location (since being Virtual a lot of people forget to do this), Have a strong summary outlining your professional journey, have their minimum last 10 yrs of professional experience listed or stated in bullet points (easier to read) with their relevant skill sets to the job they did, list their technical skill sets if an IT role (This is a must), and put any relevant certifications they have towards the job they are seeking. - Sim

   LinkedIn does a pretty good job of walking people through how to optimize their profile.  If they follow LinkedIns guidance they will appear in most recruiter searches.  Whether the recruiter is using boolean or the advanced search features put forth by LinkedIn it all comes down to keywords and filling out the profile for industry/job titles etc.  The more quality information they put in, the more likely they are to appear at the top of a targeted search.  - Cameron

6. And of course the most important: Does an Open to work banner deter you from contacting a candidate?  

   You all already know my opinion on this! Put on the open to work banner. 

   Not at all.  I am actually mad that we can continue to have this debate.  I actually go to these profiles first, because I know that I am more likely to get a response. To me, it shows transparency and readiness. However, make sure the rest of your profile backs it up. Being open to work isn't just about availability; it's about being the right fit for the next opportunity. - Desiree

   Never. Open to Work is ideal! It means someone is ready to talk with me... win-win! - Emily

   Hell to the NO. Matter of fact OTW banner people are my first go-to folks while sourcing.  - Sim

   No - for some searches people with the open to work banner are the first people I reach out too. - Cameron