NIH Training Presentation about LinkedIn

1. Using LinkedIn
Effectively:
7th in the “How To” Series
Lori Conlan, PhD
Director, Office of Postdoc Services

2. What will be discussed
 What is LinkedIn
 Who uses LinkedIn
 What LinkedIn “IS” and “IS NOT”
Profiles: how to maximize effectiveness and visibility
What a good profile looks like
Does it really help for getting a job
***Disclaimer: These are suggestions and opinions.
Preferences vary between individuals!!

3. What is LinkedIn?
 “THE” business-related social networking site
 Founded December 2002; launched May 2003
 More than 135 million registered users in more than 200
countries and territories
 Available in English, French, German, Italian, Portuguese,
Spanish, Romanian, Russian, Turkish and Japanese.
Re-connect Power your career Get answers
Find past and present Discover inside Your network is full of
colleagues and connections when you're industry experts willing
classmates quickly. looking for a job or new to share advice. Have a
LinkedIn makes staying business opportunity. question? Just ask.
in touch simple.

4. Who uses LinkedIn?
More than 150 million subscribers
Grows by approximately two new members every
second
About half of the members are in the United States
11 million are from Europe
India has 3 million users and is the fastest growing
since 2009
The Netherlands has the highest adoption rate per
capita outside the US at 30%.
http://www.businessinsider.com/infographic-who-really-uses-linkedin-2012-2

5. Who uses LinkedIn?
 Professionals
 to research potential clients, companies,
industries, positions of prospects
Job seekers
 to get network contacts and companies…to find
an “in”
 to get seen by recruiters and hiring managers
 Recruiters and hiring managers
 to find prospects
 to search through 2nd and 3rd connections
 Entrepreneurs
 to develop an online presence
 to meet other entrepreneurs and potential
investors, partners and clients

6. What LinkedIn is and is not
IS IS NOT
 Used to find contacts and be  It is NOT used solely for social
found…NETWORKING connections…not Facebook or
Twitter
 Share ideas and demonstrate
your knowledge  Should NOT represent you entire
social network
 Learn about companies and
organizations  NOT a private network…people
will see information no matter how
 It is a place to job search or “public” you have your setting
recruit -do NOT put sensitive
company info
-looking for a job and do
NOT want your employer to
know?

7. Profiles
A good summary will answer the following questions:
1. Who are you – name, job, specializing in…
2. What do you do – what particular problems do you solve
3. Why are you the best – describe your successes

8. Profiles: the headline
 Make good use of your LinkedIn headline
Add a photo, personalized title, websites, recommendations
I did a job title,
most people do
Add a professional
website…your lab,
department, etc.
Personalize
your URL

9. Profiles: the summary Kristin’s Profile summary:
LinkedIn will allow 2,000
characters (spaces
included)
Make smart use of white
space
Complete a specialties
list, these are like
keywords

10. Interesting tidbit
This is a heat map on
what Recruiters look at in
the first 6 seconds of a
document
Keep this in mind when
writing your LinkedIn
summary, CV/resume, or any
document
Business Insider/TheLadders:
http://www.businessinsider.com/

11. Profiles: get connected
 There are 2 philosophies for networking
Open:
connect with every request
have as many contacts as possible
more opportunities and channels to reach a key person
Closed:
only connect to those they know and trust
know who they are connected, giving a little more control
Be a little bit of both!!

12. Profiles: six degrees of separation
***No…you don’t need to be Kevin Bacon
 With social networking, we are more like 3-4
degrees of separation from contact of interest
Degrees of Connection http://www.celebritypicnic.com
1st degree: you have directly connected with that person
2nd degree: someone who is in 1st degree contact with
one of your 1st degree contacts
3rd degree: someone who is in 1st degree contact with
one of your second degree contacts
Your LinkedIn Network
41 Connections link you to 1,029,685+ professionals
4,591 New people in your Network since April 3

13.  Find a connection

14. Profiles: how to send out an invitation
 LinkedIn default invite is:Missed
Opportunity
Suggestions on what to include in
your invitation
•Here’s who I am
•Here’s how I know you
•Here’s why I’d like to connect
***Invite via connection
Try
“Hello Dr. X.
I am a Fellow at NCI and I met you at a recent
conference when we discussed the science of
food. I would like to keep connected on linkedin.
Regards,
Kristin Fabre”

15. Experience
 You can import your
CV/resume and Linked in
will automatically add
these sections, but you
will probably have to
modifications
 OR: you can add them
individually
 Make sure to show
relavence

16. Education
Similar to experience, you
can import but may need
some modifications

17. Skills
Don’t just make a list of everything you can do
-only add what describes your expertise and interests…what
sets you apart
Should I add 37
more??

18. Groups
 Seek out groups that are shared
with your peers
 Chose groups that fit your interests
 Reach out to group members
 Ask/answer questions…be active
in dialogue
 Take care in what you say, keep it
professional…netiquette
 DON’T join a group just to join a
group

19. Companies
 Research target companies and their competitors
 Learn specifics on companies
 How are you linked to the company?
 Take advantage of your connections and network

20. Companies

21.  Go to companies

22. Recommendations
Make sure they are
willing and would give
you a positive
endorsement!
**Only select those
who have worked
with you and know
Personalize your
you well request for
recommendations;
do NOT use the
default!!!

23. Recommendations
Write recommendations for others…it’s a two-way street!
-This is also another way to increase your visibility

24. Recommendations
Recommendations on LinkedIn should be short and concise

25. Enhance your profile
Add:
Sections
Applications
Take full advantage of the search option

26. Sections
Add publications, honors, awards, organizations, etc…

27. Applications
 Uploading your CV/resume
 Uploading presentations
 Use for poll

28. Will LinkedIn help in my job hunt?
According to a 2010 survey by JobVite.com,
•92% of employers planned to leverage the social networks for
recruiting,
•86% are using LinkedIn
•60% are using Facebook
•50% are using Twitter
•50% plan to increase spending on social networks for recruiting
(and social networks are, at least currently, much cheaper than
job boards).
•36% of employers will spend less on job boards
Remember: LinkedIn is a tool. LinkedIn will NOT get you the job.
-Build your network
-Build your profile
-And netiquette
http://www.job-hunt.org/social-networking/LinkedIn-job-search/leverage-LinkedIn-updates-job-search.shtml

29.  Go to Job search

30. LinkedIn summary…Netiquette
1. LinkedIn is not Facebook.
2. Do not send out invitation for the sake of adding connections.
3. Use a professional file photo
4. Do not share your thoughts and what you are doing as you would on
twitter or other platforms.
5. Do not join groups for the sake of adding one more group logo on
your profile page.
6. Do not beg for recommendations.
7. Do not embellish on your summary.
8. Do not forward profiles to your connections just so they could have
more “connections.”
http://applicant.com/the-dont-do-it-guide-to-using-linkedin/

31. References
I’m on LinkedIn…Now What?; Alba, Jason, 3rd edition,
Happy About Pub, 2011
Naturejobs.com
BusinessInsider.com
LinkedIn.com
OITE Blog

32. Profiles: other options
Search options
 Contacts
 Groups
 Companies
 Jobs
 Follow updates (and the email that comes)