Dear Sam: I understand that LinkedIn plays a crucial role in job searches today. While I have built my network over the past few years, I haven’t invested much time adding value to my LinkedIn profile. Currently, I do have a headshot, I have added a few of my experiences, and I have listed my education. My company just got purchased by a private equity group, so I am concerned about the future of my position. I want to be proactive and prepare for a potential job search, and I thought LinkedIn would be an excellent place to start. I am concerned, however, that my boss will see a new and improved LinkedIn profile, and he will take that as an indication of an impending job search. How do people represent themselves on this platform without sending a red flag to their current employer? – James
Dear James: That is a fantastic question. First, LinkedIn is your opportunity to present yourself professionally as a potential candidate and a representative of your current employer. Your employer should want a complete and optimized LinkedIn profile, given that you also represent their brand. I understand that if your boss is aware of your current lackluster LinkedIn profile and sees your new and improved profile, he would be aware that you are professionalizing your digital candidacy. Unless you already have a challenging relationship, if this was ever brought up, you could easily say that you wanted to ensure you were represented to the new owners as professionally and thoroughly as possible, given that they will likely make some talent changes.
There are a few other things that you can do on LinkedIn to ensure you are not sending a direct message about potential job search plans.
First, when creating your recruiter profile, you do not need to select that you were actively engaged in a job search. Most people, even if happily employed, will entertain opportunities, so having a recruiter profile does not automatically say you are in an active search. In addition, be sure to select that you only want your open-to-work profile visible to recruiters. This will avoid placing the open-to-work banner around your headshot. Also, LinkedIn will attempt to hide your current job search profile from internal recruiters connected to your current employer.
Second, check your settings and ensure that updates are not being sent to your network when you change an element of your LinkedIn profile. Not broadcasting updates is as simple as toggling off a button under your privacy settings.
Third, if you wish, you can maintain the default headline under your photo, listing your current title and employer. Doing so may, to some, reinforce you are representing yourself as a team member versus a free agent. While I typically prefer to be more impactful in this headline area, this can often be the safest choice when a candidate is concerned about how their current employer will view their profile.
Fourth, you can change your visibility to private mode if you wish to conduct research without showing that you have viewed other people’s profiles. In the settings and privacy area, simply change “visibility” to private or anonymous mode. Keep in mind that this will also limit your ability to see who has viewed your LinkedIn profile.
Fifth, if you make it a habit to update your LinkedIn profile every 3 to 6 months with your most recent accomplishments, training, etc., you will show you are simply continuing to polish your professional brand, potentially mitigating future red flags.
The bottom line is that LinkedIn is a critical tool to facilitate the representation of your brand online. By making your profile as professional as possible, you are optimally representing yourself and your current employer, both of which are good things.
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Samantha Nolan is an Advanced Personal Branding Strategist and Career Expert, founder and CEO of Nolan Branding. Do you have a resume, career, or job search question for Dear Sam? Reach Samantha at dearsam@nolanbranding.com. For information on Nolan Branding’s services, visit www.nolanbranding.com or call 888-9-MY-BRAND or 614-570-3442.