Exploring the Possibilities of a Good LinkedIn Profile
Welcome to a New Year!
The stock market is exploring new positive territory, we have a new tax code designed to increase the domestic activities of corporate America by encouraging the repatriation of offshore earnings, and a regulatory climate that is friendly to a growing economy. Regardless of how one feels about the way these realities came to be, the simple fact is they will be good for the economy, job creation and salaries.
All this sounds great at the macro level, but does it affect YOU?
If you have technology skills of any kind, it will likely create a more opportunity-rich job market than we have seen since the go-go 90’s. It doesn’t matter whether your skills are in the area of IT Hardware, Software Development, DevOps, ERP platform deployment, Engineering or other technical disciplines, all are already experiencing a positive bounce. That is good news. Good news for US citizens and good news for the job prospects of skilled people coming to our country. An economy experiencing strong growth needs good employees to fill newly created jobs.
So, what can YOU DO to position yourself to benefit from this rising tide of opportunity.
One very effective way to ensure you are being kept abreast of what options you have in the market is to discretely increase your visibility without announcing your desire to leave your current employer.
Today, a solid LinkedIn profile is the very best way to create and maintain professional visibility. Google indexes LinkedIn, enabling persons with basic Boolean logic skills to find and message skilled individuals who may be of some interest. Those messages can range from business to social and of course, career opportunities….including what just might be your next position!
This week, my company placed a candidate who took the time to read and respond to our LinkedIn invitation. That placement increased this person’s salary by 30% with better healthcare, 401k, and PTO, not to mention the new and more interesting work they will be doing!
While that is an unusually good outcome, it never would have happened if this person didn’t have a well-constructed LinkedIn profile and didn’t take a couple minutes to respond to a professional invitation.
It’s a New Year – Update your LinkedIn Profile
For your New Year’s resolution, spend some time upgrading your LinkedIn profile. Post a professional looking picture of yourself. Include your latest skills, accomplishments, and awards or recognition.
Your reward for taking the time will likely be in the form of increased traffic from hiring managers and recruiters who might just have a game-changing opportunity for you to consider.
The corporations are benefiting from this environment. You can too…just take a moment to make this simple investment of time in yourself and your career!
