Archive for Category: Recommended Career Resources
LinkedIn Tips for Veterans
Posted in Job Search Tips Recommended Career Resources Social Media on November 11, 2011 at 9:00 am
As a global spokesperson for LinkedIn, I had the honor this week of writing a blog post to support LinkedIn’s Veterans Initiative, a new microsite tailored with tips, tools and information to help veterans find new opportunities (including a free one-year LinkedIn Job Seeker subscription for all current and former service men and women).
Please share this article and LinkedIn’s offer. And thank you to all those who serve our country.
Veterans Helping Veterans: LinkedIn Tips for Job Seekers Who Have Served
I often advise job seekers to reach out to people in their desired industries for advice and guidance. So, when I sat down to write a blog post to help job seekers with military backgrounds, I decided to follow my own advice.
I posted a query on LinkedIn asking veterans if they’d be willing to share some tips for other former servicemen and servicewomen. Not surprisingly, several veterans stepped up immediately to help, as did a few non-veterans who wanted to lend a hand.
Here are the top recommendations they shared:
Emphasize transferable skills.
Everyone’s first tip was to make sure your LinkedIn profile emphasizes your transferable skills.
“Being a marksman with an M-16 has little applicability to supply-chain management,” said Erick S. Van Savage, a former corporal in the USMC, “but attributes such as self-discipline, dedication, leadership, courage, esprit de corps and a strong work ethic have great application to virtually all facets of business.” Veterans looking for work need to emphasize such attributes in their LinkedIn Summary statements and profile Skills sections.
“You need to remove all the typical military language from your write-up,” added Robert Martin, MBA, LSSGB, who served in the US Navy and is now an E-6 US Navy and Supply Chain Professional. “Remember, very few of the people you come in contact with on LinkedIn will understand your background. Remember to write [your profile] from the perspective of a civilian because this what you now are.”
On Fox Business: Why You Should Have a LinkedIn Profile
Posted in Career Advice for Young Professionals Networking and Personal Branding Recommended Career Resources Social Media on November 1, 2011 at 9:00 am
Many thanks to my friend Dr. Woody for interviewing me this week for his column on FoxBusiness.com. Here are two tips from the article:
Become an Expert: The best way to gain credibility in a field is to become a go-to resource. LinkedIn offers a number of tools for helping professionals engage with peers to exchange information and ideas.
For example: LinkedIn Groups, LinkedIn Answers, and LinkedIn Today are all great ways to reach out to colleagues and become part of the trending conversations in your field. When it comes to college students and new professionals, Pollak says these tools are “a great way to learn the lingo of your field and become a virtual insider.”
Attract Recruiters: Recruiters use LinkedIn. The job search isn’t always an active process, and hiring managers and recruiters use the tool to find candidates to fill openings. Pollak encourages users to pay attention to key words in their profiles, so be sure to have them peppered throughout the following sections of your LinkedIn profile: Summary, Specialties, Skills and Recommendations.
Read the rest of the article here.
How to Get Smarter
Posted in Career Advice for Young Professionals Gen Y Entrepreneurship Generation Y/Millennials Getting from College to Career Job Search Tips Recommended Career Resources on September 2, 2011 at 8:09 am
We live in an economy and society centered around information. This means you must be knowledgeable to get ahead. Luckily, two free web-based tools can help you increase your smarts easily and efficiently.
I’ve come to use these tools on a daily basis and wanted to share them with you. (Note: I’m writing about these tools because I love them and use them. I have no official relationship with them.)
1. Instapaper. As a career expert, one of the most frequent pieces of advice I give is to read the news every day. This means, at the very least, reading a major national news source and subscribing to industry publications and blogs. Most people follow this advice by skimming each day’s headlines, reading some digest emails and checking their social networks for shared articles.
Doing all of that is fine, but it means that most people only have a surface understanding of news and current events. For many topics this will suffice, but the most successful people have a much deeper level of knowledge about their particular field, and current events as well.
How do they do this? By reading longer articles, opinion pieces and in-depth analyses. For instance, book editors read full-length reviews in The New York Times Book Review. Financial professionals read feature articles in Harvard Business Review. Doctors read studies in The New England Journal of Medicine. If you really want to make it big, you need to get smarter by going deeper.
The problem, of course, is that deep reading is incredibly time-consuming. Enter Instapaper. This no-frills app allows you to save any online article to your iPhone or computer (some other mobile devices work with the app as well) and read it when you have time. When I’m not able to read an article I know is important, I’ll Instapaper it and then read when I can. This ensures I don’t miss important content and it helps maximize my “downtime”. Riding the subway, sitting in traffic and waiting at a doctor’s appointment are great opportunities to catch up on my reading.
If you’re not sure what is important or interesting to read, check out Instapaper’s weekly selection of the best articles on the web. Not only will you feel smarter, but you’ll also have a great diversity of knowledge to talk about at networking events, job interviews and other situations where you want to make a good impression.
2. Klout. Knowing more information makes you smarter. And so does knowing more about yourself. Klout is a relatively new tool that provides information about the influence you have online. Your Klout “score” uses data from LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter, YouTube and other social networks to determine the people you influence through your online activities. Then, the site gives you an overall designation such as “observer,” “dabbler,” “activist” or “thought leader” in the categories you like to engage in. In other words, Klout analyzes how much you’re viewed as a knowledgeable person online.
Why should you care? Because your Internet image matters to your career. As recruiters and hiring managers pay more and more attention to candidates’ social media presence, a high Klout score could help you land a job (or a client or an investor).
Remember that in today’s competitive market, success is not just about what you know, but how you show it. Instapaper and Klout are here to help.
What other tools help make you smarter? Please share!
Getting Started on LinkedIn: Advice for Recent Grads
Posted in Career Advice for Young Professionals Getting from College to Career Networking and Personal Branding Recommended Career Resources Social Media on May 20, 2011 at 12:00 pm
In honor of LinkedIn’s IPO on the New York Stock Exchange yesterday, I thought it would be a good time to share some reminders about why the site is valuable to young professionals and how to use it effectively.
As the largest and most vibrant professional social network in the world (100 million members in over 200 countries and counting), LinkedIn provides a wealth of opportunities for personal branding, networking and finding jobs.
As a spokesperson for LinkedIn for the past two years, I’ve learned a lot about how to get the most value out of the site. My biggest piece of advice is this: LinkedIn doesn’t work unless you work it. You must take control of your profile and visit the site frequently to get the most benefit.
Here are some tips for getting started, especially if you’re new to the professional world:
- Make your profile heading pop. Far too many young professionals insert a generic term such as “Recent graduate” or “Job Seeker” as their LinkedIn profile headline. This is a big mistake. Your profile headline is the first thing people will read on your profile, so you need to think of it as a marketing tool. Be as specific and keyword heavy as you can. For instance: “Honors Marketing Grad from UCONN Seeking Opportunity in Consumer Packaged Goods” or “Recent LSU Grad with Extensive Nonprofit Experience.” For ideas, check out the profile headlines of other recent grads or entry-level employees you admire.
- Write a professional Summary statement. Your LinkedIn Summary statement should resemble the first few paragraphs of your best-written cover letter — concise and confident about your goals and qualifications. Remember to include all of your experience, including internships, volunteer work, and extra curriculars. You should also include key words and phrases that a recruiter or hiring manager might type into a search engine to find a person like you. The best place to find relevant keywords is by researching the job listings that appeal to you and the LinkedIn profiles of people who currently hold the kinds of positions you want.
- Display an appropriate photo. Remember that LinkedIn is not Facebook. If you choose to post a photograph on your LinkedIn profile, opt for a professional, high-quality headshot of you alone. You don’t necessarily have to wear a suit, but baseball caps, party photos, cartoon avatars, and glamour shots from last weekend’s formal don’t fit in the professional environment of LinkedIn.
- Share your (career-related) news. Like other popular social networks, LinkedIn provides the opportunity to share brief status updates with your connections. But again, remember to stick to the professional. I think of my LinkedIn status updates as brief conversations I would have at networking events: “I just read a really interesting article you might enjoy. Here is the link…” or “I’m attending our industry conference next week. Are you going too?” You never know what nugget might catch someone’s attention and spark a conversation or opportunity.
- Connect with friends and family. Once you have a great profile, start building your LinkedIn network by uploading your online address book and connecting to friends, relatives, internship colleagues, and professionals you know in the real world. The best networks begin with those you know and trust, and then grow based on personal referrals.
- Customize your connection requests. As you build your connections on LinkedIn beyond your friends and family, don’t use the generic “I’d like to connect on LinkedIn” note. Instead, always customize your connection requests with a friendly note and, if necessary, a reminder of where you met or what organization you have in common. You’ll impress people with your personal touch.
- Join groups. To get even more out of LinkedIn, join groups related to your professional interests and communities. I recommend joining your university’s LinkedIn group first, and then search for industry groups related to the career or careers you want to pursue.
- Don’t be a stranger. Once you have a great profile and have joined some groups, your work is only beginning. Set reminders in your calendar to visit the site on a daily basis to reach out to connections (with informational interview requests, check-in notes, etc.), to read through and comment occasionally on group discussions where you have something to add, to update your status and comment on other people’s updates and to research available job and internship opportunities in the Student Jobs Portal.
For more information about making the most of all of LinkedIn’s features, check out http://learn.linkedin.com and the student video series (featuring the voice of yours truly!) at http://learn.linkedin.com/students.
What other advice do you have about getting started on LinkedIn? Please share!
(Photo credit: Evan Gotlib, my husband who was at the NYSE for the IPO!)
How to Use Social Networking for Career Success: An Interview with Miriam Salpeter
Posted in Career Advice for Young Professionals Generation Y/Millennials Job Search Tips Networking and Personal Branding Recommended Career Resources on May 5, 2011 at 4:00 pm
By Lindsey Pollak
In recent years, social media has transformed from a convenient way for college friends to stay in touch to an essential tool for professional networking and personal branding. In her new book, Social Networking for Career Success: Using Online Tools to Create a Personal Brand, career expert Miriam Salpeter shares the ins and outs of social networking.
Miriam was kind enough to answer some of my questions about how young professionals can maximize their professional use of social media.
LP: What does social networking have to do with career success?
MS: In a competitive market, success seekers need to do what they can to differentiate themselves and highlight their value propositions. Social networking is an amazing tool to do just that. Here are two major reasons why: 1) social media offers users a chance to share their expertise and 2) using these tools can connect them to people they would probably never otherwise know; those people may be exactly the ones to introduce careerists to a targeted contact.
LP: How can people use social media to illustrate their expertise?
MS: All of the networks I highlight in the book, especially LinkedIn, Facebook, Twitter and blogging, make it easy to let your network know what you do and how you solve problems. Sharing expertise can be as easy as sharing a link to a relevant article along with a smart comment on Facebook or Twitter. It’s as simple as answering a question via LinkedIn with insight and expert information. Don’t underestimate the potential these connections may offer.
LP: What’s the best social network for job seekers?
MS: The first place job seekers should spend time is on LinkedIn. It is the go-to hub of professional networking and continues to expand the ways it allows job seekers to connect and extend their networks, especially via the Answers section and by using Groups.
That said, my favorite network is Twitter, because it is so open, and allows users to find, follow and interact with people they otherwise would never know. Once users find a community of people in their field to follow and communicate with, Twitter can provide a constant stream of information, professional development opportunities (right on your desktop), information about specific jobs and the chance to connect directly with colleagues, mentors and prospective bosses.
LP: Most young professionals are primarily active on Facebook. Can that site be used in a professional way? If so, how?
I admit, I hesitated at first to suggest using Facebook for professional reasons. However, when you think of the sheer number of people using Facebook (so many more than any other network), and the fact that 27% of firms locate hires via personal referrals from employees, it makes sense to “be where they are” and consider how to harness Facebook’s power for job hunting.
I advise readers to do a careful audit of their Facebook profiles and to remove anything a potential employer may consider objectionable. This includes photos inappropriate for professional environments, “trash-talking” comments, excessive negative comments (no one wants to hire Debbie Downer) and memberships in groups such as “I hate Mondays” or “Working is for suckers.”
I advise setting privacy settings for “just friends” for everything except for “About Me” (write a professional bio), “Education and Work” and “Contact Info.” Opening these sections to “everyone” helps recruiters using Facebook find you and also allows various Facebook applications, such as BranchOut, Jibe.com and SimplyHired.com’s Facebook tool to connect you with potential opportunities.
LP: You say social media can connect people to others they’d otherwise never meet. How can that help a young job seeker?
MS: Any job seeker or business owner’s goal is to be found. Malcolm Gladwell’s book, The Tipping Point, outlines how important it is to broaden your network – to meet and connect with “weak ties,” people who previously had no direct relationship with you – in order to find contacts who can help. Touching base with people beyond your immediate network may be just the thing you need to connect with someone who can really help you propel your plans forward.
Another thing many not already involved in social media don’t realize: online connections have a tendency to be extremely generous and willing to help. The book is full of stories of people who received crucial help from strangers online.
Book Review: Nice Girls Just Don’t Get It
Posted in Career Advice for Young Professionals Future of Careers Recommended Career Resources on April 20, 2011 at 2:51 pm
By Lindsey Pollak
We tend to think of negotiation skills when it comes to situations such as agreeing to a salary for a new job, finalizing a contract with a new client or haggling price with a car dealer. These are all important situations that require skill, but the reality is that we are negotiating all the time in both our personal and professional lives. Negotiation is a daily practice.
This can be problematic for anyone who hates to negotiate or feels uncomfortable in even semi-confrontational situations. While I know plenty of men who don’t like to negotiate, it’s far more common for women to feel this way. According to Lois Frankel and Carol Frohlinger, authors of the new book Nice Girls Just Don’t Get It: 99 Ways to Win the Respect You Deserve, the Success You’ve Earned, and the Life You Want, the reason for this is that many women fall into the societal trap of believing that being “nice” is more important than getting the things we want. According to the authors of another book, Women Don’t Ask, 2.5 times more women than men said they feel “a great deal of apprehension” about negotiating.
What can women do to be better at negotiating? In Nice Girls Just Don’t Get It, Frankel and Frohlinger offer 99 strategies for being a “winning woman” in all aspects of life. (Full disclosure: I contribute to the blog ThinPinkLine.com with Frankel and Frohlinger and consider them both friends and mentors. And — although I’ll never admit which one — an anecdote in the book is based on me!)
What I love about this book is the way the authors give incredibly specific tactics and strategies for achieving small and large goals in every aspect of life, ranging from convincing a waiter to take back a dish to telling a friend you’re not available for free babysitting to getting selected for desirable work projects.
Here are three of my favorite tips, which are valuable for both “nice girls” and “nice boys,” particularly those just starting out in the workforce:
Realize you have more options than you think. If you’re feeling stuck in a situation minor or major (e.g., you’re not sure how to word a tough email, how to handle a difficult boss or what job to pursue next), Frankel and Frohlinger point out that many people don’t see the many choices that lie before us. Since “we don’t know what we don’t know,” they recommend enlisting a friend or mentor to help you identify alternatives that you didn’t think of on your own.
Pick the right method, time and place for difficult conversations. One of the characteristics I’ve noticed in a lot of Millennials is the lack of experience having tough conversations face-to-face. There are just so many ways to avoid confrontation these days (like breaking up via text!). However, those who get ahead and get what they want are the people who don’t shy away from difficult conversations. I firmly agree with Frankel and Frohlinger, who state that “face-to-face can be scary, but it’s almost always best, because you’ll be able to observe [the other person’s] body language.” How can you become more comfortable with this? The authors advise the simple act of practicing with a trusted friend.
Lead from where you are. Entry-level recruiters and grad school admissions officers frequently tell me that leadership is one of the most important qualities a candidate can possess. This can cause a lot of anxiety, especially for shy people, but, as Frankel and Frohlinger assert, “contrary to popular belief, there aren’t ‘born’ leaders.” Their advice is to learn leadership skills by becoming a student of leadership, such as learning how others have led successfully by observing their behavior and reading great books on the topic. Small leadership acts can lead up to large leadership responsibilities in a shorter time frame than you might think.
I hope you’ll check out Nice Girls Just Don’t Get It and discover the other 96 strategies in this very helpful and timely book. If you do, please share your favorite tips and tactics!
Tags: book review, carol frohlinger, jobs, Lois Frankel, negotiating
Should Your Resume Have a QR Code?
Posted in Career Advice for Young Professionals Job Search Tips Networking and Personal Branding Recommended Career Resources on March 17, 2011 at 10:00 am
By Lindsey Pollak
I posed this question on Twitter recently and received mixed responses from job seekers, recruiters and others. Some people said they’re already seeing QR codes on resumes (one person mentioned seeing them on professional conference badges as well), other people think the trend is too aggressive and won’t catch on and still other people replied, “Um, what’s a QR code?”
Before we go on, let’s answer that last question first. (And I fully admit I would have asked the same thing a month ago.) QR codes — QR stands for “quick response” — are those small, square barcodes that can be scanned by mobile phones and other devices.
As you’ve probably noticed in magazines, on billboards and elsewhere, QR codes are becoming more and more popular for marketing. When you see a QR code, you simply take a picture of it with your phone’s camera (assuming you have the right application installed) and you’ll be directed to the embedded information in that code, such as a website or text message.)
Why could this be relevant for job seekers and other professionals? Because of the crucial importance of standing out from the crowd. Adding a QR code to your resume, business card, portfolio or any other personal marketing tool could be the detail that helps you get noticed by an employer, particularly if you want to work in an industry such as marketing, real estate or technology in which QR code savvy is important.
How do I create a QR code?
You can use Google to create a QR code (see a simple step-by-step explanation from the Optimal Blog here). I created the above QR code on Google in under two minutes. As you’ll see, it directs you to the Manpower Professional Job Seekers Career Center, where you can find some of my past blog posts and other helpful career content.
Ryan Rancatore of Personal Branding 101 blog suggests that you monitor the results of your QR Code placements by using bit.ly to shorten your link before creating the code. Then, use bit.ly’s analytic tools to track visits to your link. This is a great way to see if your QR code is catching on and to know which employers are potentially interested in you.
Where should my QR code send people?
There are many options here. Depending on what you feel best represents you, your QR code might send people to your website (as long as it’s professional), your LinkedIn profile, a downloadable vCard with your contact information or an online portfolio of your work.
A company called Vizibility recently announced that personalized QR codes are now available for their Vizibility SearchMe links, which direct people to a user’s top five verified Google search results. If you have particularly good Google-ability, this might be an option to pursue.
Will people get it?
Afraid that people won’t know what that little black and white box is? Not to worry, writes John Heaney on The Job Shopper blog: “Even if the individuals reading your resume don’t know how to act on the QR code, including it on your resume can still position you as someone who is technically proficient, stays up to date on business trends and technology and is an early adopter of powerful and creative ideas.”
Ryan Rancatore agrees, “Maybe [people] won’t scan your QR Code. But I guarantee they will take note of this unique aspect of your resume, which in itself is a major victory.” But, as a precaution, Rancatore recommends providing people with the URL that the QR links to in addition to the QR graphic itself, just in case. “Be sure to include both your URL and the QR Code,” he writes, “so those without smartphones can still reach your web destination.“ I definitely agree.
So what do you think? Will you add a QR code to your job seeking efforts? Please share your thoughts!
p.s. For an interesting, general take on QR codes, check out Mashable’s neat infographic.
Living “the 9-to-5 Cure”: A Podcast with Dr. Kristin Cardinale
Posted in Career Advice for Young Professionals Future of Careers Gen Y Entrepreneurship Recommended Career Resources on February 25, 2011 at 1:41 pm
Is “reinventing your life” practical in these tough economic times? What is “career myopia” and how does it tie in to your career strategy? Today, Lindsey Pollak interviews Dr. Kristin Cardinale, author of the new book, The 9-to-5 Cure: Work on Your Own Terms and Reinvent Your Life, who shares the answers to these questions along with her thoughts on why embracing entrepreneurship and reinventing your career is not only practical; it is critical in our day and age.
According to Cardinale, living the life of your dreams and creating work that fulfills you is a realistic goal. As you’ll learn on this podcast, her tips for making the leap from a full-time job to entrepreneurship include:
1) Really know what your goals are.
2) Keep your “big picture” in mind instead of focusing on the short-term
3) Determine your goals for your career, relationships, education and finances.
4) Recognize the importance of time off.
Click here to listen to the complete 15-minute interview.
What is the “Gen Y Way” at Work?
Posted in Generation Y/Millennials Managing Generational Differences Recommended Career Resources on January 24, 2011 at 10:00 am
For this week’s post, I had the pleasure of conducting a Q&A session with Jenny Floren, founder and CEO of Experience.com and author of The Innovation Generation: The Gen Y Way: How New Thinking Can Reclaim the American Dream.
Here is what Jenny had to say about Gen Y and how they approach their job searches and careers:
1. What do you feel Gen Y job seekers have to offer that older (more experienced) candidates don’t?
Gen Y has been brought up using the Internet, watching live, 24/7 news, expecting instant communication and emerging as the world’s first generation of “digital natives.” Today’s global economy brings new challenges and new rules; it truly is a new world—and Gen Y speaks the native tongue fluently. Their unique perspective and new thinking –also known as the “Gen Y Way” – brings a new view on a more socially conscious, global world.
2. You mention in your book that Gen Ys have a ‘why not?’ attitude. What do you mean by this and how is it an asset?
Think about it this way – in your own working environment have you learned more from the folks who have taken your direction as law or those who’ve stepped up to the plate and asked “why”?
In my opinion, an office full of robotic employees can only get you so far. Gen Y asks questions. They’re inquisitive and it’s been interesting to see some media thought leadership that’s condoned this quality.
When Gen Y questions the status quo, it’s because they’re looking at the situation through a different lens, and what they see doesn’t add up. They see that the old ways don’t work—and they can’t help but question why we’d want to continue down the wrong path. This type of questioning shouldn’t be chastised—it should be celebrated and rewarded!
3. What are employers’ biggest misconceptions about Gen Y?
“‘Generation Whine’ is entitled and needy.” For the past 15 years, I’ve been able to observe this remarkable group. What Gen Y really is, is the most misunderstood generation in history. This group is bringing new perspectives, new values and new thinking to the table – and this is exactly what we need to solve the challenges facing our world today.
They question old thinking and assumptions, and the reality is (as mentioned above) some people don’t like having their feathers ruffled. Gen Y also looks for collaborative methods to get the job done, which can differ from other generations’ beliefs that it’s a one (wo)man show.
At the end of the day, they’re less focused on financial endeavors and more so on creating a new set of life experiences and a balanced living. Gen Y isn’t whiny; what they are is in constant pursuit of new opportunities to learn and grow.
4. What is Gen Y’s impact on the workforce (positive or negative)?
I’m obviously going to say positive, but don’t take my word for it! Here in Massachusetts, efforts to attract and retain young, educated talent are a high priority. The Massachusetts Innovation & Technology Exchange (MITX) launched a “Recruit and Retain” initiative to promote the growing new-media industry in the state, and to counter the misconception that all “cool” innovation is happening on the West Coast.
Today, many mainstream companies are attempting to step up the marketing of New England to attract the up-and-coming talent that is so critically important for innovation and growth. This effort by MITX and New England companies is indicative of the fact that the world is beginning to place a higher value on the Innovation Generation’s fresh thinking.
One need look no further than President Barack Obama’s utilization of social, collaborative technology in his campaign in order to assess the value of this new type of thinking.
Do you agree with Jenny’s assessment of Gen Y? How do you feel about being a member of this generation or working with Gen Ys? Please share your thoughts in the comments!
What’s New on LinkedIn
Posted in Generation Y/Millennials Recommended Career Resources Social Media on October 21, 2010 at 4:16 pm
As a spokesperson for LinkedIn, I’m in the midst of a fun tour of college campuses to launch Career Explorer, LinkedIn’s forthcoming new tool for students and recent grads. Universities I’m visiting on the tour include NYU, USC, BYU and University of Illinois. If you’re a student or alum from one of these schools, please drop me a note or check out my event photos on Facebook. (p.s. recommendations of the best cupcake spot near each campus are always appreciated!)
In this blog post, I’ll be sharing information about Career Explorer and some other new features of LinkedIn that can help you in your job or internship search and your overall career development.
Promote Your Certifications, Publications and Fluency. One of the most frequent questions I hear from students is, “What should I include in my LinkedIn profile?” The answer is to include any info you would put on your resume, plus additional information such as campus leadership roles, volunteer activities, examples of your work (by sharing web links or by posting documents to the SlideShare or Box.net apps) and incorporating keywords that a recruiter might use to find someone with your skills.
Now, LinkedIn has added more opportunities to promote your skills with new profile sections. Click on “edit profile” and you’ll see areas to promote publications (such as articles you’ve written for the campus newspaper or blogs you write), language knowledge (be careful here — don’t claim fluency unless you’re actually fluent), additional skills, formal certifications you’ve attained and even patents if you have any. It’s no secret we’re in a super competitive job market right now, so take advantage of these new opportunities to promote any differentiators you have.
Follow Companies. Another new feature added to LinkedIn in the past few months is the ability to follow companies. With this tool, you have the opportunity to receive regular updates on the activities of any organization you choose to follow. This is absolutely essential information to have for the companies you hope to work for someday, so I recommend following any and all organizations on your prospect list.
Simply visit the Company Page of any one of over one million organizations on LinkedIn, and click “follow company” in the top right-hand corner. Once you’ve done this, you’ll begin seeing updates, job postings, employee movements and any other news from that organization appear on the newsfeed of your LinkedIn homepage.
Coming Soon! Career Explorer. Currently in beta testing on 60 college campuses (contact your career center to learn if your school is on the list), Career Explorer is a brand new, free tool that LinkedIn has created, with the sponsorship of PwC, to help students navigate LinkedIn and figure out their potential career paths. I’ll be sharing more about this tool in the future, but here is a brief introduction:
To use Career Explorer, you’ll need to set up a LinkedIn account if you don’t have one already. Next, you’ll log in to the tool and enter your major and desired industry. Career Explorer will then guide you to 1) learn about different industries and potential jobs, 2) map out a potential career path (or multiple paths if you’re undecided) and 3) find and build connections with the people on LinkedIn who have taken similar paths and might be good for you to know.
Expect a rollout of Career Explorer to all universities in the coming weeks.
Have questions or comments about using LinkedIn as a student or recent grad? Please post below!
