How do recruiters use LinkedIn to find and screen Executive candidates?
I am presenting to a group of Executives about social media and the most asked for topic is how to use LinkedIn for their careers and a key question is how recruiters use LinkedIn and what they are looking for.
All insights are welcome. I'd in particular love to hear from recruiters.
Thanks
Håkan Söderbom
Good Answers (2)
Richard E.
Director of Group Investments at IRI Group
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Hi there
Linkedin is used in a variety of ways, there is the straight forward method of sourcing potential candidates using the advanced search functions, as well as activity messages etc into the groups that many recruiters join. Sometimes, we also advertise roles. However, we also use it to ask for referrals of people through networks of existing contacts etc.
I think what is more important to realise is how it can be used to review a potential candidate and gain insight into the person, their personality/style and potential as a candidate.
This involves the following:
1. A review of their conact list, is it made up of peers, professionally relevant people, contacts that show an ability to grow a network throughout organisations, the industry, complementary fields etc at different levels. This is often a core competency required for many positions now, and using linkedin to do just that, is an indication that a candidate can execute that effectively in a new role/company. An indication that someone is not building a professional network is disparate titles, industries etc, this could just be a social activity for them.
2. Their involvement and contribution to groups - again are they relevant to the sector in which they operate and how much do they contribute. Often this is an indication of two areas - networking ability but also how readily they are likely to contribute to business areas outside their own within a team environment, do they contribute for the general good, or have a level of awareness that would translate into organisational awareness etc.
3. References - a review of references to see how they fit with the roles. Do they come from clients (and these can be internal clients as well as external) - a third party client reference is of value - and perhaps a conversation that can be extended to gain even further understanding of the person concerned. For leadership roles, its also interesting to see references from team members that express what it was like to be part of the team lead by the individual. Of course, direct supervisor or references from "the boss" also fit nicely into this review. Colleague/peer references are easier to get and not as indicative to performance of the person.
4. Do they contribue to the Questions and Answers area - like this! Where roles involve mentoring or coaching/team development/knowledge sharing, a great indication of someone's interest in this area is the way in which they invest their time in this area. This also helps a recruiter gain insight into management styles, knowledge and expertise - which is never a bad thing, it helps a great deal when it comes to considering a candidate and a match to the culture of a company.
5. Lastly, generally how are they using their profile to communicate who they are, their roles and areas of interest - the underlying structure - it used to be that we looked at a messy resume and assumed, messy person, now, we look at the on line profiles and do the same.
I am not saying that every recruiter uses Linkedin like this (or for that matter any other networking site) but what I can say is that I do, and although I dont make all of my decisions on someone from this, these areas are all part of the process of assessing a potential candidate. I can also speak from experience in terms of being a candidate, I know I certainly increased the number of contacts I had from people when I was looking for work, when I followed this sort of thought process myself.
Hope this helps
Richard
There are several ways to use LinkedIn to find qualified candidates. Like Wallace states, we do use the Advanced People search to find candidates with specific keywords in their profiles. This is why when communicating with candidates; I like to stress the importance of a completed LinkedIn Profile.
We also reach out to people we find to see if they have any available referrals they might know who are not yet on LinkedIn or who may not have complete profiles. Some recruiters prefer to use search strings that also help find LinkedIn candidates through search tools such as Google. And there are always the user groups that have become very popular for posting jobs and starting discussions on new opportunities within particular skill sets.
These are just a few of the ways that recruiters may use LinkedIn to find qualified candidates, but I'm sure there are several more and with so many new features and more people being added to the site, it can only grow.
More Answers (7)
Wallace J.
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They Use Advanced Search [People]. Optimize Your Profile with the proper Keywords!
Ed H.
Wordsmith with proven ability to translate business objectives into communications strategies and tactics
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Håkan, I have a good friend who is an executive career coach and might have some really relevant information for you.
Ed H. also suggests this expert on this topic:
Christine H.
Do you have your copy of my FREE Report yet? Get "Top 10 Linked Profile Success Secrets" now at: goo.gl/beKnU
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I spoke with a Wells Fargo recruiter today who reached out to me from a search via InMail.
I would also suggest joining groups where your audience is and connecting with them via that channel.
And optimizing your use of Answers as well.
Clarification added October 5, 2010:
For the executives, optimize their profile with keywords and their participation in Answers and groups to demonstrate their expertise.
I think recruiters will have the best luck when using the job boards in the relevant groups. There are many terrific candidates that post job info there and I feel it is very underutilized.
Using the Search option provided. "Advanced Search" .
Screening based on company,position,skills,qualitfication and lot more...
L. Alexander C.
Talent Acquisition, Retention & Productivity Specialist
Best Answers in: Staffing and Recruiting (2), Career Management (1)
As has been pointed out, Advanced Search is certainly *one* way to go about it. I also use x-ray searching of LinkedIn via Google or Bing. I've attached a couple of very good resources on how some of the more technically astute recruiters operate. But beware (and the folk that make a living from consulting on LI profile optimisation may not like this) it doesn't always work the way you think...
