LinkedIn has over 50 million users worldwide. Of that 50 million, approximately half of those members are in the U.S. LinkedIn is one of the many tools I use to locate hard to find candidates to fill my client’s needs; and I know that other executive search professionals and company talent scouts do the very same thing.
If you are a job seeker why not use LinkedIn, turn it inside out just a little bit and use it to your advantage as well ?
• Do you have an interview lined up with a hiring authority ? (If not hopefully you will soon)
• Do you know the name and title of that decision maker and especially anything about that individual ? (Getting inside that persons head, learning how they think, their background and some of their hot buttons etc., will afford you a one up especially if your competition has not invested their own time to some homework)
Here is a Guerilla strategy that could prove very beneficial to you.
Within Linked-In, do some pre-interview groundwork to see if that person is listed. The higher up in the corporate hierarchy that person is, the more likely they are to be on Linked-In because higher-level people recognize the potential value therein as the site is proving to be just one of the places "people in the know" hang out.
If that person is listed on Linked-In, (lucky you) go to that profile and find out as much about that individual as you can. Then review all the recommendations they have given to other people. This will allow you to ascertain what personal or professional qualities are important to that hiring authority. Next, review all the profiles of the people that hiring authority has recommended; particularly those people who now work (or have worked) at that company or people at other companies who have work for him/her elsewhere. This step will supply you with job search intel as to the backgrounds that particular decision maker tends to favor, the character, values and work ethic that s/he admires, etc.
Lastly don’t overlook the people who have recommended that hiring authority. Endorsements will tell you a lot about that executive and why those endorsers have a high regard for that person. If the moon, stars and the sun are perfectly aligned you may even be able to get a 360 degree view of that hiring authority.
Be creative and think like a Guerrilla ! LinkedIn can be used as a tool for other job search related background work as well; but this should give you a start. Doesn’t it just make good sense to take the time to uncover this information and use it to your advantage as a job seeker ?
In closing, being listed on Linked-In isn't a Guerrilla Strategy. Knowing many of the insider secrets on how to get the most out of Linked-In and then “in fact putting it to work for you” IS VERY Guerrilla !
In closing, have a Great Guerrilla Day !
For information on corporate sponsored outplacement services, career coaching, resume assistance, the Guerilla Job Seekers 10 week boot camp, or if you would prefer personal one-on-one Guerilla job search assistance, contact me at: theguerillajobcoach@comcast.net or call me at 724-495-2733.
Mark J. Haluska
Real Time NetWork & Guerrilla Job Search International
724-495-2733
• Certified "Guerrilla Job Search Boot Camp" Instructor.
• Contributing Co-Author of the highly acclaimed "Guerrilla Marketing for Job Hunters 2.0," 1,001 Unconventional Tips, Tricks and Tactics for Landing your Dream Job. Released in June 2009
• Contributing Co-Author of the best selling book, “Guerrilla Marketing for Job Hunters,” 400 Unconventional Tips, Tricks and Tactics for Landing your Dream Job. Released in 2005
