3 Important Ways Recruiters Use LinkedIn

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Did you know LinkedIn is a major recruiting tool?

There are more than 467 million user accounts in LinkedIn, all of which are professionally oriented; in other words, one in every 17 people on planet earth has a LinkedIn account, making the system fertile ground for recruiters to find potential candidates for open jobs.

If you'd like to get noticed on LinkedIn, it's important to know how these same recruiters use the system to search for talent.

Here are 3 Important Ways Recruiters Use LinkedIn!

1. THEY SEARCH THROUGH EVERY PROFILE TO FIND PEOPLE TO FILL THEIR OPEN JOBS. While nonpaying (i.e., free account) LinkedIn users have limited ability to see and contact individuals outside their first-level connections, companies pay dearly (around $9,000 annually, per user) to obtain universal access to almost the full population of members. Also, some companies use LinkedIn as their only recruitment platform; if you don't have a profile, you'll miss out on potential job opportunities.
    

2. THEY BUILD PROFILE SEARCHES BASED UPON A VARIETY OF KEYWORDS. Have you ever wondered why LinkedIn encourages you to fill in all the fields on your profile? It's because recruiters fill out a combination of fields and Boolean searches with their criteria to identify qualified candidates. Keywords in your headline, summary, job description, education, skills, and other fields can all be searched and found. If you're serious about being considered for career opportunities, you should also be serious about building a profile sprinkled liberally with keywords and job skills.
    

3. THEY DECIDE WHETHER TO LOOK AT YOUR PROFILE BASED UPON YOUR HEADLINE AND PICTURE. After running a profile search in LinkedIn, recruiters will be presented with a list of candidates; featured most prominently for each individual are their headline and picture. A snappy, descriptive headline and a professional, three-quarters profile photo will make a great impression and invite a deeper look. Fail to impress, and you may get passed over.

Rodney Apple, Managing Partner at SCM Talent Group, and Katie Kurz, Marketing & Recruiting Ambassador at SCM Talent Group, contributed to this article. If you're interested in learning more about how you can optimize your LinkedIn profile for your career search, you can view our webinar on this topic here: https://youtu.be/zpfTYpupqUE

NOTE: In case you were wondering, I am in no way affiliated with LinkedIn other than as a paying user, and for my subscription I pay rack rate. But I've been using the system since its early days and while there are things about it I don't love, I firmly believe in its power as both a job search and recruitment tool.

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Scott Singer is the President and Founder of Insider Career Strategies Resume Writing & Career Coaching, a firm dedicated to guiding job seekers and companies through the job search and hiring process. Insider Career Strategies provides resume writing, LinkedIn profile development, and career coaching services, including a free resume review. You can email Scott Singer at scott.singer@insidercs.com, or via the website, www.insidercs.com.

8 Effective Strategies To Snag A Rewarding Internship

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Getting an internship can be challenging. And if you want to increase your appeal to a potential employer, it's absolutely essential. In the business world, internships are considered applied, real-world experience, and recent graduates with internships under their belt usually get stronger consideration.

Here are 8 effective strategies you can use today to snag a rewarding internship, and take a step forward in your career!

1. SHARPEN YOUR RESUME. An employer looking to hire an intern will understand that you don't have professional experience in your field. But that doesn't mean you don't have relevant experience. Here are some items to incorporate into your resume which will make your resume "pop":

   • Courses you've taken which are relevant to the internship. List any course which directly bolsters your qualification for a particular internship role.

   • Technical skills. If you're a programmer, and you know C++ and Java, include them. An accounting major likely has had exposure to cost accounting, accruals, and bookkeeping. Graphic design students should know Photoshop.

   • Class projects. These show a potential employer you have an understanding of and exposure to the work you'd be doing. And if you served as the project's lead, make sure to indicate this.

   • Grade Point Average. The higher, the better. If your overall GPA is lower than the GPA within your major, include your major GPA as well.

   • Relevant leadership experience. Were you elected to Student Government? Did you serve as a Resident Assistant? Perhaps you captain the Chess Club. Or maybe you founded a campus community service organization.
      

2. APPLY EARLY. Companies often receive thousands of applications for a single internship position. And, they'll try to fill the internship months in advance – if the internship starts in June, the employer may want to fill the role by February. If you wait until May to apply for a June internship, you may be too late.
    

3. BE FLEXIBLE. In the U.S., Summer internships are by far the most popular, but many companies offer internships during the Fall and Spring semesters; consider applying forout-of-season internships, or a part-time internships for while you're attending class. Take a long view in terms of the work you'll be doing during the internship – perhaps the projects aren't that interesting, but sometimes gaining the real-world experience with a brand-name company will do more to position you for career success than a role which seems more exciting but doesn't provide you with any real value.
    

4. HIT THE ON-CAMPUS CAREER FAIRS. While these take place really early in the semester (usually the beginning of the semester – See #3, above), employers often use the on-campus fairs to gather resumes for internships. You've got a great chance of meeting hiring managers at the booth – and they'll pull you aside for a deeper conversation if they like how you present yourself and the skills you offer. You can find more tips for optimizing your time at a career fair here.
    

5. UPDATE YOUR LINKEDIN. Recruiters comb LinkedIn to identify internship candidates. Ensure that you have the phrase, "Seeking Internship Opportunities" in your headline and summary. And take the time to build out the profile so that it contains all your skills, projects, and experiences, as these contain valuable keywords.
    

6. GET TO KNOW THE CAREER PLACEMENT OFFICE. The school's Placement Office spends its time cultivating relationships with employers. By building a collaborative relationship with the folks in the Placement Office, they can directly refer you to opportunities with companies. Remember to register your resume in their database, and to regularly check the employer job postings so that you can apply for positions directly.
    

7. NETWORK. AGGRESSIVELY. When applying for internships with AAA companies, you're competing with students from the best schools with the best GPAs – snagging an internship can often boil down to a positive recommendation from an employee at the company. Work hard to let the world know that you're available, interested, and highly qualified. Network with your parents, relatives, friends, and anyone else who may be able to open doors for you. And talk with your professors, as they often have contacts at employers, to whom they may refer their best (or best-liked) students. Be sure to approach everyone with the utmost respect and humility – remember, if they submit your resume to a potential employer, they're doing you a favor, and they're staking their reputation on you.
    

8. BE PROFESSIONAL. Don't give an employer any reason to doubt that you'll treat the internship as anything less than well-polished – an unprofessional presentation will kill your chances, regardless of your qualifications. Remember to:

   • Record a professional outgoing message on your voicemail.

   • Use a nice, non-offensive email address. Sorry, but partyanimal997@gmail.com will kill your candidacy.

   • Return calls or emails from employers (or anyone else). Promptly.

   • Dress professionally for any interview.

   • Use your manners. Say "please," "thank you," and all the other polite sayings your parents taught you.

   • Send "Thank You" notes to anyone you speak to or meet with. Email is fine, but follow up immediately after conversations. And don't omit anyone.

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Scott Singer is the President and Founder of Insider Career Strategies Resume Writing & Career Coaching, a firm dedicated to guiding job seekers and companies through the job search and hiring process. Insider Career Strategies provides resume writing, LinkedIn profile development, and career coaching services, including a free resume review. You can email Scott Singer at scott.singer@insidercs.com, or via the website, www.insidercs.com.

Do I Really Need An MBA?

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You're interested in giving your career a boost and accelerating your climb up the corporate ladder. Is it time to go back to school and get an MBA?

An advanced degree is a very expensive proposition. Annual tuition at a major program can easily top $50,000 per year. And if you decide to go back to school full time, this means that you'll also need to factor in substantial additional expenses for housing and living expenses.

Factor all this together, and you're looking at easily spending more than $200,000 over two years (take a look at the estimated costs for one year of tuition, housing, and living expenses for business school Harvard University; these are the university's own unvarnished projections); you could buy a house for that money. And don't forget about the income you lose by putting your career on hiatus.

It's quite true that if you complete an MBA from a top-tier school it's quite possible you'll see a substantial bump in pay from what you were earning before. And you don't necessarily need to quit your job to go full-time (depending upon the program). But that doesn't make the degree any less expensive or time consuming.

GETTING AN MBA MIGHT BE A GOOD IDEA IF YOU...

• Didn't get a bachelor's degree in a business discipline. Many career disciplines require a strong foundation in business education. A non-business bachelor's degree (in disciplines such as liberal arts, science, or communications) won't necessarily offer the classes in marketing, accounting, finance, and operations which provide a helpful business orientation and skill set.
   
• Want to change career path. A degree in a new discipline can be a fantastic way to reinvent yourself, since you'll be armed with a new knowledge set. And it's a great pivot point since you have demonstrated an interest in taking your career in a new direction through your studies. I've seen nurses, journalists, technologists, and other non-business professionals reinvent themselves as marketers, investment bankers, and financial analysts.
   
• Need a career boost. Maybe you hit a ceiling in your career. The act of getting (or even pursuing) an MBA may convince your employer that you take your career progression seriously, which could potentially open new doors. Also, the knowledge you gain through your education may increase your value and skills in your current role, pushing you onto more of a promotion track. And some companies use the MBA as a minimum requirement for entry to the executive suite.
   
• The jobs you want require it. Many employers equate MBA graduates from highly ranked program to high potential hires. If you want to get into a leadership rotation program with a brand-name employer, for example, the MBA might be a fundamental requirement. Likewise, I used to recruit for a consumer products company, and for their Brand Manager roles, and they considered the MBA in Marketing as essential, unless the candidate had more than five years' success in a prior brand management role with another leading consumer products company.
   
• Have an employer who offers to pay for your degree. Tuition reimbursement is a fantastic employment benefit. An employer who is willing to invest in your continuing education is making a commitment to your ongoing development with the hope that you will continue to add value. You should note, however, that before paying for your tuition, the employer will likely make you sign an agreement allowing them to claw back a portion or entire amount in case you leave before a certain time (usually 1 or 2 years), to discourage you from quitting immediately after getting your diploma.
   
• Want the knowledge an MBA provides. Academic study can be intellectually rewarding, opening up new ways of thinking as well as providing you with additional skills and knowledge. You may find classroom discussions and group projects incredibly stimulating and fulfilling.

PURSUING AN MBA MIGHT NOT BE IMPORTANT IF YOU...

• Have a bachelor's degree in a similar business discipline. Make no mistake, the bachelor's and MBA are not identical – the emphasis in the MBA tends to be more of a survey format, with a focus on strategic thinking and real-world application since the majority of MBA students have prior professional work experience – but there is similarity throughout quite a bit of the curriculum. And you may already have the academic foundation you need in your career.
   
• Are on a strong career trajectory. If you've been rapidly promoted several times, and have been told that you'll soon be in the executive ranks, it's quite clear that you're moving in the right direction. Which would move your career further, more quickly? Quitting your job to pursue two years of study, or continuing your high performance at your current company.
   
• Can't justify the return on investment. As mentioned above, an MBA is expensive. Maybe it's realistic to anticipate a $50,000 jump in annual salary after finishing the degree. Maybe not. Don't just look at the "Average Graduate Salary" data the school provides as your benchmark, since the student population spans a variety of fields and levels of experience. Do your homework. $200K is a lot of money.
   
• Don't need it. In many cases, there's no substitute for real-world experience and elbow grease. In a 2014 study of CEOs, out of the top-performing 100, only 29 of them had MBA degrees. To look at this another way, 71% of these 100 CEOs did not have an MBA – in other words, there's no direct correlation between having the MBA and getting the corner office. And consider whether the MBA is relevant to advancement in your line of work; in some fields, a technical degree might provide more value.

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Scott Singer is the President and Founder of Insider Career Strategies Resume Writing & Career Coaching, a firm dedicated to guiding job seekers and companies through the job search and hiring process. Insider Career Strategies provides resume writing, LinkedIn profile development, and career coaching services, including a free resume review. You can email Scott Singer at scott.singer@insidercs.com, or via the website, www.insidercs.com.