The other side of the hiring desk, pt. 7 How a recruiter uses LinkedIn -

The other side of the hiring desk, pt. 7 How a recruiter uses LinkedIn - Today, another interview with my friend and colleague Stephanie A. Lloyd, a Talent Strategies Consultant and Owner of Calibre Search Group in Atlanta, Georgia. She is a National Careers  + Workplace Columnist for Examiner.com and also blogs at Radiant Verocity. You can also follow Stephanie on Twitter. How important is it to be on LinkedIn and can you tell us how a recruiter uses LinkedIn to source candidates? If youre not on LinkedIn, create a profile *now.* I suggest a robust profile the more the better. Recruiters and hiring managers use LinkedIn all the time to find candidates, doing key word searches. Many times these are based on job responsibilities, so if you have your title but dont fill in what you did in each job you may not show up in the results. For the most part I copied and pasted my resume in to my LinkedIn profile. The next thing you should do is search and select several groups to join. These should relate to your job function and/or industry. Jobs can now be posted free in groups, and if youre a member youll have access to the listings. Recruiters join industry groups in order to have access to members. Remember, your goal is to be found! Finally, recruiters and hiring managers are looking to see how many recommendations you have, and how genuine they are. Carefully select several people you have worked for and with in the past, and ask them to write a recommendation for you. A word of caution if your recommendations are all reciprocal that can be a red flag (Ill write one for you if youll write one for me.) Instead, write several (genuine) recommendations for other people youve worked with in the past and pay it forward. Do you need help with your search? Follow this link to learn how I can help propel your job hunt! In Atlanta? GA is expecting 10.1% unemployment. Get ahead of the game so you will be prepared to search for your next opportunity with local job search interventions: http://youneedajob.org/