In this new blog series, our mbaMission Career Coaches offer invaluable advice and industry-related news to help you actively manage your career. Topics include building your network, learning from mistakes and setbacks, perfecting your written communication, and mastering even the toughest interviews. To schedule a free half-hour consultation with one of our mbaMission Career Coaches, click here.
Once you have a strong LinkedIn profile that represents your personal brand in a positive way, you are ready to use LinkedIn in your job search. This powerful resource can help you both conduct research on your target companies and network with professionals who can help you advance your career.
Research
- If you know your long-term career goal but are not certain what steps to take to achieve it, search the LinkedIn profiles of people who have your ideal role today. Look at their backgrounds, skills, and educational experiences, and try to identify trends.
- If you are trying to understand the key skills required for a specific position, check out the LinkedIn profiles of people in that role and examine their skills section. You can also review job postings in LinkedIn to discover opportunities of interest to which you can apply as well as to learn more about the qualifications that your target firms seek.
- If you are looking for companies to add to your list of potential employers, search for people who have worked at one of your target firms and see where they worked before or after that company (use the advanced search features).
- “Follow” your target companies on LinkedIn. This will allow you to read news articles about each firm, gather information about how it represents its brand online, and view the company’s job postings.
Network
- Tap into the alumni network of your educational institutions (look under the Connections tab → Find Alumni). You can search alumni by keyword and can also see the cities and companies where they work as well as what their job functions are.
- Identify first- and second-level connections who work at your target firms (or in your target area of interest). Request informational conversations; specify your connection, and explain that you saw their profile, are seeking to make a transition, and would appreciate their advice (15 to 20 minutes of their time). Offer to reciprocate; perhaps you can connect them to somebody in your network.
- The key is not having a big network so much as having a strong one. Review your current LinkedIn connections. Do you have any contacts with whom you have not connected in a long time? Reconnect with people who work in your areas of interest to learn about their career or with those you think you could help with their career.
Have you been admitted to business school? If so, do you want to get a head start on defining your career goals? Do you need help preparing for job interviews or learning how to effectively network with your target employers? Or maybe you want to be a top performer in your current role but are unsure how to maximize your potential. Let an mbaMission Career Coach help via a free 30-minute consultation!