How to use the Open to Work Linkedin tool

You can utilize the new Open To Work tool on LinkedIn to let employers know you’re interested in job openings. In principle, you can use this tool to let recruiters know that you’re looking for work without your present employer knowing. But is it actually effective?

Let’s examine how to activate Open To Work (formerly known as LinkedIn Open Candidates) and how to utilize it to its full potential.

How to Tell Recruiters You’re Open to Work on LinkedIn

Let’s first examine LinkedIn’s suggested procedures for letting employers know you’re open to a new position and the specific changes the Open To Work feature will make to your profile.

Click the “Me” button in the top-right corner of your screen to allow Open To Work from your LinkedIn profile.

Once your own LinkedIn profile page has appeared, click “View profile.”

Locate the “Open to” button, click it to see the drop-down menu, and choose “Finding a new job”

You can then choose the job titles, regions, and job types you’re interested in from a pop-up window provided by LinkedIn (full-time, part-time, contract, etc.)

Finally, LinkedIn gives you the option to choose who sees that you’re open to new job offers:

• “All LinkedIn members,” which surrounds your profile picture with a green #OpenToWork emblem.
• “Recruiters only,” which will only make your availability for a new job known to LinkedIn Recruiter users outside of your current company.

You’re done when you click “Add to profile” to store and activate the settings. If you’re no longer seeking work or don’t want to appear in recruiter searches, you can always go back to this preferences page and deactivate Open To Work.

How to Turn Off Looking for Jobs on LinkedIn

Navigate to your profile and look for the “Open to work” box under your name and headline. Toggle the switch to the off position to stop LinkedIn from alerting recruiters that you’re looking for work.

To access the settings, click the pencil icon, then choose “Delete from profile.” Your profile will no longer say that you’re seeking work when the website is refreshed.

What Happens Once You’re Using Open To Work?

When you turn on Open To Work on LinkedIn, recruiters searching for qualified candidates in the fields you specified will have access to your information. Your signal is “hidden” from recruiters at the company you’re already working at as well as partner companies, which broadens the scope of your job hunt by allowing a range of recruiters to see your information.

Flaws in the Feature

Open To Work has several disadvantages and restrictions that you should be aware of in addition to its benefits.

First off, only users of LinkedIn’s premium LinkedIn Recruiter membership will be able to see that you’re open to jobs on your profile if you select the “Recruiters only” option for who should know that you’re available for work.

Since LinkedIn Recruiter is a paid subscription, it’s probable that some smaller organizations are still not using it, which might prevent many smaller companies and recruiting firms from receiving your signal.

The system’s other flaw is that, despite the fact that the function “hides” your signal from your present employer, there is still a means for them to learn that you are looking for work. They might nevertheless see your signal if branches of your present business are posted on LinkedIn as separate entities.

It’s also possible that independent recruiters who might work with your business will learn that you’re looking for a new position. Additionally, if your boss has contacts in other organizations who use recruiter services, he or she can ask them to see if any of their staff members are looking for work.

The “Recruiters only” function is a decent choice, but it’s not a guarantee of privacy if you’re concerned that your supervisor may find out that you’re seeking.

Further Steps to Prevent LinkedIn from Showing Your Employer that You’re Job Searching

The only approach to ensure complete privacy on LinkedIn during job looking is to apply for opportunities directly and conduct your search via direct messages/emails (to recruiters and your network).

Therefore, even while LinkedIn’s software does its hardest to keep any recruiters at your present workplace from learning that you’re open to new options, it’s likely that it will fall short.

Think twice before turning on this new function if you’re concerned about job search privacy and want to safeguard your professional interests without taking any chances.

The benefit is that it could expedite your job search and increase your visibility in recruiter search results, but it’s crucial to be aware of the possible risk.

Who Can Use LinkedIn’s Open To Work?

You don’t have to be in the United States to use LinkedIn’s Open To Work feature, which works on any desktop or mobile device and is available worldwide. Additionally, you do not need to pay a fee to use it; in fact, you can inform recruiters that you are looking for work even with a free LinkedIn account, which is what the majority of job seekers do.

More Ways to Use LinkedIn to Find Job Opportunities

Reach Out to Recruiters Directly

There are a few more methods I advise using LinkedIn in addition to the new Open To Work function to locate work.

By sending a direct message about a job on LinkedIn, you can first make recruiters aware of your interest in positions. You can also email recruiters if you’d prefer.

You don’t have to wait for them to get in touch with you, that much is true. If you do contact recruiters, simply make sure you focus on those that have expertise in the field of work you want.

If it appears like you are sending a generic message to every recruiter you can find on LinkedIn, as most recruiters do, they won’t reply to your message.

Utilize LinkedIn Learning

LinkedIn Learning is a different career resource available to professionals. The program enables you to enroll in a range of courses to sharpen your current abilities while teaching you new ones. From “WordPress Essential Training” to “How to Write a Press Release,” the brief and simple courses cover a variety of topics.

Even a course on “Making Recruiters Come to You” is available. You can update your CV with new abilities that you learn along the way. As a result, recruiters will be more interested in you as a prospect and find you more enticing.

The platform can be used to learn job-related skills as well as job search skills including interview strategies, pay negotiating, networking, and more, as I covered in-depth in my review here. You should use it as a job seeker because it is a strong platform.

Other New LinkedIn Features and Benefits for Job Seekers

LinkedIn just implemented a feature called Career Pages in addition to Open Candidates and LinkedIn Learning. It enables you to discover more about the corporate cultures of potential interest.

Meet the Team is a different helpful resource. By looking up firm names that catch your eye, you can use this tool to look up potential future coworkers and examine their profiles. Additionally, LinkedIn allows you to see the connections you already have at firms and who might be able to help you with positive references and referrals to hiring managers.

Making Your LinkedIn Account Work for You

I advise my clients that a resume’s first impressions are crucial, and LinkedIn is no different. Before you start your job hunt, examine your LinkedIn profile and make the required changes to make the most of your job search efforts.

Make sure everything is current and that you have listed your prior employment in a way that will appeal to as many recruiters as you can.

Additionally, before recruiters call, consider topics they might want to cover, such as:

• Roles and career categories that interest you
• Whether you would be open to moving, and if so, where
• Possible starting dates
• Size and corporate culture of the organization you want to work for

In your subsequent job search, I urge you to give this a shot. Ensure that your profile is current. Then, to draw recruiters, set your Open To Work signal to “On.” You never know who might answer the phone or the opportunities it might bring your way.