This is a tricky issue.  We’ve all been told over and over again never to use a photo on the resume, and there are good reasons for that.  Anti-discrimination laws in our country have resulted in many Human Resources departments throwing out otherwise great resumes if they include a picture.  Companies are so afraid of being sued that they avoid the slightest appearance of bias by eliminating any resume with a photo right off the bat.  And that’s not necessarily a bad thing—your skills and accomplishments should be what gets you the interview, not your looks.

On the other hand, what’s the first thing a hiring manager will do after receiving your resume?  See if he can find out more about you on LinkedIn.  What’s on LinkedIn?  Your picture.

You could easily argue exactly that line of reasoning for eliminating your photo from LinkedIn, also.  Just like on your resume, you want the focus to be on your accomplishments, not your physical appearance.  A LinkedIn profile photo seems questionable.

Here’s where I think the difference lies:

The resume is always completely and exclusively targeted toward your ability to perform a particular job, and your looks have nothing to do with that (unless you’re an actor!).  Anti-discrimination laws are targeted to job applications, which a resume is.

But, LinkedIn is first and foremost a networking site.  Even though LinkedIn is an extremely valuable tool for your job search, not everyone on LinkedIn is looking for a job.  They’re using LinkedIn to build their contact list, join groups that relate to their current careers, and see what the competition’s up to.  When you make networking the focus of your LinkedIn activities, it becomes clear that you need to include a photo, because we (all humans) bond more with a face than with the typed text.  LinkedIn users expect to see a photo, and it looks a little odd if you don’t…like you’re trying to hide something.  A photo makes other users more comfortable connecting with you, which is one of your primary goals.

So, never include a photo on your resume, because you don’t want to sabotage yourself in the HR screening process—and graphics don’t usually mesh well with Applicant Tracking Systems, anyway.  But always include a professional (business-appropriate) photo on your LinkedIn profile.  Not only is it expected, it’s a valuable part of your online credibility and networking success.

Even though there are many sources of information you can tap into for your 30/60/90-day plan, the very best one by far is LinkedIn.  If you could only choose one, it would be that one.

Why LinkedIn?

The groups, the question-and-answer discussions, the company pages, the people pages, and the ability to reach out and contact actual people who can help you with what you need to know are all parts of the very valuable LinkedIn whole.

The first step for you is to establish a LinkedIn profile that stands out.  Spend some time on it, detailing your experience, crafting a compelling summary, and posting a professional photo.  Begin making contacts and connections, and join groups that will be appropriate for your area.

Once you’re in the groups, you can participate in discussions that both expand your knowledge base and help you to become known to others in your field (if you make good comments).  These become resources for your 30/60/90-day plan.

When you’re interested in particular companies, you can research company pages (that are often more informative than corporate websites) and the personal pages of people who work there or used to work there.

LinkedIn has a rich array of opportunities for you and your job search.  If you’re not on LinkedIn yet, get a profile today.

• How to find the best people to contact

• How to communicate so that you steer your networking efforts in the right direction

• How focused networking can penetrate the hidden job market and get you referred into your next job

Click here for more secrets to networking using LinkedIn.



So... Now that we've underscored the need for you to use LinkedIn, just how do you identify the manager you need to contact for the job you want?

First, start with exactly what are you looking for in your next position. Here's your step-by-step plan:

• Put together a great resume that lays out clearly for you and for hiring managers what you bring to the table--your marketing document.
• Identify any experiences you have that aren't on your resume that may become important during an interview or after you have been hired.
• Review who you have worked for over your career - both individuals and companies.
• Identify companies that you feel are a good fit.
• Note individuals that you think might play a role in landing your next position.
• Identify positions and titles of individuals that you see as your next manager, executive, or hiring manager.
• Join as many industry- and skill-related groups as possible to increase your communications access to related professionals.
• Expand your network as much as possible along career, company, and education lines.

Once you've completed these steps, you are prepared to start finding the managers that are your objective.

(Even though you won't have full network visibility without premium membership, you don't need premium membership to conduct a successful job search.)

The search for managers is reasonably straightforward. The search should be executed as follows:

• Search your own network for contacts, completing searches by each job title and by each company you are interested in finding.
• Perform searches within the groups you have joined by each job title and by each company.
• Finally, perform searches in the general people search area again by title and by company.

With your set identified (and this may include thousands of individuals), you can begin to reach out, establishing contact and seeking leads to hiring managers and open opportunities that may fit your experience.

Should your field be narrow and the results more limited than you like, you can expand the search by considering related companies and titles that may have something in common with your target roles. For example, lenders will know real estate principals, doctors will know nursing managers, and so on.

Even though the job search is a sales process, it's also a numbers game.  It can be easy to get discouraged, especially in a difficult economy, but a resource like LinkedIn can help you get in front of the large number of potential employers you need to find the one who'll be a successful match.  You just have to work the numbers.

(Don't forget to utilize the tools available from Career Confidential to help you put together a winning professional LinkedIn profile and conduct the most effective campaign possible when contacting hiring managers.  There are systematic, proven tactics you can use in tandem with LinkedIn that will get you responses from hiring managers you never dreamed of.  Check out these expert techniques for contacting hiring managers today.)

Watch this video to find out:

LinkedIn is an amazing professional career tool and perhaps an even more amazing job search and prospecting tool. With over 70,000,000 members (and adding thousands of new members daily), this social networking service is your ticket to a world of career connections that would have been possible to achieve in years past. LinkedIn sets you up to unbelievably leverage your experience, your skills, and your time during the job search.

Are you aware of LinkedIn has to offer? Are you a member?

If not, sign up for LinkedIn now! That's right. Open a spare window while you are reading this article. Go to the LinkedIn site - www.LinkedIn.com. You'll see the box to sign up now. You don't need much. Have your name, email, title, and company ready to go. Submit your new membership. Confirm from your email inbox. There--you are a member.

But don't stop there.  Your LinkedIn profile is a critical component of your job search.  It's going to be the first impression that your new contacts will have of you.  After your membership is confirmed, begin building a complete profile,  with a professional picture, that showcases your experience and includes a fantastic summary that will compel readers to find out more about you.  Much more than a resume, you should build a very complete profile. Professional information, interests, books you find most useful, your website, your blog, recommendations from key contacts and much more can all be added here.  If you're not sure that your profile will attract the hiring managers and recruiters you need, invest in the Career Confidential LinkedIn Profile Tutorial.  It will walk you through, step-by-step, how to create a profile that rocks.

Once you've gotten your profile set, LinkedIn offers a number of good tools for getting your job search kicked to a higher gear including:

• Join professional groups related to your field and / or your industry. Also, you can join alumni groups, past employer groups, and interest groups. Keep in mind, to some extent you are what you pick. If you are involved in a job search and if you value your professional reputation, make choices that support that concept. Joining the "tree hugger haters group" might not be a wise idea.
• Q&A - Q&A offers you an opportunity to find out important information about specific concepts, ideas, etc. that may turn out to be important to your search. Also, you can work at making a reputation for yourself by participating in Q&A that may be of interest to folks in your career field.
• Discussions - After you join the groups, you'll be able to start and participate in business area or career field with other professionals in your industry. This is a great opportunity to build your reputation, meet other active industry folks, and find leads on positions, etc.
• LinkedIn offers a jobs area too! Look for positions that fit. See if you can't find opportunities that are a good fit now. Get introduced to the hiring authorities directly--and so much more.  One of the most exciting opportunities for you is the chance to use LinkedIn to contact hiring managers directly.  Making those kinds of connections opens up a "hidden" job market that increases your odds of landing a great job.

This is just scratching the surface.  As you can see, LinkedIn is a window into a whole new universe of job finding tools, activities, and connections.

Good luck and good hunting!



Tip #2:  Turn Social Media into Your Job Search’s Best Friend (not its worst enemy)

Online social networks are both underrated and often misused as a job search tool.  Facebook and Twitter can be amazing avenues to network or follow job leads, but it’s easy to forget that socializing with your friends can lead to comments or pictures that will kill your chances when the hiring manager sees it.  Sanitize your pages—you will be Googled.

But the Big Daddy of online networks, and the place you need to spend most of your time, is LinkedIn.  You must be on LinkedIn, with a high-quality profile that includes a business-appropriate photo.  (Career Confidential offers a LinkedIn Profile Tutorial for this.)  There are over 70 million professionals on LinkedIn—that’s a lot of job leads.  And, at least 80% of employers and recruiters use LinkedIn to look for potential hires.  You can’t afford to miss this.

You can join LinkedIn groups specific to your field and learn tremendous amounts of vital information, make connections to grow your network, and make a name for yourself by joining discussions and contributing useful comments.  Companies maintain pages that are invaluable when researching for your interview.  Perhaps most importantly, you can get ahead of the job-searching crowd and find “hidden jobs” by contacting hiring managers directly on LinkedIn.

Here's another tip for you to make the most of LinkedIn: