It is well known that recruitment methods have changed hugely over the last few years. Previously candidates would scour trade magazines and send off targeted covering letters and CVs. The Sunday Times Appointments section was once a heavy supplement in itself and used extensively by executive recruitment companies. Not any more.

Now the ambitious and switched on candidate will be making extensive use of social media and the one I always recommend is LinkedIn. Having just gone public and reaching a market value of nearly $9 billion last week the attraction is clear. Networking has always been a winner in terms of sourcing new jobs and LinkedIn offers the ability to network quickly and in depth. And it works.

As a recruiter for some of the largest global companies, I find LinkedIn invaluable for sourcing and researching prospective candidates. So my advice to you is;

1. Ensure your LinkedIn page is right up to date and includes qualifications, education, career roles and your interests. Plus, include any achievements or awards. What have you done that would make me contact you?
2. If you’re interested in working for a global company, make sure your profile is suitably international – LinkedIn is used worldwide and is one of the few foreign social networking companies that can operate in China where it has about a million users and is growing.
3. Ensure your profiles contain the key words that you either currently use in your role or aspire to use in your ongoing career. Or go on training courses that will fulfil that criteria.
4. Link to recruiters who specialise in your area of work – they will be searching for you online but having you approach them directly gives you a huge step ahead of your competitors.
5. Make sure your contact details are up-to-date, you don’t want a message going to an old email address.
6. Ensure that any other social media sites you use portray a professional image of yourself. It is becoming the norm for employers to search for you online as part of the selection process.

Nick Davies can be reached via LinkedIn or email to consult@mcgrawstone.co.uk.