If LinkedIn disappeared tomorrow, depending on the day, it honestly might take me a few hours to notice. Not to diminish LinkedIn as one of the number one platforms to source from, but it’s just one of many tools sourcers use, and not always the best one for a given job. For argument’s sake here are a few things that would immediately come to mind after discovering LinkedIn’s disappearance.
Where’s that resume?
Hopefully, LinkedIn isn’t the sole place you’ve been keeping candidate information. Ideally, you’ve already captured all information from their profile and safely stored it in your CRM or ATS. If you haven’t, this could put a major hitch in your sourcing flow. You should also take a moment to consider if you’ve ever captured your own LinkedIn profile for safe keeping. While your resume exists as a living document in many places, it might be harder to track down all that additional profile information like recommendations from former colleagues, endorsements, and group associations.
Why didn’t I keep their contact info?
While most of us keep hard copies of resumes squirreled away elsewhere, we may be less great about keeping contact information for former work colleagues. With LinkedIn having been around for so long it’s been easy to keep people in a virtual holding tank and only reach out when a reference is needed. With this in mind, it’s reasonable to expect that individuals may struggle to reconnect with references and provide up to date contact information as quickly as before.
Congratulations… I think?
One handy feature that LinkedIn does have is sharing connections significant events such as work anniversaries or new jobs. This allows us as sourcers and networkers to keep a warm touch on those in our network with minimal effort. Without that feature, we would be forced to be far more proactive about reaching out and maintaining those connections.
Facebook is Here to Step in
Facebook is a quirky intern who is longing to step into their first “grown-up” job. With LinkedIn taken off the map, Facebook now has the opportunity to fulfill its potential as a career resource for candidates and recruiters alike. They have already introduced Facebook Jobs which has caused a lot of buzz in the staffing world and has great potential to expand into hiring level positions. While the platform offers great access to a large candidate base, it does struggle with easy search functions for specific skills. Down the road, they will need to develop “recruiter tools” to truly make the transition work.
The other catch to this situation is there would need to be a culture shift in how “professionalism” is viewed. If sourcers are looking for the same level of virtual professional they saw on LinkedIn, on the much more casual platform, it’s a disaster waiting to happen. On the other side, some candidates may be forced to clean up their online presence a smidgen more.
Adapt and Overcome
One thing is guaranteed, if LinkedIn disappeared we would all adapt, overcome the temporary challenge, and probably all move like lemmings to whatever was deemed the next best thing. Between Facebook and Google for Jobs entering the fray, it could be suggested that a shift of power away from LinkedIn is already occurring. Who do you think would be ready to fill LinkedIn’s shoes if given the opportunity?