How to get a new job on LinkedIn after redundancy

I still remember how I felt when I was told that my job was at risk and this was the start of the consultation.

Angry. Upset. In denial.

Getting made redundant hurts. It can knock your confidence. Even when you know the organisation had good business reasons.

So much of who we are is wrapped up in what we are.

Even though you know it’s not personal, it certainly feels personal.

When it happened to me, I was very grateful that LinkedIn came to my rescue.

I’ve always taken time to nurture my network on LinkedIn – building my network, developing relationships and having conversations.

I’ve always been active on LinkedIn – sharing content, getting involved in discussions, asking for recommendations …

Since that first time I was made redundant in 2009, all my career opportunities and contracts since then have come through LinkedIn.

However if you’re not that active on LinkedIn, and you haven’t been job hunting for a while, maybe you’re not sure where or how to get started.

How to get a new job on LinkedIn after redundancy

Here are ten things you can do today that will help you get a new job more quickly and more easily on LinkedIn after redundancy.

1. Identify your career goal – what do you want to do next and make sure that goal is reflected in your experience.
2. Get clear on what keywords you need to use and sprinkle those throughout your summary. Your keywords need to reflect what a potential recruiter or employer would look for. Think about keywords from their perspective e.g. “business analyst” “digital transformation” “product manager” “service delivery”. If you’re stuck, check out some job descriptions and identify the required skills.
3. Next make sure your headline says who you, what you do and how you get results AND includes one or two of those keywords that you want to be found for.
4. Ask for recommendations from people you’ve worked with in the recent past – your manager, your co-workers, clients, suppliers etc.
5. Show up more consistently by posting content, writing comments and sharing articles. Get visible, get engaged so that you are front of mind when your connections have a vacancy.
6. Big up your experience and skills in your summary. Nobody else is going to do that for you.
7. Make sure your experience reflects your achievements and expertise. Where possible talk about quantifiable achievements, not just responsibilities.
8. Use active verbs when describing your experience e.g. “implemented”, “initiated”, “organised” etc.
9. Let recruiters know you’re open to work by enabling the #OpentoWork feature.
10. Finally one of THE most important things you can do and it’s the one that people often think of last ASK FOR HELP. Ask others to let you know about roles. Ask for introductions. And keep reminding people that you’re still looking.

Yes it’s a tough market right now but every day I see posts from connections who’ve got a job interview or been hired.

Stay strong. Hold your head high. Remember it was your role that was made redundant, not you as a person.

Want some help?

If you could do with some help, check out Job Search Confidence to discover how to craft a powerful LinkedIn profile that gets you noticed so you start to attract more of the right career opportunities to your profile.

Find out more and book your place HERE.