LinkedIn is the world’s largest professional network with over 722 million members worldwide. Many professionals use LinkedIn to network, find jobs, connect with business contacts, and build their personal brand. One of the key features of LinkedIn is the ability to showcase your work experience and skills on your profile. This includes listing your current and past jobs and roles. A common question that comes up is whether LinkedIn automatically makes a post on your profile when you update your job information. The quick answer is no, LinkedIn does not automatically create a post about job changes. You have to manually create a post yourself announcing your new role.
How job changes are displayed on LinkedIn
When you update your job information on your LinkedIn profile, it will be reflected in these main areas:
– The experience section of your profile – This will show your new job title and company.
– Your headline – You can edit your headline to showcase your new position.
– On your connections’ feeds – Your connections will get notified of your new role when they view their feed.
However, LinkedIn does not automatically create a post or update announcing your job change. You have to manually write a post to broadcast the news to your network.
Why LinkedIn doesn’t automatically post job updates
There are a few reasons why LinkedIn refrains from automatically posting about your job updates:
– Privacy concerns – Posting job changes without consent could violate privacy.
– Avoid spamming connections – Automated posts about job changes could be annoying to your connections.
– Opportunity for user to customize message – You can customize the messaging and tone you want to use to announce your news.
– Encourage user engagement – Posting job updates drives more user engagement than automated posts.
So while it may be a bit more work on your end, there are good reasons why LinkedIn wants you to manually create your own announcement posts.
How to manually announce your job update on LinkedIn
While LinkedIn won’t do it for you, it only takes a few steps to manually create a post sharing your job update:
1. Draft the post
Compose your post in the “Start a post” section. Some tips for what to include:
– Exciting news or announcement about your new role
– Details like your new job title, company, start date
– What you’ll be working on or goals in the new job
– Thank people who helped you land the job
– Share your contact info for new opportunities
2. Add a photo or other media
Consider adding a photo of yourself or images related to your new company. You can also include relevant hashtags.
3. Share the post
Preview your post before sharing it with your network. Make any final edits before clicking the “Post” button.
4. Engage with your post
Check back on your post to reply to comments, thank people for the likes and congratulations. This helps keep the post active in people’s feeds.
Best practices for announcing a job change on LinkedIn
Follow these best practices when manually posting your job updates:
– Share the news soon after starting your new role. The timing will make the update more relevant.
– Use an upbeat, positive tone. This is an exciting milestone to celebrate.
– Be professional and avoid negativity about previous roles.
– Make the focus about your new opportunities, not just about leaving your old job.
– Engage with people who react – personally thanking connections makes a big impact.
– Follow up with key contacts privately too, especially if they helped connect you to the new role.
Other places to announce your job change
In addition to posting on LinkedIn, here are some other places to share the news about your job update:
Update your professional bio
Update your bio on your portfolio website, company website, speaking profiles etc. to reflect your latest position.
Email signature
Include your new job title and company in your email signature. This lets all your email contacts know about your update.
Resume/CV
Update your resume or CV with your new role, responsibilities and accomplishments. Share the updated version on job sites.
Social media
Post a job update on other social networks like Twitter, Facebook, Instagram etc. to extend your announcement.
Professional associations
If you belong to professional groups like alumni associations, notify the admin to update their records.
Coworkers
Personally inform previous colleagues about your job change through emails or calls.
Should you notify LinkedIn when leaving a job?
Just as LinkedIn doesn’t automatically announce when you start a new job, they also do not notify your network when you leave or transition out of a role. You’ll need to manually update your LinkedIn profile to reflect that a job is no longer current:
– Remove the end date from your past position to indicate you no longer work there
– Change your current position to your new job
– Update your professional headline
As with announcing new jobs, it’s recommended to manually make a post about leaving your old company rather than having LinkedIn automatically notify your network without your control.
Conclusion
While LinkedIn provides a platform to showcase your professional journey, the responsibility is on you as the user to share important career updates. LinkedIn believes keeping major profile changes like job transitions manual gives people better control over their personal brand. The key takeaway is that LinkedIn does not automatically post job changes – if you want to announce a new position, you need to create your own post. But this gives you the opportunity to shape the messaging and highlight your news in your own voice.