LinkedIn’s “open to work” feature allows users to privately signal to recruiters and companies that they are looking for new job opportunities. This potentially opens up access to more job listings and recruiters. However, publicly setting your LinkedIn profile to “open to work” is a bit more controversial. Here we’ll examine the pros and cons of using the open to work feature.
The Potential Benefits of Open to Work
Here are some of the main benefits of using LinkedIn’s open to work feature:
- Increases visibility to recruiters – Recruiters can filter LinkedIn searches to only see profiles that are open to work. This puts you on their radar.
- Surfaces new job opportunities – Companies looking to make strategic hires may proactively reach out if they see top talent is open to work.
- Shows your availability – Setting your profile to openly looking demonstrates you are serious about finding a new position.
- Portrays confidence – Displaying you are open to work can indicate to potential employers that you are confident in your abilities.
- Proactive job seeking – Rather than waiting to be approached, being open to work shows you are taking steps to find a new role.
Essentially, setting your profile to “open to work” expands your visibility and discovers new roles you may not have found on your own. It’s a proactive approach to a job search rather than a passive one. You increase your chances of being contacted by both recruiters and hiring managers at companies.
Potential Downsides of Open to Work
However, there are also some risks associated with showcasing you are open to work on your profile:
- Current employer may find out – If your connections see you are openly job searching, word could get back to your current boss.
- Perceived as desperate – Some hiring managers assume if someone is openly job searching there must be a reason.
- No negotiation leverage – Recruiters know you are eager for a new job, which can limit salary negotiation power.
- Hiring bias – Studies show recruiters reviewing many profiles exhibit biases. Being openly eager for a job could unconsciously rank you lower.
- Spam messages – Low quality recruiters may bombard you with irrelevant job listings if they see you are open to work.
The main risk is that your current employer finds out you are looking before you are ready. This could jeopardize your current role. You also lose some negotiation leverage if companies know you urgently want a new job.
Who Should Use the Open to Work Feature
Here are some of the situations where setting your LinkedIn profile to openly looking for work makes the most sense:
- Job seekers – For those urgently looking for a new position, open to work expands your discoverability to recruiters and hiring managers.
- Laid off workers – If you were recently laid off, showcasing you are available helps you quickly find a new opportunity.
- New graduates – College students about to enter the workforce can use open to work to connect with companies hiring recent grads.
- Freelancers/consultants – Independent contractors trying to surface new client opportunities may want to advertise their availability.
- Undervalued employees – Those feeling underpaid/underutilized at their current job can explore better opportunities.
In general, openly looking for work makes the most sense when you are anxious to find a new position quickly or feel you are underpaid and want better opportunities.
When to Avoid Open to Work
Here are situations where you may want to avoid publicizing you are open to work on LinkedIn:
- Employed and not urgent – If you are casually looking but not urgent, keeping it private prevents issues with your current employer.
- In a niche field – Those in small industries run a bigger risk of their interest getting back to their current company.
- First job – College students who still hold internships/part-time jobs may want to wait until fully available.
- In a contract – Those currently under an employment contract may breach it by openly looking for jobs.
- Job is going well – If you are happy in your current role, avoid open to work to prevent sending the wrong signal.
You’ll want to avoid openly looking for jobs on LinkedIn if you are employed and want to be discreet, work in a small industry, or are happy in your current role. The risks likely outweigh any benefits.
How to Use LinkedIn Open to Work
If you decide LinkedIn’s open to work feature aligns with your job search approach, here are some tips to use it effectively:
- Add keywords – Update your LinkedIn profile headline, summary, and experience descriptions with keywords recruiters may search for.
- Refresh your profile – Update your profile photo, work history, education, etc. to showcase your best professional self.
- Expand your network – Grow your connections on LinkedIn to increase the number of people who see you are open to work.
- Follow companies – Follow pages of companies you are interested in to get notices when they post jobs.
- Utilize privacy – Use privacy settings to exclude your connections from your current company from seeing your job search activity.
- Personalize outreach – When contacted about opportunities, personalize your responses rather than sending generic replies.
- Monitor status – Periodically review who has viewed your profile since setting your open to work status.
Optimizing your LinkedIn profile and network boosts the chances recruiters and hiring managers will reach out when they see you are searching for a new opportunity.
Alternatives to Open to Work
If you decide the open to work feature isn’t right for your situation, here are some alternative approaches to find new jobs on LinkedIn:
- Apply to postings – Browse open positions and follow the application process rather than passively waiting to be contacted.
- Follow company pages – Stay up-to-date on new openings by following company pages without openly looking for jobs.
- Join industry groups – Joining LinkedIn Groups related to your industry can expose you to new professional connections and opportunities.
- Contact recruiters – Proactively reaching out to recruiters at your target companies expresses interest in working for them.
- Leverage your network – Ask connections to pass along your resume if they know of relevant openings.
- Focus locally – Search for jobs limiting results to your desired geographic area rather than nationwide postings.
Actively engaging on LinkedIn through these approaches allows you to surface potential new roles without openly signaling you are job hunting.
The Pros and Cons of LinkedIn Open to Work
Here is a summary of the key potential advantages and disadvantages of using LinkedIn’s open to work profile setting:
Potential Advantages
- Increases visibility to recruiters and hiring managers
- Surfaces new job opportunities you may not have found yourself
- Demonstrates you are serious and available for new roles
- Shows confidence in your abilities
- Proactive approach to job seeking
Potential Disadvantages
- Current employer may find out you are looking
- Perceived as desperate by some hiring managers
- Lose negotiation leverage if companies know you are eager
- Unconscious biases may cause recruiters to rank you lower
- Increase in irrelevant job listings or spam
Overall, openly looking for work on LinkedIn expands your job search reach but also comes with some risks to consider.
Conclusion
LinkedIn’s open to work profile setting allows you to privately signal to employers and recruiters that you are looking for new opportunities. Publicly displaying your job search comes with some advantages and risks.
The increased visibility can surface exciting new roles you would not have found on your own. However, your employer could find out you are looking to leave before you are ready. You also give up some negotiation leverage if your interest is too obvious.
Those urgently trying to change jobs, such as recent layoffs or new graduates, tend to benefit most from showcasing they are open to work. Employed individuals who want discretion are better off using LinkedIn’s other features to engage with recruiters and potential new companies.
With over 740 million members, LinkedIn is the top professional networking platform. But openly looking for jobs is just one of many approaches to match with new opportunities. Customizing privacy settings, expanding your connections, joining industry groups, and monitoring your profile visibility can help maximize your job search effectiveness whether you use the open to work status or not.