I believe it’s always preferable to talk about real life situations and events that occur during my consulting practice – always mindful of not ‘outing’ anyone or openly identifying them. I think it’s a learning experience and I like to share learnings so that we can all benefit.
I am currently recruiting for a number of positions and one in particular has brought me great insight into the HR world. As a member of that world for 25 years, I’m always amazed at the things we HR professionals do.
I received an application for a role today. Well, I sort of received an application. Despite asking for a resume and cover letter, this person chose to apply on Linked In by merely clicking ‘apply.’ No resume and no cover letter.
OK, I’m game. I’ll click on your profile and check you out. After all, I don’t want to miss someone amazing (although I’ve already learned that you are either poor at following directions or think you don’t need to provide a resume for review).
Having gotten to the profile, however, the candidate’s headline reads ‘Employed but always open to new career opportunities.’
OK, I think it’s a fabulous idea to always be managing your career. Always having your eye on the next step in your career (whether it’s with your employer or elsewhere). Keep that resume up to date and handy. Keep your Linked In profile optimized. Keep your network growing and relevant and vibrant. But putting ‘Employed but always open to new career opportunities’ as your headline?’ What would your current employer think?
More to the point here what would a future employer think? Well, if you really want to know…a future employer would probably not think of hiring this person who is gainfully employed but always open to new career opportunities. While it’s okay to be thinking ahead, it’s not OK to make this your headline on Linked In.
I’ll take a pass….moving on…….. 
Speak Your Mind