Whether you find yourself on the market, or just casually looking for a change, it is important to be “searchable” on LinkedIn by a chemical recruiter and other industry hiring managers.

  • Make sure your profile is complete
    • LinkedIn allows Premium users to search by more than 35 parameters including schools, degrees, industry and company (current and past). Making sure your profile is filled out with all of the available parameters will increase your chance of getting “caught” in a filter for jobs that match your background.
  • Join relevant groups
    • One of the searchable parameters is the groups one may belong to. This provides a “birds of a feather” scenario. Consider joining and engaging in relevant groups to the industry you are working in or want to transition to.
  • Keywords are king
    • In addition to filling out specific parameters, utilize the description space to provide keywords in all variations including abbreviations. The * modifier for Boolean searches is not supported by LinkedIn so be sure to include different iterations of the same keyword to strengthen your chances of being found. For example if you are in the specialty chemicals space and only include the word chemical (without the S), a recruiter searching for chemicals as a keyword won’t be able to find you!
  • Proper spelling
    • Nothing will throw off searchability like misspelling. If you want to get noticed for being a “specialty chemical recruiter” but you spell chemical wrong, the chances of being found drop dramatically.
  • Add skills and ask for recommendations
    • Skills are a great way to highlight keywords outside of the description sections
    • Recommendations also add yet another section where keywords can shine! Plus lets recruiters know you are the “real deal.”
  • Turn on “open to work” even if you are just casually looking
    • Turning on this function lets recruiters, outside your current company, know you might be interested in a new opportunity.
  • Strengthen your network
    • Connect with individuals in the industry, the bigger your network, the more likely you are within a few degrees of recruiters and other potential hiring managers.

Written by Lindsay Schaaf, Director of Research, Specialty Chemical Recruiter