If you’ve been in the professional world long enough, you’ve probably been in the awkward situation of looking for a new job while already employed.
It’s a sticky place to be. If you’re genuinely pursuing another career move, it can take up a lot of your time and focus. You’re also caught between conflicting desires. You want to market your capabilities and willingness to work as much as possible to recruiters for marketing positions. But at the same time you don’t want your bosses and peers to catch on until you’re ready to tell them yourself, usually when giving your two weeks notice.
Earlier this month, LinkedIn formally announced a new way to make finding new job opportunities a little smoother and more discrete. Meet Open Candidates:
The premise is simple. You indicate in your LinkedIn settings that you’re open to hearing about potential job opportunities. That sends a “hidden” signal that only marketing job recruiters from other companies can see that you’re willing to hear what they have to say.
How to Activate Open Candidates for Recruiters for Marketing Positions
It’s easy to have missed the release of Open Candidates if you weren’t looking for it, especially if you don’t spend a lot of time on LinkedIn. In fact, the most obvious place you might think to look for it–your profile–makes no mention of it.
In order to activate your signal, you actually need to head to the Preferences section of LinkedIn Jobs. Of course, you need a LinkedIn account for this. From there, you can turn it on with just a single click. However, you’ll want to give some extra information to improve the quality of job opportunities that come across your radar.
One particularly useful aspect of this function is that is doesn’t just feature the job you currently have; it displays the kind of position you’re looking for. That’s especially valuable for marketers who are looking for vertical career growth; for instance, a senior marketing manager who’s looking to be considered in their first marketing executive recruitment. It also lets you indicate where you want to work, so recruiters in other cities can encounter your profile if you’re interested in relocation.
When Marketers Should Turn on Open Candidates
So when should you as a marketer activate this setting? For most professionals, the best answer is right now.
There’s no commitment or obligation from you by turning the setting on. You’re not required to get involved with any job presented to you, and you don’t even have to respond to recruiter inquiries. Though of course, as we’ve told before in the The Parable of the 39 Year Old CMO, it’s always wise to respond when top marketing recruiters come calling.
If you’re currently actively looking for a new marketing job, then the advantages to such a signal seem obvious. But even if you’re content with your current gig, it’s wise to constantly be open to good opportunities that come your way.
Related: Why RIGHT NOW Is the Best Time to Look for Your Next Marketing Job
You never know when the job of your dreams will fall into your lap. But you need to be open to learning about opportunities in order to get your chance at it.
With plenty to gain and little to lose, marketing yourself as an Open Candidate is a smart default for almost any marketer. The job market for marketing experts is pretty hot right now, and the odds of a good opportunity coming your way are high.
Completing Your Passive Career Growth Strategy
Of course, telling people you’re interested in job opportunities doesn’t magically guarantee you a new position. You still need to put in some work making yourself an attractive candidate.
In particular, it’s important to have your LinkedIn profile looking polished and up-to date. There’s no point in catching the attention of active marketing recruiters, only to send them to an empty or poorly assembled profile. Update your profile with your latest work experience, find a professional-looking photo, highlight your strengths, and put some of your best work on exhibit.
Read More: How to Take Advantage of the Differences Between Your Marketing Resume and LinkedIn Profile
You’ll also want to have a relatively complete and up-to-date marketing resume ready to go. If an awesome offer comes your way, you don’t want to be scrambling to pull together a complete resume from scratch. That’s an easy way to kill an application.
Your resume doesn’t have to be completely fleshed out and perfect. But it’s wise to at least have a strong structure built. That way, you have a flexible template available that you can simply polish up, customize for the job, and submit in a timely fashion to any recruiters for marketing positions that come calling.
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