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1. Is it a good or bad idea to include your LinkedIn profile link on your resume?

2. How do you feel about John Lucht's longer, paragraph style resume versus the MT shorter, bullet style resume??? I liked Lucht's argument for the longer, autobiographical, paragraph style format.

TIA,
JD

kklogic's picture

[b]1.[/b] Hmm. I don't believe I've ever thought about it before. My initial reaction was no, don't include. Then, I flipped back and forth a couple of times. I think I'm firmly in the "no" corner again. ;) I know some people that are my age (36) that came late to the internet game. All of us that have used the net for a while know that LI is a business tool, but I have had to explain to MORE than one person that fact. They think it's myspace for grown-ups. So, I don't think I would risk putting my resume in front of someone who doesn't get it. You might blow your dream job over a simple misunderstanding.

[b]2. [/b]If I'm understanding the interview of Lucht right, he basically agrees with M&M - unless it is a C-suite exec with a long work history. I love M&M's methodology, but the formatting leaves me a little cold (esp. being in the marketing profession). I'm not sure it'd fly for a high level marketing job without increased visual appeal. But, M&M have far more experience than I, so I'll trust them! (P.S. I haven't listened to part 3 yet - so perhaps this is discussed there?)

TomW's picture
Training Badge

I think the LinkedIn information is irrelevant when you submit a resume. It doesn't offer any information about your job performance or job history that's not already on your resume.

If you're applying for a $100,000+ executive position, I like Lucht (that is the book title, after all). For everyone else, I think the MT way is the way to go.

Heck, I'm going after upper management positions, and I've had several recruiters praise the brevity and 1-page length of the MT-formatted, Wendii-reviewed resume I sent them.

jhack's picture

No need to include it. If they're savvy, they'll look you up. What does your profile provide that your resume doesn't?

TomW is right: if you're looking for six figures and up, then Lucht style can help.

John

tlhausmann's picture
Licensee BadgeTraining Badge

Given the choice between including one line for another significant job accomplishment and a link to the LinkedIn profile I believe it is better to have the accomplishment.

HMac's picture

I agree with the general consensus on both questions:

I treat my LinkedIn profile as an electronic version of my resume - it's cut and pasted from my up-to-date resume. So sending people there doesn't measurably increase their knowledge about me, except that it makes recommendations visible.

After giving the Lucht vs. M-T approaches a lot of thought (and trying each them out in their purest forms), I've come to this unremarkable conclusion: There's a lot more in common between the approaches that differences that separate them. This is what I heard in the conversation about resumes with Lucht on the recent members podcasts:

[list]* It’s all about the CONTENT.
* Every word in a resume should be tightly constructed - should deliver a fact as clearly as you possibly can. (Write Tight, Tight, Tight).
* So evaluate each and every word to see if it needs to be there.
* Look for 2 and 3 word phrases which can be cut.
* Tell the truth, and make sure it holds up to your references’ recollections.
* Crowded (but otherwise very good) 1 page resumes can be given a little breathing room (some white space between different copy blocks), even if that means going to an additional page.
* It’s important that a resume can be absorbed at a glance, and if it’s jammed too tight, the reader might be reluctant to dive in.
* To do something superbly in more than a page or two requires a mastery of writing that most people don’t have. [/list:u]

The only thing I'd add is a big "IT DEPENDS" when you're asking about the appicability of specific styles. As others have already noted, it depends on the level of job you're seeking, and the level you're at. It depends on the industry (as Kat suggest above, marketers have more tolerance for longer copy than others). And finally, it depends on YOU - I really think that an important aspect of a resume is that it fits you - so the hiring manager doesn't get one picture from the resume and a different one from you.

This is a bit of a cluncky way to put it, but I think that your resume has "to sound like you."

-Hugh

Nik's picture

I included my LinkedIn profile link, and was told by my future colleages/manager that it helped me in the interviewing/selection process. Why? Because it has endorsements. Lots of solid, enthusiastic, well-written endorsements.

You can't put that stuff in your resume, and it looks great.

I also made sure to turn my LinkedIn profile into a "sales" tool. I wrote a longer-form sales resume (a la Rites of Passage), since I knew it would be more of a reference check than a resume. I also solicited endorsements, made all the information public (I WANT people to read it!), put on a current photo, etc.

I also added links to my other stuff on the web -- blog, etc.

The other advantage of this is that people will find YOU on the internet, and not some other person with your name who might be confused with you. These sorts of profiles also tend to rise high in the Google results for your name, which makes it another good way to underscore your resume and interview when HR/hiring managers go sniffing for more detail.

I did the same with my Facebook profile for the same reasons. I wanted a unified message when people checked my online references.