Linked InFast Stream Opportunity Network

Marilyn Booth, August 2016

What we’ll cover

● What is it and why use?

● Getting started - building your profile & finding connections

● Endorsements and recommendations

● Hints and tips to build your network

● Build your knowledge

● BEIS engagement model

● Engage and share

● What next?

● Questions

Getting started: building your profile

Building your profile

○ Stick to Civil Service Code, but sell your experiences

○ Choose what to share - current job only or more detailed

○ Make it visual - share project links

○ As your career progresses this will change - so keep it current

○ Photos help

○ Add your skills (think what this says about you)

○ Education (this will change over time)

○ Think about projects creatively

Finding and accepting connections

Think of it as a contacts list that you build up from the start of your career

● Find connections

○ What do connections say about you?

○ Send invites via Linked In itself

○ Check your potential connection is actually on the platform

○ Good practice: introduce yourself if you’ve only worked with people

briefly

○ Chance for you to build up your professional network over your career

● Accept invites - you don’t have to accept from people you don’t know

● For some people, this will be the extent of what they do

Hints and Tips: Build your Network

● Check for former colleagues and classmates who are on LinkedIn by using

their search tools.

● Check for people who share a group or affiliation with you.

● Go through business cards for potential contacts

● Search through your first-degree network connections.

● Advertise yourself by joining and participating in LinkedIn Groups.

● Use the People You May Know feature.

But - think about your privacy: become familiar with “privacy & settings”

Endorsements & Recommendations

● Endorsements can be useful: but be careful when giving

● Recommendations: not essential but can add context to your profile

Building your knowledge

● Not just about networking

● Learn from your network’s updates (and make your own)

● Groups can be good places to share best practice, research and more

○ Useful if you have a more corporate role or don’t want to be active

yourself

● Follow influencers (scroll down in profile to “discover more”)

● Follow companies & your own departments

Wider engagement

You and your connections: engage & share

● All social networks are about being helpful, sharing and learning

● Share updates with your connections

● Like, comment or add to others’ updates

● Join a group

○ Alumni groups

○ Support groups

○ Groups associated with your policy or work area

● Keep on building your groups

● Could you blog to share your expertise?

● How could you use to a) build your knowledge or b) develop policy in future

What next?

● Set up an account if you haven’t already

● Join the Fast Stream Opportunity Network Linked In group

● Use that group to find future connections

● Share your insights, hints, tips and questions there

● Follow your department and see how they & other companies market what

they do on Twitter.

● Become a LinkedIn expert & think about how you can use other digital

tools in your day jobs

Questions?