5 Reasons Not to Upload a Resume to LinkedIn
LinkedIn provides modern professionals with a convenient way to connect with and learn about others. The platform is used so widely today that failure to post a profile can raise eyebrows, especially if you’re searching for a job.
Yet while few dispute the value of joining LinkedIn, whether or not to upload a resume directly to the platform is still debated. Consider these reasons why uploading a standard resume might work against you before you hit ‘submit.’
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1. Inability to Tailor Your Experience
Getting a hiring manager’s attention involves demonstrating why you’re the perfect person to fulfill the needs of the position at hand, not just any role. A posted resume reflects general qualifications, but does not address the particulars that make the connection to your fit for a specific opening. Customizing your resume before it goes in front of a prospective employer ups your odds of landing an interview.
Furthermore, the possibility exists that the one-size-fits all resume you uploaded could even come back to haunt you. Say you sent an awesome, tailored resume to a hiring manager. She likes it so much that she goes on LinkedIn to further check you out – only to find a resume there that doesn’t look so much like the one she received. This inconsistency can generate concern about your actual suitability and career interests.
2. Standard Resumes on LinkedIn May Discourage Contact
Recruiters and others looking to fill jobs frequently use LinkedIn as a way to source candidates, which is one of the reasons job seekers need a presence. From your end, the objective is to spark interest that generates contact. Conversing allows you to present yourself in the best light and learn about the opportunity.
But an uploaded resume potentially keeps you from ever getting that chance to make an impression. Readers may glance at the document and decide on the spot not to bother initiating a conversation. This denies you the occasion to highlight information they’d find most relevant, fill in gaps, and impress them with pertinent examples.
3. Repercussions at Work
Hirers aren’t the only ones looking at LinkedIn. Remember that your boss and colleagues have access too. Encountering an uploaded resume is likely to put the idea in their head that you are looking to switch jobs or fields, especially if you emphasize background or skills different from the bulk of your current position.
In addition to the risk of alerting others that you’re on the market, a posted resume can lead to other problems at work. Tension can result when managers and coworkers disagree with the way you articulate your role and responsibilities, perhaps thinking you take too much credit or overstep bounds. Likewise, the stats you choose to present to quantifiably demonstrate achievements may not be numbers your employer particularly wants shared outside the company on a networking platform.
4. Privacy
While LinkedIn settings allow you to control contact information, an uploaded resume does not. Thus, experts generally agree that removing private information (such as address and phone number) from your resume before choosing to upload can be a smart move.
Remember that you lose control over who sees your resume once it gets uploaded. It becomes easy to download, and people can share, pirate, copy, or use that resume without your knowledge. Ask yourself if you’re comfortable with such a scenario and whether you might be putting yourself at risk for identity theft.
5. Low Reward Potential
A final reason in support of not uploading a resume to LinkedIn is that such an action is probably unnecessary. A well-written LinkedIn profile contains enough information for a new acquaintance to learn more about you or an HR rep to decide if you’re worth contacting.
Yes, there is that chance that uploading your resume could lead to it ending up in just the right hands. But many people find that constructing an engaging profile (including a quality, professional photo) is a more productive use of time and energy than debating all the risks.