LinkedIn Importance
How important is it to have a LinkedIn? Graduated and headed to an EB soon, and never needed to make one for recruiting because I went to a target school with a large alumni base and info sessions/OCR. It seems like theres a lot of posts about attending company insight events or profiles announcing that they are an Incoming Student or Incoming Summer Analyst, etc., but is there something useful behind that? Maybe for recruiting after IB? Are there LinkedIn exclusive opportunities?
Most useful for students and professionals seeking external validation.
100p this. Also good for keeping tabs on (stalking) former classmates and coworkers which is an essential part of being a finance hardo.
Also 99% of jobs on LinkedIn are scams but once in a blue moon you'll find something good. I knew someone who got a job at a very legit family office (household name, several Bs in assets) through a random recruiter ping on LinkedIn. Worth keeping one and updating it every couple of years just for that one-off chance.
-
^^^
-
You'll get headhunted for sure if you're going to an EB. That being said, LinkedIn will make you easier to find and can be a great networking platform if you want to lateral or find people at PE firms that interest you. Keep in mind you'll get flooded with networking requests from students if you make one.
great place to humble brag and hear some pretty shitty inspirational stories. it can be a great resource, and you can also do your tinder “due diligence”
+1 for tinder for FDD - get the last name and then you can do further do some CDD on Instagram
Wait, I thought I was the only sociopathic obsessive stalker???? Turns out the whole finance industry is like me?????
I am 3/4 in LinkedIn. Higher accuracy than Tinder
Big facts. Shooters shoot
more of a showcase of what you have achieved, less of a tool to get you to success
I would advise getting one, especially given that you are in the early part of your career, EB or not. It is good to connect with your peers, mentors, bosses. These people will be important to your growth moving forward - especially if you are looking to network with alums of your EB that have moved on to PE, HF, grad schools, etc.
Agree to your point above - it is a lot of self promotion, the "blessed" posts to getting a coffee chat/one day workshop, etc. But, it is a great way to keep tabs on where your peers have moved/who can be of help 5-10 years down the road. It gets harder after school to keep in touch and time goes by. Just don't end up on LinkedIn Flex..
During a superday for an EB (virtual due to COVID), the MD interviewing me went on my LinkedIn during the interview and was seeing who I was connected with at the EB. In hindsight I think it was to gauge my interest in the firm and see who I connected with through networking because he mentioned the names of those I was connected to at the firm during the call.
I reached out to an alum of my school over a Linkedin message and our conversations grew into my current internship. Not the most useless thing in the world.
I'm wary of people who don't have Linkedin.
This. When it's someone who's over the age of 40 who isn't on LinkedIn, it's whatever. But when someone in their 20s doesn't have one, it just seems off. Like they're hiding something. Just have a bare bones one with your job experience and education and nothing more.
-
Okay, somewhat surprised by the negative comments on LinkedIn, especially since its free... Here is why I think it is important..
It is a virtual resume that has no page limitation, is searchable by headhunters, and easy to be reviewed by future employers during recruitment. Almost all search firms pay for the high end version to search by title, dates of employment, education, etc. Not being on here could have you literally get passed over (clearly, this is a 5+ year exp issue, but time will fly).
It is way to contact your network and keep tabs regardless of where people go (assuming they update). Finding out an old email doesn't work sucks.
You can proactively reach out to people to network. School alum, shared organizations, even in the same firm, or a firm you want to work for. This has lots of uses.
You can share content that gets you noticed. Clearly, there is a right and wrong way to do this, but it can be useful at points in your career.
My advice, start early. Build good content and keep your profile intact. It is crazy not to. And this should start while you are a UG student.
I think its a plus. I've been recruiting PE/VC because I've had recruiters reach out to me via linkedin (for SA 2021)
Where did you do your SA? Would HHs only reach out to top BB?
I’ve found it helpful in finding and reaching out to bankers at whatever company I’m interested in recruiting at. Unfortunately, without LinkedIn premium this is very limited, and considering it’s something absurd like $60/month, its not really worth it.
Deleted
If you are doing a big out reach for recruiting I would say use premium.
definitely worth sophomore year of college and during IB stint (for effeciency)
It’s positive for having your resume/profile out there and accessible for others to see. Sometimes, you learn a thing or two from what your connections post. However, it’s a negative for the random people who try to give you a sales pitch and 70%-80% of the jobs on LinkedIn are not legit.
1. It's free
2. It makes researching people's backgrounds incredibly easy
3. It's a great and easy way to connect with people
4. If used properly (with the right sense of finesse), very easy to get referred to others with THE OTHERS doing the work (introducing you to other people vs. giving you a phone number- seriously makes a big difference when X sends a message including both parties and says some flowery things. I have done that for others many times and have had it done for me. Virtually always results in a scheduled conversation.)
5. It's table stakes
6. Networking is a never ending process, not an event. It keeps you current on job changes, accomplishments, etc.
7. Oh yeah - it's free
Personally I think it’s most useful to just keep track of who you have met in the professional world. In my internships I have met with too many management teams to remember all their names. LinkedIn allows me to keep track of them if for some reason I ever needed that info in the long run. Don’t care for the humble bragging and right now is the worst for it. Every intern posting about how their 5 week virtual internship was an out of body experience and that the firm is such an amazing place.
Let them revel in it before they actually hit the desks
I used it to recruit executives for our portfolio companies. So far best place to do so.
Use it to connect with people you'd actually be interested in calling/meeting, and as an extension of your CV. Ignore and don't participate in the brown-nosey post-internship posts, influencer-esque monologues and cries for help.
LinkedIn has become critical for a successful B2B marketing strategy. It has great importance for B2B and other businesses. Many of them are also using LinkedIn automation tools to find their ideal leads quickly on this platform.
It is useful for researching firms and the type of background they seem to like (if you can discern one).
Its also useful for figuring out the path people have taken and getting a feel for turnover...
Is's easier to search if you have an account.
The buy in feature seems to be targeted at sales types trying to develop relationships...
Quis eligendi enim molestiae rem deleniti nisi sint. Aut ad delectus harum blanditiis. Doloribus voluptatum qui possimus ut esse natus asperiores voluptatibus. Blanditiis et velit aspernatur dolores magni repellendus rerum.
See All Comments - 100% Free
WSO depends on everyone being able to pitch in when they know something. Unlock with your email and get bonus: 6 financial modeling lessons free ($199 value)
or Unlock with your social account...
Voluptatibus eos tempore aut. Tempore exercitationem laudantium voluptates optio magnam. Repellendus a aut laborum ducimus sit sed velit. Asperiores soluta esse delectus quod doloribus doloribus rerum.
Nulla hic dolor voluptas explicabo culpa dicta nihil. Sunt at aut qui soluta et autem molestiae. Corporis minus qui maxime.
Cum blanditiis aut earum cumque. Inventore distinctio quis sunt possimus ut commodi. Sint debitis et eos ex consequatur. Ipsam quas rerum est omnis animi nulla impedit. Beatae voluptas accusamus ea soluta. Quos ut ut qui quas molestias. Tenetur occaecati quibusdam necessitatibus deleniti.
Vel praesentium fuga excepturi sit. Eos quisquam qui aut atque optio repellat nam beatae. Et libero in qui.