Bob,

 

LinkedIn discourages people from trying to connect directly with others that they don’t already know.  Instead, they show the links between you & the other person & suggest that you ask one of these intermediaries to introduce you.  When seeking a connection, you are asked to say how you know the person that you wish to link to and are given a choice of 6 possible answers:  Colleague, Classmate, We’ve done business together, Friend, Other, I don’t know Xxx.

 

If you choose any of the first 3, you are presented with a choice of the possible locations in your CV that apply & are meant to choose one.  If you say you’re a friend or choose “other”, you are asked for your target’s email address.  If you say that you don’t know the person, I believe the system advises you not to proceed, suggests you get introduced by an intermediary & may block your message (unless you buy some “InMail” messages).

 

In practice, however, most people seem to bypass this mechanism easily.  They simply contact you directly claiming that they’ve “done business” with you and, of course, this is not something the system can verify.  When I get these messages, I will usually point out to the individual that I HAVEN’T actually done business with them and I’m not sure that I wish to have a business or professional connection with someone who is dishonest.  What else will they lie about later on?

 

There is a 7^th option to justify connections:  membership of LinkedIn Groups.  This option only shows if you and your target are members of the same group.  To my mind, if you don’t want to spend money on InMail messages, this is the honest way to connect with people you don’t know.  The recruiters also know this & are members of all the groups that don’t tie their membership to some sort of professional qualification or profession.  If you wish to connect to someone in the group, you say that you know them through a group & you’re then presented with a list of groups where you share membership with that person.

 

When someone requests a link, you are under no obligation to agree.  You can accept them, ignore them, or correspond without agreeing to link until you’re ready to make up your mind.  Keep in mind your own reasons for being there. Is it for marketing, for recruiting new staff, for finding new jobs, for finding advisors to support you when you’re on the fringes of your professional competence?  Be selective & don’t accept every link, unless your role is PR & marketing.  This is lengthy, but I hope it helps you to understand how LinkedIn works. 

 

Trevor Maze

 

 

 

Is anyone else on the list having trouble with LinkedIn?  I seem to be inundated with invitations from ‘friends’ who are recruitment consultants …. !!!!

 

 

Regards, Bob

 

 

Robert Dunn TD

RGN OHNC SCPHN(OH) MSc
Senior Occupational Health Adviser/Operations Manager
University of Oxford Occupational Health Service
10 Parks Road, Oxford, OX1 3PD
Tel: 01865 282676

 

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