Can’t Use LinkedIn Because the Boss is Watching

More and more of my resume clients are afraid to use LinkedIn. When I explain that LinkedIn has reported over 225,000,000 registered users and the fact there are plenty of job opportunities and companies on LinkedIn, it changes nothing. Then I go on to explain how employers use LinkedIn to verify job information and recruiters use it to search for top talent, but it doesn’t matter – they can’t use it. And the reason they can’t use it is because they have insecure stalking bosses who troll their employees LinkedIn accounts, looking for changes and updates. I was and still am shocked!

I never would have imagined and I’ll bet the developers of LinkedIn never would have thought that controlling bosses would use LinkedIn as a way to track the employees and even intimidate them. Yes intimidate, I had one resume client tell me her boss called her into a meeting to discuss her LinkedIn account activity and suggested she stop updating her account and that she change her heading to include the company’s name. Basically marking the company’s property in a virtual sort of way. Really? Yes really!

I’ve also had another client that refused to sign up for LinkedIn because someone that USED to work with her was fired for using it. And finally, yet another client told me that his company sent a memo to all employees outlining how their summaries on LinkedIn should read.

That’s ridiculous! Millions of people are looking for jobs and I’m not just talking about the unemployed people either. Google it! There are countless stats regarding engagement or disengagement, unhappy workers, passive job seekers, and overall unhappiness in the workplace.

Here are the 5 top reasons people look for new/better jobs

1. They hate their boss/supervisor. Yes the boss is “hole” and they are pushing great people way.
2. They hate their job duties. Nothing makes you feel worse than doing a poor job with no value.
3. They hate their paychecks. The ends just aren’t meeting and there are no raises on the horizon.
4. They hate the glass ceiling. There’s no movement. They have topped out. Got to wait for someone to quit, get fired or die to get a promotion. There is no growth potential.
5. They hate the organization. The company does not value its employees. They don’t ask those questions or make them feel like they are part of something great. They don’t appreciate their hard work.

All these things and more; there is discrimination, unfair hiring practice, favoritism, nepotism and unsafe labor conditions. Whatever the case it’s hard to move on if the boss is using any sort of intimidation tactics; including bullying, implied threats, direct threats and retaliation.

What’s the answer? Well if you are disengaged, you need to put the word out in your personal network of friends and business connections. You need to keep your LinkedIn profile updated and if anyone asks, just let them know you want to maintain a professional looking profile.

That’s my passive aggressive approach; personally, I’m not a passive person. I would change my profile as I see fit to accommodate my career path and if asked I would tell the boss, “Yes, I am not happy with my pay, job duties, position, my direct report…” or whatever the case maybe and let the chips fall where they may. If you are highly skilled, a top performer, a leader, well educated, knowledgeable and a good person with a network – you will be alright – trust me I’ve helped a lot of people get bigger jobs and more pay but it starts with a nice resume.

Please share this article with your insecure boss.

And as always, join the Résumé Crusade contact me “[email protected]”, because you or someone you know needs help with their resume, cover letter, and LinkedIn profile.