Founded in 2002, LinkedIn is one of the most widely adopted employment services in the world. The platform combines employment functions and networking features that make it an ideal solution for job seekers as well as companies looking for the best candidates for job openings. Having a well-optimized LinkedIn account and LinkedIn profile is crucial for both job seekers and employers, as it increases visibility, enhances credibility, and improves the chances of being discovered by recruiters or top talent.
If you’re an employer who wants to screen potential candidates on LinkedIn, you need to know how to find resumes on this platform used by millions of professionals worldwide. Leveraging your connections can help expand your reach and improve your chances of finding qualified candidates through referrals and recommendations.
This comprehensive guide outlines how to search for and find resumes on LinkedIn, along with ways to optimize your search to find the best candidates for your company.
Can You View Resumes on LinkedIn?
Yes, anyone can view resumes on LinkedIn for free. You can use the ‘view profile’ feature to access a candidate’s profile and see their resume.
However, those who want to perform more advanced searches—with filters such as zip code, past companies, years of experience, etc.—must pay a fee.
LinkedIn offers three paid candidate sourcing tools:
LinkedIn offers three paid candidate sourcing tools:
- LinkedIn Recruiter
- LinkedIn Recruiter Lite
- LinkedIn Talent Insights
LinkedIn also allows users to showcase their resumes and achievements in the ‘Featured’ section of their profile. You can download a PDF version of a profile or resume by clicking the download icon, making it easy to save or share important information.
If you aren’t interested in spending money on the platform and need an alternative way to find talents on LinkedIn, then the next section is for you.
How to Find Resumes on LinkedIn?
Finding resumes on LinkedIn is a straightforward process thanks to the platform’s powerful search features. Job seekers and hiring managers can start by entering a job title, skill, or company name into the search bar at the top of the LinkedIn homepage. From there, you can use LinkedIn’s advanced search options to refine your candidate search by applying filters such as location, current company, and past companies. These search filters help recruiters and hiring managers quickly narrow down the talent pool to find the best candidates for their job openings.
For those looking to take their search further, LinkedIn Recruiter and Recruiter Lite offer even more advanced tools. These platforms allow you to manage and organize candidate profiles, making it easier to keep track of potential candidates for current and future roles. By leveraging these features, you can optimize your search results and connect with top talent who have the relevant skills and experience your company needs. Whether you’re searching for candidates for a specific job or find candidates for jobs or building a pipeline for future hiring, LinkedIn’s robust search capabilities make it easy to find resumes and candidate profiles that match your hiring needs.
There are three ways to find resumes. This section provides a step-by-step guide to help users navigate each method:
1. Guided Search
You can begin your candidate search by simply typing the role or job title you’re hiring for in the Search by the Job Title bar. You can also use this method to search for open positions, jobs, or job posts relevant to your needs. Then choose an option from the drop-down menu that best describes the role.
The next detail to add is the preferred location for your candidate. You can enter this detail in the Location bar and choose the most accurate suggestion from the drop-down menu. Or hit Tab if none of the locations suit yours.
You can follow the same process for the Skills search bar and even look for multiple skill sets.
Once you’re done, simply hit Search.
2. Advanced ‘Ideal’ Search
Do you want to find candidate profiles similar to one another? LinkedIn’s candidate sourcing tools should come in handy.
With LinkedIn Recruiter and Recruiter Lite, you can look up candidate names and get similar profiles.
Simply enter the name of the candidate in the search bar and select the ‘create search from ideal candidate’ option in the drop-down menu.
You can further narrow the search by entering the company name and limiting the results to five options.
Once you’ve entered the parameters, click Search. LinkedIn will provide relevant profiles within the filters you’ve set. You can change the filters to further refine the results. You can also expand your search by adjusting the filters or broadening your network to reach a wider pool of potential candidates.
Another advanced search tool is accessible to users with Recruiter Lite. It allows users to find resumes for the Talent pool of a project.
Users can click the Projects tab at the top of the page and look up the project title in the search bar. The results appear on the Talent pool tab and can be modified based on various filters.
3. Boolean Expressions and Operators
Boolean expressions and operators are a set of words or expressions used separately or in combination to refine search results. These techniques are especially useful when you want to search resumes on LinkedIn more efficiently. These expressions can be used in job titles, companies, skills, or keywords.
Boolean searches might use the following in various combinations:
- Quoted searches
- Parenthetical searches
- AND searches
- NOT searches
- OR searches
This is also the order of precedence when multiple expressions are used in a single command search.
Here’s how to use the Boolean logic to find candidates on LinkedIn:
Quoted Searches
Enclosing a phrase in quotation marks can help you find exact matches within resumes.
For example, a search for “content marketer” in quotation marks will help you find resumes that use this exact phrase. This specificity can significantly narrow down search results.
NOT Searches
Adding “NOT” before a term allows you to exclude that term from the search results.
For example: Writer (NOT marketing writer)
The above search input will give you a list of candidates for writers that excludes marketing writers.
AND Searches
AND search inputs are similar to NOT searches, except they command the tool to include the term instead of excluding it.
For example: Accountant AND finance
The above search input allows you to find resumes that include both the terms “accountant” and “finance.”
Note that AND commands aren’t necessary for search terms containing two or more words. These searches will automatically find resumes with all of those terms.
OR Searches
The OR command will help you find resumes that use one or more of the terms listed.
For example: Marketing OR sales OR advertising
This search command will generate results that include one, two, or all three terms.
Parenthetical Searches
Parentheses are useful when you want to combine commands and keep them separate.
For example, here is the command to use when you’re searching for a software engineer that knows either Java or Python: Software Engineer AND (Java OR Python)D (Java OR Python)
Using LinkedIn Recruiter for Candidate Search
LinkedIn Recruiter is a comprehensive tool designed to help hiring managers and recruiters find the best candidates for their job postings. With LinkedIn Recruiter, you can conduct advanced searches using a wide range of filters, including job titles, skills, experience, and more. This allows you to target your search results to only the most relevant candidate profiles, saving time and ensuring you find top talent for your open roles.
The platform’s search filters make it easy to identify potential candidates who meet your specific requirements. You can view detailed candidate profiles, add them to your talent pool, and save profiles for future reference.
LinkedIn Recruiter also enables you to organize and compare candidates, making it easier to evaluate who might be the best fit for your job. With features like saved searches and candidate management tools, hiring managers and recruiters can streamline their hiring process and ensure they’re connecting with the best candidates available. Whether you’re filling a single position or building a long-term hiring strategy, LinkedIn Recruiter is an essential tool for finding and managing top talent.the desired results, keep adjusting your search filters until you get the best potential candidates for the position.
Utilizing Recruiter Lite for Smaller Searches
Recruiter Lite is an excellent solution for smaller businesses or hiring managers with fewer job openings who still want access to LinkedIn’s powerful candidate search features. While it offers a more streamlined set of tools compared to the full LinkedIn Recruiter platform, Recruiter Lite still provides robust search functionality. You can search for candidates by job title, skills, and location, and use advanced filters to refine your search results and find the most suitable candidates for your job postings.
With Recruiter Lite, you can view and manage candidate profiles, making it easy to compare potential candidates and keep track of your hiring pipeline. The platform’s intuitive interface allows hiring managers to quickly access the information they need to make informed decisions. Even with a smaller talent pool, Recruiter Lite helps you find candidates who match your hiring needs, ensuring you don’t miss out on top talent. By utilizing Recruiter Lite, smaller companies can efficiently search for and connect with candidates, making the most of LinkedIn’s extensive professional network.
Creating a Job Description for Candidate Search
An effective job description is key to attracting the best candidates to your job posting. When crafting a job description, it’s important to include relevant keywords such as the job title, required skills, and experience level. This not only helps your job post appear in more search results but also ensures that recruiters and hiring managers can find candidates who are a strong match for the position.
A well-written job description should clearly outline the job responsibilities, required qualifications, and a brief overview of your company culture. By providing detailed information, you help potential candidates determine if they are a good fit for the role, which can reduce the number of unqualified applicants and streamline the hiring process. Including specific skills and experience in your job description also makes it easier for recruiters to search for and identify the best candidates. Ultimately, a clear and comprehensive job description is essential for attracting top talent and ensuring your hiring process is as efficient and effective as possible.
Simple Ways to Optimize Your LinkedIn Candidate Search
Although LinkedIn provides all the tools necessary to find the perfect candidate, understanding how to use them and make the most out of their functionalities is easier said than done.
Here are some tips and tricks to make the best use of LinkedIn’s candidate search features:
- First, determine your requirements for an ideal candidate
- Narrow down your list of search terms
- Use advanced filters, such as experience, skills, location, and more, to get specific results
- Create a list of top-priority filters
- Try exploring ideal candidate profiles to find key terms, skills, and other details for your search terms
- Save your search results as alerts to get notifications on new resumes
To optimize your job search, consider uploading your resume to your LinkedIn profile and keeping your uploaded resume up to date. Regularly review your job application settings to ensure your resume and data are visible to recruiters and tailored for each job application. Using a professional profile photo or profile picture can significantly enhance your visibility to recruiters and other professionals. Leveraging data from your LinkedIn profile and resume can help you stand out in job applications and increase your chances of being hired. Connect with other professionals and share ideas to further improve your job search strategy and expand your opportunities.
To Sum It Up
With the right tools and knowledge to make the most of them, it becomes easier to find resumes on LinkedIn and hire the right candidate for the position.
We hope this guide will help you optimize LinkedIn’s robust search engine for your company’s benefit.
About Talentprise
Talentprise is a skill-driven AI recruiting platform for employers to find top-fit candidates, while helping job seekers land jobs they deserve.
Keren Dinkin
Keren Dinkin had seven years of work experience in digital marketing and e-commerce before shifting gears and becoming a full-time content writer. She loves words and the power they hold, which explains her passion for writing.Keren is based in California. When she is not at her desk whipping up compelling narratives and sipping on endless cups of coffee, you can find her curled up with a book, playing with her dog, or pottering about in the garden.
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