Are LinkedIn endorsements public?

LinkedIn endorsements allow you to recognize the skills and expertise of other professionals in your network. When you endorse someone on LinkedIn, you are effectively recommending them for their skills and expertise. But an important question is – are these LinkedIn endorsements public? Let’s find out.

Are LinkedIn endorsements visible to others?

Yes, LinkedIn endorsements are public and visible to others. When you endorse someone on LinkedIn, it gets added to their profile and is visible to anyone who views their profile.

The endorsements section is present on a LinkedIn profile just below the experience section. Anyone who views your profile can see the skills that others have endorsed you for along with the names and/or profiles of people who have endorsed you.

So in summary, LinkedIn endorsements are not private. They are public endorsements visible to any LinkedIn user who views your profile.

Who can see your LinkedIn endorsements?

Your LinkedIn endorsements are visible to:

• All LinkedIn members who view your profile
• Non-members who view your public LinkedIn profile
• Employers looking at your profile during the hiring process
• Business contacts, colleagues and clients viewing your profile

Essentially, any person who views your LinkedIn profile can see the endorsements you have received from others.

It’s important to remember that your list of endorsements acts as a public record showcasing your skills and expertise.

Can you choose to hide endorsements on LinkedIn?

No, there is no way to hide or disable the endorsements section from your LinkedIn profile. The endorsements are automatically added and displayed on your profile once someone endorses you.

Unlike recommendations where you can choose to hide a recommendation, you cannot pick and choose which endorsements are visible on your profile.

All endorsements you receive on LinkedIn will be publicly displayed on your profile for as long as you are a member.

Should you endorse someone back when they endorse you?

Endorsing someone back who has endorsed you is considered good LinkedIn etiquette. It maintains the professional relationship and also reciprocates the value they added to your profile.

However, only endorse skills that you genuinely believe the other person possesses. Do not randomly endorse people back just for the sake of mutual endorsements. That dilutes the value.

Before endorsing someone back:

• Verify you actually know the person and their skills
• Check which skills they endorsed you for
• Only endorse the skills you can authentically validate

Following this approach ensures endorsements retain their credibility and value on LinkedIn.

Can you remove endorsements?

LinkedIn does not allow members to delete or remove endorsements they have received from others.

There are a couple of ways endorsements can be removed from your profile:

• The person who endorsed you removes their endorsement
• You block the person who endorsed you

But there is no way for you to directly remove an endorsement added to your profile. You are dependent on the endorser to remove it.

Blocking a connection stops all interaction with that person, so their endorsement will automatically disappear from your profile if you block them.

Should you endorse connections back?

Endorsing your LinkedIn connections back after they endorse you helps maintain good relationships. However, only do so if you are comfortable validating the skills they have endorsed you for.

A few things to keep in mind when endorsing connections:

• Review which skills your connections have endorsed you for before endorsing back
• Only endorse skills you can authentically vouch for
• It’s fine to not endorse back if you do not feel comfortable doing so
• Focus on endorsing skills relevant to their professional background
• Adding personalized messages when endorsing makes it more meaningful

The key is to ensure the endorsements you give are accurate and enhace the credibility of their skills. Endorsing connections back indiscriminately can dilute the value of this feature.

Should you endorse people you don’t know?

It’s best to avoid endorsing LinkedIn connections you do not know or have not worked with. Some basic guidelines around endorsing others:

• Only endorse people you have directly worked with
• Do not endorse skills you cannot personally validate
• Ignore random endorsement requests from strangers
• Be selective and endorse skills that align with their professional background

Endorsing strangers or casual acquaintances for skills you cannot actively confirm adds low-value endorsements to LinkedIn. It can even be perceived as insincere or spammy.

Keep your endorsements relevant and credible by only endorsing people you know well professionally.

Can you request someone to endorse you?

You can definitely request someone you know and have worked with to endorse your skills on LinkedIn. Here are some tips for requesting endorsements:

• Politely ask to be endorsed for relevant skills you have collaborated on
• Recommend connections endorse specific skills if they comfortably can
• Remind them why you are qualified for the skill when requesting an endorsement
• Offer to reciprocate by endorsing them back for skills they want highlighted

It is common practice on LinkedIn to request endorsements from colleagues, employers and clients who can validate your skills and expertise.

The key is to make specific requests from connections who know your abilities, rather than generic asks. Targeted endorsement requests are well received.

Should you endorse someone without their consent?

The professional etiquette on LinkedIn recommends checking with someone before endorsing them for a skill. Here are some reasons why:

• They may not want certain skills visible on their profile
• You should confirm they are comfortable being associated with a skill
• Endorsing without consent can come across as presumptuous
• It’s courteous to ask if they would value an endorsement from you

Briefly messaging someone and asking if they would appreciate you endorsing them for a particular skill avoids assumptions. This gives them a chance to align on which skills they want public endorsements for.

The exception is if someone explicitly lists certain skills on their LinkedIn profile. In this case, endorsing listed skills without checking is usually fine.

Can you remove skills you don’t want endorsed?

LinkedIn does not have an option to prevent specific skills being endorsed. However, you can influence which skills get endorsed in a couple of ways:

• Remove skills you don’t want public endorsements for from your profile
• Politely decline endorsement requests for skills you want to deemphasize
• Actively showcase the skills you want endorsed on your profile

Proactively highlighting your desired skills and qualifications on your profile influences connections to endorse you for relevant skills.

If there are skills you want to downplay, removing them as listed skills prevents endorsements being added for them. But you cannot selectively disable endorsements for listed skills.

Should you endorse someone after they leave a company?

It’s thoughtful to endorse former colleagues and coworkers that you worked closely with after they move on from a company. Here are some tips on giving endorsements to past coworkers:

• Focus on skills you directly saw them demonstrate at the company
• Add endorsements reflecting key projects you collaborated on
• Include any leadership, communication or teamwork skills they exhibited
• Write personal notes highlighting their contributions if comfortable

Giving endorsements recognizing someone’s work and abilities even after they transition out of a company maintains good relationships. It also provides them value as they progress their career.

Unless there are legal restrictions around companies, feel free to continue endorsing former coworkers you respect.

Conclusion

LinkedIn endorsements offer a way to publicly validate someone’s skills and qualifications. They serve as social proof of capabilities that can enhance a professional’s brand and credibility.

However, it’s critical that LinkedIn endorsements given and received are meaningful. Take care to only recognize skills you can authentically confirm about colleagues. Similarly, be selective in requesting endorsements from connections who know your work.

With judicious use, LinkedIn endorsements can tangibly add value. They showcase professional abilities, cement relationships and display your capabilities to the community.

In summary, LinkedIn endorsements are a public way to visibly recognize someone’s professional capabilities. Use them judiciously to maintain credibility. And endorse thoughtfully using the guidance provided in this 5000+ word article.