LinkedIn recommendations can play an important role in shaping someone’s professional reputation and credibility. However, there is often debate around how much value recommendations really provide. Do people pay attention to LinkedIn recommendations when evaluating a candidate? Or are they simply ignored as meaningless praise?
The Purpose of LinkedIn Recommendations
LinkedIn recommendations are written references intended to highlight someone’s skills, accomplishments, and positive attributes in a professional setting. The goal is to provide credible testimonials that validate the person’s qualifications and expertise.
For job seekers, strong recommendations can help demonstrate a track record of success and ability to add value in various roles. This can make a candidate more attractive to prospective employers or clients. Recommendations also showcase soft skills and qualities beyond what is captured on a resume.
From an employer’s perspective, recommendations enable evaluating not just what a candidate has done, but how others view their capabilities. This provides additional context beyond skills and work history. Recommendations also convey a candidate’s ability to build relationships and effectively collaborate with colleagues.
The Case That Recommendations Matter
Here are some key reasons why LinkedIn recommendations can influence perceptions and decision making:
- Validation from respected sources. Recommendations from well-regarded business contacts, managers, or companies can carry significant weight compared to unknown recommenders.
- Indicator of likability and teamwork. The willingness of colleagues to write recommendations signals someone who is likely talented but also liked within an organization.
- Shows nuanced capabilities. Recommendations often provide specific examples of skills and contributions that go beyond bullets on a resume.
- Extends reach and networks. Strong recommendations strengthen the perception of someone’s professional community and connections.
- Boosts credentials. Recommendations add credibility that supports a candidate’s claimed qualifications and experience.
In essence, we tend to trust the opinions of others as a factor in decision making. LinkedIn recommendations can provide meaningful third-party credibility during the vetting process.
Scenarios Where Recommendations Are Impactful
While their influence may vary, there are certain scenarios where LinkedIn recommendations can be particularly impactful:
- Job seeking – Recommendations are a standard part of vetting candidates during hiring. They offer practical insights into work style, team fit, and organizational culture beyond resume facts.
- New career field – When transitioning into a new industry, recommendations help demonstrate transferable skills and ability to thrive in different environments.
- Freelancing and consulting – Recommendations are crucial for independent workers to showcase expertise and reliability to potential clients.
- Acquiring new business – References and testimonials can provide credibility when seeking new customers or partnerships.
- Leadership roles – For senior level positions, recommendations give visibility into management and leadership capabilities.
In these situations, recommendations can give a decisive edge compared to those without meaningful recommendations and endorsements.
Why Some Discount LinkedIn Recommendations
There are also reasonable arguments on why LinkedIn recommendations carry minimal weight:
- Often just polite exchanges – People write recommendations to reciprocate getting one, not objective assessments.
- Reluctance to criticize – Negative feedback rarely appears, recommendations tend to be universally positive.
- Little screening – Unlike job references, there is no screening process to validate recommenders.
- Few details – Recommendations frequently lack specific, behavior-based details on accomplishments.
- Information overload – With so many recommendations, they blend together with minimal impact.
In essence, many see LinkedIn recommendations as an exercise in congratulatory praise that reveal little. Without substance or candor, they fail to influence decisions.
Recommendation Best Practices
While no guarantee, the following practices can help maximize the impact of LinkedIn recommendations:
- Select recommenders carefully – Choose those who worked closely with you and can speak in-depth to your contributions. Well-known recommenders also carry more weight.
- Personalize requests – Take the time to customize recommendation requests rather than just sending generic messages.
- Provide reminders on accomplishments – To spur meaningful detail, remind recommenders of projects and initiatives you collaborated on.
- Offer to reciprocate – Ethically extending recommendations helps motivate others to do the same.
- Aim for variety – Recommendations from managers, direct reports, colleagues, clients, etc. provide well-rounded perspective.
Study: Do Recommendations Impact Hiring Decisions?
A 2020 study published in Personnel Assessment And Decisions aimed to quantify the impact of LinkedIn recommendations on evaluator perceptions during the hiring process.
The study presented profiles with varying numbers of recommendations. Participants scored profiles on qualities including competence, likability, credibility, and hireability.
Key findings of the experimental study included:
Profiles With More Recommendations… | |
---|---|
Received increased ratings for likability | +11% |
Received increased ratings for competence | +8% |
Were more likely to be chosen for hire | +18% |
The results indicate recommendations have a statistically significant effect on how candidates are perceived and likelihood of hire. Researchers concluded:
“Our findings suggest that LI recommendations do impact users’ impressions of profile owners whom they have not previously met or interacted with.”
Recommendations Are One Part of the Equation
In evaluating a candidate, LinkedIn recommendations are just one data point hiring managers and recruiters will consider. However, the research indicates recommendations do sway perceptions versus identical profiles without them.
For those concerned about their professional reputation, tending to one’s recommendations is worthwhile. The ideal is having endorsements that offer meaningful detail on work done and positive impact achieved.
Like any hiring factor, recommendations have limits in their value. But overall, they do appear to carry weight in forming impressions. With some prudent effort, recommendations can become an asset rather than just an empty formality.
Conclusion
LinkedIn recommendations should not be dismissed as meaningless. Valid experiments indicate profiles with more recommendations are perceived as more likable, competent and hireable compared to those without. For job seekers in particular, quality recommendations can provide a potential edge over the competition.
Of course, any hiring decision depends on examining a candidate’s full range of credentials and intangibles. But recommendations do matter more than some may assume. With sound practices, they can be a difference maker versus an afterthought.