ATLANTA, GA - Last Monday, a 1st degree LinkedIn connection of mine (one of 1106) asked me to forward an InMail from a competing recruiter to one of the best online retailing executives in my LinkedIn network. I refused, and then stood firm when the connection asked me to defend my position.
Rather than blog about it, I thought you might enjoy this BlogTalk Radio rhubarb between me and the Recruiting Animal on this week's Recruiting Animal Show.
LinkedIn is a glorified database -- not a community. As such, I do not feel the same obligation to distant members of LinkedIn that I would if we were fellow members of a real online community (similar in functionality to, say, RecruitingBlogs.com). This doesn't make me a jerk, but it does make me competitive. There is a difference.
Moral of the story: If you are a recruiter and you want to solicit one of the rock stars in my LinkedIn network, then you will need to do what I did: Cold call them.
What's your opinion?
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what I find interesting about linkedIn is the way that the referrals come across as a unique type of mutual masterbation where we each agree to say something nice about the other. In a down economy it seems to be getting worse. If you look at referreals you will often notice a pattern of dyadic pairs. In many cases it is the worst form of sycophant toadying that you ever come across and in no way jibes with the real references (some negative) that I often get when I call people.
Posted by: John Galt | 2009.03.07 at 12:21
Couldn't agree more Harry. It's sort of like your wife's sister's second cousin's dog walker's neighbor's son ... looking for clues in all the wrong places
Posted by: david perry | 2008.06.10 at 07:40
I concur with some comments here ("Wouldn't a real recruiter just use the inMail function"), but disagree with your simplification of Linkedin as a Database. LI, IMO, is a community not unlike the one we call "the real world". On the one hand, I respect that someone would reach out and ask (e.g. like the avg. guy that asked to popular girl to the prom). On the other, I think we all need to know our place and manage ourselves accordingly. Just because I am in e-commerce and am connected to a VC guy that invests in e-commerce does not mean I reach out to him (or ask to reach out one of his contacts) each time I mentally develop a better mousetrap. Instead, I consider it, I plan, I put my best foot forward and then leverage what is available in a sensible manner.
In all, as usual, another Harry installment that makes for great discussion.
Posted by: Kevin Strawbridge | 2008.06.03 at 02:37
You're much nicer than I am. I would have published the offenders name and used the entire matter as a teachable moment.
Lazy recruiters need to be weeded out, and nothing's lazier than demanding someone else do your job.
I get requests from recruiters who want me to forward these introductions through the hiring manager of the candidate they want to reach.
Cause that's going to happen.
Posted by: Jim Durbin | 2008.06.02 at 18:48
Way to stay comment in the face of a hostile/highly caffeinated interviewer :) Wouldn't a real recruiter just use the InMail function?
Posted by: Josh | 2008.06.02 at 16:29
Good for you, Harry. First, what would be your incentive to forward such a request? Clearly, you're under no obligation to help a competitor, particularly when they're going after your "assets". More to the point, these are relationships that you've nurtured over time. I certainly fault the other recruiter.
But, there's also a general laziness exhibited by many people on LinkedIn. Just because it's easy to "add someone to your network" doesn't mean that you can do so without sharing the rationale with them. I mean, if I don't know you, please tell me why I'd want to be added to your network. The point of LI was that it was to be a network of people that you had some kind of meaningful relationship with. Part of that, I think, is being respectful of your connections and your extended network.
Posted by: Rob Fields | 2008.06.02 at 13:51
Why would you be inclined to share your candidates with someone on Recruitingblogs? Do you feel any special rapport with the 7000 people listed there? Would you share your best candidates with me? For no share of the fee?
Posted by: Recruiting Animal | 2008.06.01 at 23:04
I love Linkedin -- but when I wrote this post and really started to compare it to other communities, it occurred to me that it's just a database. As a recruiter, I love it. But 99% of its value lies in helping its users "find and be found."
thanks for reading,
h a r r y
Posted by: management recruiter | 2008.06.01 at 22:54
Perfect!
Linkedin is nice as a database or address book. That is it.
For everything else - completely overrated as many other 'social networks'.
A.
Posted by: andreas.wpv | 2008.06.01 at 22:25