One of LinkedIn’s true hidden gems is the free resume building service launched last year, which I have just been testing out. At first I thought it would be very basic and not all that useful. I was wrong.
The resume builder was developed by LinkedIn labs, meaning it’s an experimental tool but still developed in-house by the LinkedIn team. We can safely say that there is a need for a resume builder function on LinkedIn and I assume this is the Beta testing of it before they integrate it fully on LinkedIn proper.
How does the resume creator work?
Very simple. First off make sure you are logged in to LinkedIn. Then click on to the LinkedIn resume tool and sign in with your LinkedIn passport. The next thing you know you’ll have an auto-generated CV which mirrors all the information on your LinkedIn profile. This obviously means that the better that’s been filled in, the better the CV.
How do you edit your resume?
There are eleven different templates that you can play around with to suit your industry, seniority and purpose of the resume. Just like with your LinkedIn profile, you can shuffle the sections of your resume around and even hide the ones you think are irrelevant to your new resume.
The one thing you cannot do in the resume builder tool is to change specific details like job titles, dates and so on – this is done on your regular LinkedIn profile and updated automagically to your resume or CV.
Benefits of using the resume builder
As we all know it’s a bit tricky to keep your LinkedIn profile and resume completely synched. On top of that, it’s a slog to have to update stuff in two places. You can easily change the template, style and decide exactly what goes up on the resume as opposed to the LinkedIn profile.
You can choose to share the resume straight from the application or you can set it to private. Finally, you can download your new CV as a PDF and email or print.
Is this the kiss of death for resume writers?
I don’t think so, whilst the LinkedIn resume creator does churn out pretty good looking resumes it doesn’t customize them at all. A resume writer’s main role in my opinion is to write excellent copy and lay things out in a compelling fashion for your target audience. LinkedIn’s new tool does provide the average job seeker with a nice template resume but this has never been the be all and end all when there is any competition for a particular vacancy.
Final thought
LinkedIn know that their platform is the place to be for all things career and professional networking. By giving the world this free resume and CV feature, they ensure that everyone that uses the resume builder will keep their LinkedIn profile up-to-date and perfectly crafted for success.
Have you tried the tool yet? Please let me know your feedback!
Further reading about LinkedIn at 10 LinkedIn Tips To Get You the Job.
