Historically, professionals have always been hesitant to talk about job loss on LinkedIn. They spread the word behind the scenes, hoping to quickly bounce back in another organization. However, in our era of authenticity and transparency, we sense that attitudes are changing. More and more professionals are opening up by announcing their job loss while communicating about the next challenge they’re seeking. Let’s decode this trend.
First, let’s look at the main reason why professionals are still hesitant to make a job loss public on LinkedIn. Beyond the obvious advantage of quickly communicating to their entire network their availability to take on new professional challenges.
“There’s a flip side to the coin,” warns Joshua Hart, corporate culture consultant, who weighed the question in an article. “By making the news public, a future employer might question our professionalism or discretion.”
That’s why the corporate culture consultant suggests keeping the announcement “clear,” “concise,” and above all “positive.” The idea is to mention the layoff, highlight your skills, then explain the new type of mandate or position you’re seeking.
When Tongues Loosen
This is the approach taken by Marika Laforest, a digital advisor who lost her job as part of a government layoff. At the end of August, she made a rather sober post where she gets straight to the point.
Note the flexibility regarding the type of employment sought, as well as the positive conclusion:
“I’m also open to working on a contract or stimulating mandate where I can have a positive impact. Once the shock has passed, I have confidence in my ability to bounce back and in my network to give me momentum!”
The same direct and concise approach was used by Debbie Rouleau, a communications and web marketing specialist, a few weeks apart.
With the same positive note at the end:
“P.S. I wish happiness to the Horizon Cumulus team. I’m leaving on good terms despite everything, and I wish them all the success imaginable in the future!”
The Effect of an Announcement
Shortly after her first post, Marika Laforest posted again on her account to give a behind-the-scenes view of the repercussions of her message.
“Thank you so much to everyone for your concern,” she announced. “I didn’t expect so much reach! (…) People have approached me to validate my interests, others have forwarded me links to posted positions, and I find it very interesting to see that people systematically think of me, both for functions that fit and for functions I would never have thought of. I’ve created a small database to ensure effective follow-up.”
In the wake of this, she shared an impressive initial assessment of her post:
- 127,902 impressions
- 77,251 LinkedIn profiles reached
- 2,277 profile views
- 43 new followers
- 676 reactions
- 123 comments
- 40 shares
- 29 private messages
- 12 phone calls
- and 3 media interview requests (!), ultimately declined
After her first announcement, Debbie Rouleau continued to keep her network updated on her progress. We reached out to her to learn about the first fruits of her approach.
“I managed to get a first interview and a few coffee chats,” she tells us.
We wish both of these digital professionals all the success in their job search.
