Introduction
LinkedIn is a common professional networking platform that has become popular for a number of years now. It is a platform where job seekers, as well as employers, can be in a position to connect. However, for job seekers, it can sometimes be difficult to find a job of your own or of your desire. Creating a LinkedIn profile gives one some added advantages, especially against those other job seekers who do not have an account. LinkedIn has become a platform that is used in creating awareness as well as establishing a professional online presence (Sharone, 2017).
Opportunities
The platform has a number of advantages as well as challenges. Some of the opportunities include one can use LinkedIn as a reflection tool for professional as well as personal development planning. Managing an individual professional life skill is a lifelong thing and not a one-off task. It can as well encourage students to reflect as well as record their regular development and practice throughout their learning process. It encourages students to be digitally distinct by establishing a professional online presence. It can be a useful starting point for students who want to develop their profession online since it focuses so much on skills as well as experiences of the working class in the world. LinkedIn like any other social media platform has got a number of groups or forums. Most of these groups are of different subjects and may require one to request approval. The groups are viewable to all users and it can help students in understanding how their field of study or professional is used by the experienced professional in the outside world. Moe, so one can create a group which will enable them to be in a position to work with other students hence enabling a discussion and supportive environment (McCabe, 2017)
Challenges and Possible Solutions
Like any other online and external platform that is linked to an institution, the use of LinkedIn curriculum activities can be associated with a number of challenges. One needs to think carefully of deciding on how to asses students profile since with the past traditional CVs it was difficult to tell what a good profile really is. Therefore it would have much better if the students would create the profile together by supporting and give peer in critiquing an engagement in developing the profile together. Due to a number of concerns such as security issues there is need to offer alternative solutions such as some assessment forms which becomes an alternative. If it requires an assessment as part of the module assessment then one must put into consideration working with the fellow partners and career teams. Students who are being engaged into creating a LinkedIn profile before they have knowledge or skills in understanding how to create a professional online presence could act as a detrimental in their future career. Therefore there need for tutors to support students with peer supported approach so to be able to develop their profiles are critically reviewed. As a way of developing their profiles, a certain level of framework establishment is a way of assisting students to develop their profiles appropriately (Sculfor, 2015). LinkedIn like any other business requires welcoming change since competency has always been a threat to the growing business. Regular revising of the platform will enable one to update their business and to remind the ones of changes with market conditions changing and needs to be responded to.
works cited
Skeels, M.M. and Grudin, J., 2009, May. When social networks cross boundaries: a case study of workplace use of facebook and linkedin. In Proceedings of the ACM 2009 international conference on Supporting group work (pp. 95-104). ACM.
Sharone, O., 2017. LinkedIn or LinkedOut? How Social Networking Sites are Reshaping the Labor Market. In Emerging Conceptions of Work, Management and the Labor Market (pp. 1-31). Emerald Publishing Limited.
McCabe, M.B., 2017. Social media marketing strategies for career advancement: An analysis of LinkedIn. Journal of Business and Behavioral Sciences, 29(1), p.85.
Sculfor, V., 2015. Developing your career in information. Business Information Review, 32(4), pp.231-234.
McCabe, M.B., 2016. SOCIAL MEDIA STRATEGIES FOR CAREER PROGRESSION. ASBBS Proceedings, 23(1), p.398.
