# LinkedIn



## newbie971 (Jun 8, 2011)

Hi. I've been reading a lot over here about the difficulties in finding a job and the necessity of networking. Is LinkedIn a popular tool in Dubai? Do headhunters and employers use it? Thanks in advance, N.


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## zin (Oct 28, 2010)

Yes. Many company HR deparments use LinkedIn to avoid costs of hiring recruitment companies.


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## shaia (Jun 7, 2011)

yup, wer using it


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## md000 (Dec 16, 2008)

I use it and everyone I know that hires uses it.

One big thing for me, though, is the lack of care that job seekers take in replying to jobs. As part of my analysis for my last hiring process, I found that just under 80% of the resumes I received (of nearly 300) were not targeted to the position that I was hiring. Most didn't even read the job posting.

The people who made it in my "take a look at" pile didn't even have to be the "best" applicants - they were the ones that took the time to a) meet the requirements; b) do a little background research on me or my organization; and c) write a targeted and passionate letter of interest.

Don't just take the shotgun approach and hit "click here to reply".

As an aside, I found a gentleman who didn't target the position. I called him for a phone interview and plainly stated - "oh, i don't remember which job that is. I just hit the apply button to a bunch of jobs." obviously the interview ended quickly.

-md000/mike


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## Ben_130 (Jan 24, 2011)

With my general struggle to find a job at the moment I believe that LinkedIn is my best chance of getting somewhere.

I dont know if many people pay to use any of their services? The majority of job seekers probably dont need to. I have recently signed up for one of the job seeker accounts. The main reason for doing this is because in the three months since I signed up to LinkedIn, not one suitable job has been advertised in the UAE for my profession which is in Geographic Information Systems (GIS). So by signing up I can now search for the more senior GIS staff and managers and their companies and them contact them through LinkedIn. 

Before LinkedIn I was sending emails to companies, but have had no luck with this. I doubt the vast majority of me emails where even read! 

No idea yet if this will prove to be any more successful!


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## zin (Oct 28, 2010)

Ben do let us know how you get along with that.


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## pamela0810 (Apr 5, 2010)

I have been using Linkedin for the last 2 months and been building my network. Although I do not have over 500 contacts they way some people do, I do have a targeted list of people who are related to either my profession or the HR field in major organizations.

I'm not sure if it will help me find a job and I don't think the paid account will be of much use to me but linkedin is the main site I currently use as I am also actively looking for a change in jobs.

Let's keep our fingers crossed!


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## newbie971 (Jun 8, 2011)

Thank you ALL for valuable information and see you on LinkedIn.


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## qwertyuiopme (Jun 10, 2011)

Not sure if Linkedin Jobs works that well. 

But Linkedin works big time...got my job in Dubai through Linkedin Network. .


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## Ben_130 (Jan 24, 2011)

zin said:


> Ben do let us know how you get along with that.


Will do! I know that most people would be able to use it fine without paying, I only am as it is more difficult to find the specific people in my profession. 
It is better than just sending CV's to office email addresses because I doubt anyone reads them!
Since sending out messages to a few people on LinkedIn the other day I have had a couple of reply's. One asking to sent them my CV and the other pointing me in the direction of whom I need to speak to. So t least this way I know I am getting somewhere! Even if I get reply's saying they are not looking for anyone at least I will have an answer!


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## stuartmatthewson (Feb 15, 2011)

Got head hunted through Linked In to go and work for ADMM and launch a Grand Prix - so yes it does work


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## eire11 (May 21, 2011)

If new positions have to be filled quickly and often that's the reality, companies dont have time to contact people from their old cv database and they have to use recruitment consultants.. a lot easier to make a phone call to an agency

Linkedin is a great way to network but be careful of the time you are spending on it as youre not chasing real jobs .. ideally try and find recruitment consultants who you get along with and ditch the ones who are slow to reply to you!!


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## pamela0810 (Apr 5, 2010)

Let me guess...you're a recruitment consultant.


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## eire11 (May 21, 2011)

No im not !! I just have worked in a number of offices and seen that a lot of busy managers use recruitment consultants maybe not the most fairest for those who apply directly ...Im furthest from a recruitment agent but its hard job tho


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## Ben_130 (Jan 24, 2011)

eire11 said:


> If new positions have to be filled quickly and often that's the reality, companies dont have time to contact people from their old cv database and they have to use recruitment consultants.. a lot easier to make a phone call to an agency
> 
> Linkedin is a great way to network but be careful of the time you are spending on it as youre not chasing real jobs .. ideally try and find recruitment consultants who you get along with and ditch the ones who are slow to reply to you!!


I don't think recruitment agencies are of much use to me. Essentially, what I do isn't big and popular enough for them to really get into it and know much about it. Going to the recruitment agencies was one of the first things I did a few months back but had no luck.
I haven't had much luck through LinkedIn yet but I have only just started to contact people and I am getting replies which is about the furthest I've got so far during my search!


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## Maz25 (Jul 6, 2008)

Ben_130 said:


> I don't think recruitment agencies are of much use to me. Essentially, what I do isn't big and popular enough for them to really get into it and know much about it. Going to the recruitment agencies was one of the first things I did a few months back but had no luck.
> I haven't had much luck through LinkedIn yet but I have only just started to contact people and I am getting replies which is about the furthest I've got so far during my search!


I don't think that GIS is as unpopular as you think. I work for a developer and we use GIS. I think the primary issue is that a lot of companies have a recruitment freeze in place, which reduces the opportunities available on the market.

I do agree however that a recruitment agent is not really of much use these days. There are so many unemployed people on the market that employers receive a large number of applications directly, hence reducing the need for recruitment agents. With budget cuts everywhere, why pay an agent to find you candidates when the candidates are coming to you directly!

Good luck with your job search.


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## newbie971 (Jun 8, 2011)

Maz25 said:


> (...) I think the primary issue is that a lot of companies have a recruitment freeze in place, which reduces the opportunities available on the market (...)


Hi Maz25, does the recruitment freeze you've mentioned concerns any specific profession or it's the general situation at the moment? Thanks, N.


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## Maz25 (Jul 6, 2008)

newbie971 said:


> Hi Maz25, does the recruitment freeze you've mentioned concerns any specific profession or it's the general situation at the moment? Thanks, N.



I work in construction, which is one of the hardest hit industries by the recession. Most consultants and contractors have very few contracts in hand, so they do not need any more people - their current workforce is sufficient. Despite what everyone claims, I've also noticed that work in Abu Dhabi is drying up very quickly and the number of vacancies on the market have significantly reduced. My company had a huge recruitment drive a few months ago - these days, we are all thankful to still have a job!

I can't really comment on any other industry. I'm sure that there are industries that thrive in recession. However, on the whole though, there are not a lot of vacancies on the market. Dubai is supposedly starting to slowly pick itself off the floor but I think it will be a while yet before the economy bounces back.

I think if you are looking for an economy that is booming and have a fair few jobs on offer, you would probably have to look a bit further afield in places like Hong Kong, New Zealand and Australia.


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## Ben_130 (Jan 24, 2011)

Maz25 said:


> I think if you are looking for an economy that is booming and have a fair few jobs on offer, you would probably have to look a bit further afield in places like Hong Kong, New Zealand and Australia.


Australia has tons of jobs available for me, by far the most compared to any other countries. Just don't really want to go that far away! I did when I finished University but that was in 2009 when even in Australia there were limited opportunities!
I've had two replies on LinkedIn today saying that they could do with adding extra staff but the companies are not funding any recruitment at the moment. I imagine that this is something fairly common at the moment.


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## Maz25 (Jul 6, 2008)

Ben_130 said:


> Australia has tons of jobs available for me, by far the most compared to any other countries. Just don't really want to go that far away! I did when I finished University but that was in 2009 when even in Australia there were limited opportunities!
> I've had two replies on LinkedIn today saying that they could do with adding extra staff but the companies are not funding any recruitment at the moment. I imagine that this is something fairly common at the moment.


I would love to go to Australia and similarly, there are also loads of jobs in my field. Trouble is that illusive visa that takes forever...patience will be my middle name by the time I have a visa in hand. 

I do agree though that once you are actually in Australia, it is not that easy to land a job. Most employers are after local experience, which unfortunately, whilst you're fresh off the plane, you just don't have. I had a few interviews there and whilst the prospective employers seemed very interested in my CV, they were all reluctant to cough up the cash for a visa. Lucky me though, time is on my side - not too old yet to get my own visa!

You should keep at it. It is a tough market out there but I'm sure your perseverance will eventually pay off. 
Push comes to shove, if you're not fussy about the actual country you work in, you can head to Qatar - more jobs, more money BUT less fun!


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## Ben_130 (Jan 24, 2011)

Maz25 said:


> I would love to go to Australia and similarly, there are also loads of jobs in my field. Trouble is that illusive visa that takes forever...patience will be my middle name by the time I have a visa in hand.
> 
> I do agree though that once you are actually in Australia, it is not that easy to land a job. Most employers are after local experience, which unfortunately, whilst you're fresh off the plane, you just don't have. I had a few interviews there and whilst the prospective employers seemed very interested in my CV, they were all reluctant to cough up the cash for a visa. Lucky me though, time is on my side - not too old yet to get my own visa!
> 
> ...


True, not too sure about Qatar. To be honest haven't seen anymore opportunities there anyway! My second choice would be Bahrain as my girlfriend worked there for just under a year and its somewhere I've visited a few times. A lot of her friends are still there now despite the recent trouble.


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