How to Use LinkedIn’s Career Explorer Tool to Find Your Best Career Path

The Covid-19 pandemic did more than just spread sickness and death across the United States and around the world; it also ravaged many areas of the economy. Tens of millions of Americans suffered some level of economic pain during the crisis, and millions remain unemployed or underemployed. Many of those workers have found themselves searching for new career opportunities as the economy continues to struggle to regain its footing.

As part of an effort to aid workers in that search, the social media networking site LinkedIn launched its Career Explorer tool nearly one year ago. In this post, we will examine how you can use LinkedIn’s Career Explorer Tool to match your existing skills to career opportunities you may have never even considered.

What does LinkedIn Career Explorer do?

The Career Explorer tool is unique in that it leverages the vast universe of data contained in LinkedIn’s professional social media platform. It uses user job and career information, skill assessments, and relevant career progression data to help you learn how your skills might translate into careers outside of your current area of employment.

The tool comes on the heels of the company’s 2019 Skills Assessment system and is yet another example of how LinkedIn is transitioning from a pure networking vehicle to a more comprehensive career advancement platform.

Here are just a few of the many things you can achieve by using this LinkedIn tool:

Identify vital skills that you should be including in your LinkedIn profile and resume
Get insight into the relevant keywords associated with your skills
Match your skills to various jobs and career paths
Determine areas in which your skills need additional development
Find out more about those jobs and career path potential
Make connections with people who have the job you are exploring

Because of its many features, the Career Explorer can be used to assess your current skill level in relation to your desired job, chart a new career path, and begin to connect with others in your chosen industry. That makes it a fantastic and useful tool for college students, recent graduates, or anyone who wants to find the right job for their skill levels.

How you can use this LinkedIn tool to find a job and career path

To get the most out of this new LinkedIn feature, it is important to understand how to use it. This basic introductory guide should provide the essential steps you need to know to make Career Explorer your go-to option for locating a new career path.

1. Your first step should be to enter the location of the city in which you are seeking employment in the “Select Your City” field box. Then enter your current job title in the “Enter a Job” field box. If your current job title is not recognized, the tool will show you a drop-down list of similar titles. Choose the most relevant.

2. After you have entered data in those two fields, LinkedIn will show you a list of skills that are commonly included in the LinkedIn profiles of users who hold that job title. If you see that you are not currently listing any of those skills on your profile or resume, you may want to consider adding them.

3. To the right of that skill list, you will see various jobs that are similar in skill level to the title you entered in the “Enter a Job” field. The included graphic for each shows which skills overlap between your current job and the proposed careers. Hover your mouse over the green boxes to see each of those transferable skills.

4. You will also see a list of “Skills to Build” that includes skills you will need if you pursue that career path. Each listed skill includes a link to LinkedIn’s Learning page where you can learn more about how to acquire needed abilities.

5. At the far right of each job’s graphic presentation, there is an estimated match percentage that indicates how closely your current job matches these career possibilities. Below that is a “Popularity” meter that shows how often people transition from your current job title to the related position. A score of 1 on the popularity scale suggests that the transition “may be an untapped opportunity.” Meanwhile, a score of 10 indicates that the transition is a common one.

6. At the bottom of each job’s information graphic, you will find two buttons. The “Find Jobs on LinkedIn” button takes you to the site’s job listings for that position. The “Find Connections on LinkedIn” button can help you identify people with that job title in your network. The first can be a useful way to assess the current state of the job market, while the second may provide you an opportunity to communicate with someone who is currently doing that job.

LinkedIn message outreach template

If you do want to reach out to someone who has the job title you are exploring, you can use this template to create your message:

Hi [Contact Name],

While researching on LinkedIn, I noticed that you have experience as a [Job Title] for [Company Name]. I am currently considering a transition to a [Job Title] role and was hoping that you might be able to find a few minutes to speak with me via phone or email. I would love to hear about your experience in the position.

I appreciate your time and consideration and hope to hear from you soon.

Best Regards,

[Your Name]

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How to use the information Career Explorer provides

Of course, getting the information you need from Career Explorer is the easy part. The bigger challenge is figuring out how to use that data to aid you in your career development plans. The following tips can help you best utilize those results to get on the right career path quickly and efficiently.

Upskill

Use the collected data to better refine your skill section in your resume and LinkedIn profile page. If you see a skill that you are not listing, you may want to use LinkedIn’s Skill Assessment tool to make sure that you actually have that ability. If you do, then be sure to add it to your profile and resume. Otherwise, you may need to put in the effort to develop or hone that skill.

Identify keywords

Learn which keywords are commonly associated with your skills and insert them in your resume and profile. You can also refer to those skill keywords when asking for LinkedIn recommendations or job recommendations.

Plan your career

Use the information to develop a career plan. You can either map out a plan to plug any skill gaps you may have or reach out to potential employers to see whether they offer formal training that will enhance your abilities in those areas. Typically, the first option is the easiest and quickest way to get the skills you need, but there are employers out there who are willing to work with candidates who at least have the primary skills the job requires.

Summary

Whether you are a recent graduate or an experienced worker seeking a new career path, it is important to have the resources and tools you need to secure your dream job. With a little time and effort, you should be able to use LinkedIn’s Career Explorer tool to help you begin the process of charting your new career path.

Written by

ZipJob Team

The ZipJob team is made up of professional writers and career experts located across the USA and Canada with backgrounds in HR, recruiting, career coaching, job placement, and professional writing.