With many looking to LinkedIn for their next career move, the social media platform built around careers and helping people find and land jobs has seen record highs in users, especially with all the talk of a recession.
“For job seekers who still feel uncertain, it’s important to know that there are still jobs out there!” Andrew McCaskill, senior director and career expert at LinkedIn, explained.
And there are jobs out there, as he continued to say, “In the U.S., there is nearly one job opening on LinkedIn for every applicant actively looking for work, nearly double the pre-pandemic average.”
The platform currently boasts over 822 million users, with the majority being in the U.S., India, and China.
Users are drawn to the platform’s variety of tools and resources for job seekers, such as resume building, interview preparation, and transparent salary information. But also because it works, as it has been reported that 44% of LinkedIn users take home more than $75,000 per year, which is above the national median in the U.S.
Yet what is interesting is how users have been engaging with the platform lately. Namely, there has been a shift towards real-time engagement, the likes seen on Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram.
LinkedIn members viewed 22% more feed updates in 2022 YoY, where people not only are starting to post more public content (25% more between June 2020 and June 2022) but are also engaging in more public conversations (25% more YoY).
When Goldman Sachs made yet another large cut to its workforce last week, many of its former employees took to LinkedIn in hopes of finding new opportunities. But also to tell their stories.
Seth Johnson, a recently laid off employee, took to LinkedIn to post: “My role was among those impacted by Goldman Sachs’ large scale reduction today. There are a lot of things I will miss about that role, but I’m optimistic about the next chapter.”
Companies have started posting more frequently, with figures showing that 2.7 million company pages post at least weekly. There are over 57 million businesses and 120,000 schools with a LinkedIn page.
The social platform has also seen a 75% increase in the number of spontaneous LinkedIn Live events, a tool that allows eligible members to broadcast live video content to attendees.
LinkedIn also plans to launch an app similar to Clubhouse, an audio-chat social network, later in 2023 that will include podcasts and help people connect.
Whatever the future holds for the job market amid a possible recession, it seems safe to say that LinkedIn will have its fingers on the pulse of the workforce.