Bob McIntosh is a career trainer who leads more than 15 job search workshops at an urban career center. He also critiques LinkedIn profiles and conducts mock interviews. Bob started the first LinkedIn program at MassHire Lowell Career Center and created workshops to support the program. Jobseekers from across the state attend his LinkedIn workshops. Bob has gained the reputation as an authority on LinkedIn. Marc has known of Bob for many years, but they had never met. Marc heard Bob on an episode of Mark Anthony Dyson’s The Voice of Jobseekers Podcast and knew he had to have Bob on as a guest.   Key Takeaways: [1:22] Marc welcomes you to Episode 101 of the Repurpose Your Career podcast. [1:34] If you’re enjoying this podcast, Marc invites you to share this podcast with like-minded souls. Please subscribe on CareerPivot.com, iTunes, Google Play and the Google Podcasts app, Podbean, Overcast, TuneIn, Spotify, or Stitcher. Share it on social media, or tell your neighbors and colleagues so Marc can help more people. [1:55] Next week, Marc will interview Michael O’Brien, who, like Marc, suffered from a near-fatal bicycle accident. Hear how this changed his life. Michael is the author of Shift: Creating Better Tomorrows: Winning at Work and in Life. [2:14] This week, Marc interviews Bob McIntosh. Marc starts with Bob’s bio. [3:29] Bob leads workshops at an urban career center and counsels individuals one-on-one. The workshops range from resume writing to LinkedIn to salary negotiations. Bob is more of a job coach than simply a workshop facilitator. [3:57] Bob developed the first LinkedIn workshop at the [then] Career Center of Lowell and since then, he has been updating workshops to meet the needs better of their clients. He finds great pleasure out of helping people find work. [4:16] The average client age at the career center is about 55. What older workers need to realize is that between 87% and 94% of recruiters use LinkedIn to find talent. Employers want to know that candidates are tech savvy and use platforms like LinkedIn. Finally, LinkedIn is a great platform for landing a job through professional networking. [5:29] To use LinkedIn, Twitter, and Facebook effectively says you are up-to-date. If you don’t use them, you are invisible. Bob has read that 40% of employers will disqualify you just for not being on LinkedIn. [6:00] Bob says there are three components to a successful LinkedIn campaign, profile, networking with the right people, and being engaged on LinkedIn. [6:27] It’s very important that LinkedIn users have a full profile with all of its sections completed. Bob lists the parts. It must include keywords relating to their occupation and areas of expertise that will make the profile searchable. Bob explains how to use them. [7:24] Bob sees the profile as more of a personal resume than the resume itself. Bob says your resume can be in the first-person or third-person point of view. It’s a networking document, like sitting down and talking with an employer. [7:57] Bob considers the uses of first-person vs. third-person point of view resumes. Most people use the first-person point of view. [8:58] Try to have a tone on your profile that speaks personally, in first-person POV. [9:04] Structure your LinkedIn networking with the right people. First, the people you work (or worked) with — supervisor and colleagues. Second, people who do the same type of work you do. Third, people in the same industry, with something in common with you. Then add people who do your kind of work in different industries. [9:42] Try to connect with recruiters, in the same industry in which you are looking. Networking is a two-way street. [10:18] For younger folks, focus on alumni and professors. LinkedIn’s See Alumni feature lets you see people who went to your alma mater. [10:53] Bob recommends 500+ connections. 10K is not too many. The more connections you have, the more opportunities you’re going to have in terms of people reaching out to you