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According to recent stats, 40% of companies already rely on LinkedIn skills filters to identify ideal candidates for their jobs. This proved to be an easy way to optimize recruiting workflow and reach thousands of niche professionals with critical skills for your roles.
In a world where over 60% of hiring managers complain about a talent shortage, LinkedIn's skills feature is becoming a powerful sourcing tool. So, how can you find the best candidates by analyzing their skills on LinkedIn? What is the LinkedIn skills assessment GitHub and why does it matter?
Let’s check it out!
What are LinkedIn skills?
LinkedIn skills are the keywords that professionals in all fields of work use to describe their abilities and experience. Both job seekers and employed individuals use LinkedIn skills to emphasize their strengths, target job opportunities and build a LinkedIn profile.
Whenever someone creates a LinkedIn profile, the platform automatically requires them to add their top skills to the account. You can pretty much add as many skills as you want. At the same time, you can choose from a list of suggested skills or type in your own.
LinkedIn currently lists over 39 thousand skills, with the most popular ones such as graphic design, public speaking, video editing, etc. We can divide LinkedIn skills not just by different occupations but also based on areas they cover. Here are only a few examples:
- Soft skills
- Hard skills
- Communication skills
- Business skills
- Technical skills
Hard vs. soft skills
Hard skills represent specific knowledge and abilities that you can learn and master through instruction and practice. Common examples of in-demand hard skills include math, accounting, computer programming, welding, and carpentry.
On the other hand, soft skills are your personal qualities that make you good at working with others. Some of the best LinkedIn skills in this area include emotional intelligence, problem-solving, interpersonal skills, stress management, and leadership.
LinkedIn skills help business owners, hiring managers, and HR professionals to find the most suitable candidates for a job opening. For example, if you’re looking to hire a social media manager, you would want someone with experience in content creation, copywriting, Photoshop and Hootsuite.
The same logic applies to all other roles, making skills on LinkedIn a handy recruiting tool.
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How to add LinkedIn skills?
If you already have relevant skills listed on your LinkedIn profile, you can simply select this section and add new ones. The process is a bit longer if you don’t have a skills section, but we’ll show you how to add skills step-by-step:
- Go to the “Me” icon in the upper right corner of your LinkedIn homepage
- Select “View Profile”
- Now choose “Add profile section”
- Select “Core” and then “Add skills”
- You’ll see a drop-down menu, so pick all the top skills you might have
- Save the changes you’ve made in the process
You’ve now successfully added skills to your LinkedIn profile.
But that’s not all—you can also quickly delete skills from your profile. You can edit your skills section if you think old ones are outdated or have too many skills on LinkedIn. Go to that skills section, click the “Edit” icon, and delete skills you don’t need anymore.
What is a LinkedIn skills assessment?
A LinkedIn skills assessment is a feature that allows users to test their top skills. It helps network users prove that they possess key skills in their fields of work.
As you can see, a typical skills assessment contains 15 questions. Each test question is dedicated to a specific concept, feature, or subskill. LinkedIn users who score in the top 30% will receive a public skill badge that proves their worth.
At the moment, you can only do a test in one of these fields:
- Technical skills: Amazon Web Services, Google Analytics, Django, etc.
- Business skills: Google Ads, Microsoft Excel, Adobe Acrobat, etc.
- Design skills: Adobe Illustrator, AutoCAD, Keynote, etc.
Try a few tests if your key skills match any of these three categories. It takes about 10 minutes to answer these multiple-choice questions, but it makes an everlasting impression on hiring managers and business owners.
LinkedIn skills assessment GitHub: A changing workforce
Another detail that we have to mention here is that professional traits are not set in stone. On the contrary, LinkedIn skills assessment GitHub clearly reveals the changing nature of work and the corresponding skills.
LinkedIn skills assessment GitHub shows how business professionals need to change and adjust over the years to fit the same positions. While many features remain as important as they used to be a decade ago, some traits become less relevant or simply disappear.
That makes LinkedIn skills assessment GitHub a genuine reminder that HR managers need to stay in touch with the latest skills to find the best job candidates. After all, some jobs will soon require the development of completely new skills.
The trend is particularly acute in the field of digital disruptive skills as they are reshaping the way most people do their jobs day to day. Features like new software solutions, communication tools, and other platforms force people to be nimble and proactive.
On the other hand, LinkedIn skills assessment GitHub proves that many skills only require slight adjustments. For example, supply chain management set the foundation for modern supply chain operations. The two skills are so similar that it’s easy for employees in this field to upgrade.
So, what does the future of skills entail?
LinkedIn skills assessment GitHub obviously emphasizes the importance of change. It is the new reality that every head of HR, hiring manager, and employee will have to adjust to. It will be the key precondition for preserving competitiveness in the ever-changing world of work.
Why are LinkedIn skills important to HR managers?
Now it’s pretty clear how to add a new skill to your LinkedIn profile. But why does it matter at all? Why are LinkedIn skills important in the world of HR and recruiting?
It turns out that a good-looking skills section can make all the difference during the job search. Let’s see how a typical head of HR benefits from skills on a LinkedIn profile.
- Skills help candidates stand out
People add the best LinkedIn skills to their profiles because it helps them stand out from the crowd of similar workers. LinkedIn users do it to attract HR managers who search for specific features like analytical skills, emotional intelligence, and so on.
LinkedIn skills assessment GitHub has become a matter of professional credibility. Network data shows that nearly 70% of professionals think verified skills are more important than a college degree. That’s how impactful LinkedIn skills have become.
- They help HR managers narrow down the options
How can you distinguish between thousands (or even millions) of candidates without having a tangible metric to count on? It’s almost impossible, which is why LinkedIn enables users to create a skills section and add a new skill. Here’s how this platform explains it:
- 83% of recruiters agree that skills and credentialing are becoming more important for hiring talent
- 77% of hiring managers agree it’s hard to know what skills candidates possess without a skill assessment
Simply put, a skills section on a LinkedIn profile allows hiring managers to pinpoint what seem to be ideal candidates for new positions. LinkedIn skills assessment GitHub is a part of the LinkedIn learning process, so agile HR teams must adapt.
- Skills help HR write accurate job descriptions
Job descriptions can vary drastically, going from generic to laser sharp. The latter are much better because they create a barrier for an army or irrelevant job searchers who would apply otherwise.
Now, reports show that over 70% of hiring managers say they provide clear job descriptions, but only 36% of candidates agree. The only way to settle the score is to provide everyone with LinkedIn profile skills that are too obvious to be misinterpreted.
And that’s exactly what LinkedIn did—the network offered thousands of clear-cut skills that HR teams could use to write accurate job announcements. It’s a win-win situation for job seekers and HR managers.
- It simplifies onboarding and reduces employee turnover
When you search for candidates by analyzing their LinkedIn profile skills, you are more likely to make a good decision. It makes a significant impact in the short run because of two things:
- You will simplify onboarding: New employees who already possess factual knowledge won’t take too much time to onboard. For instance, a person who knows C++ can start working almost instantly.
- You will reduce employee turnover: Hiring people you know have the right skills is a profitable decision. According to the report, the cost of replacing an employee can range from one-half to two times the employee's annual salary.
As you can see, judging candidates by their LinkedIn profile skills can benefit your company in many ways. Besides that, it will help you improve your employee development plans.
But what are the LinkedIn skills you should focus on? Let’s discuss it in the next section!
Top 15 LinkedIn skills that matter to recruiters (examples)
Aren’t you curious to learn about the top pick from the LinkedIn skills section? We know you are, so we will reveal the top 15 professional traits that matter to recruiters.
But before we get to that, it is important to explain how we made our picks. Firstly, we looked at the ones that LinkedIn itself announced as the most in-demand this year. According to their recent blog post, these skills appear in almost 80% of all job announcements on this network. Besides that, here’s what the report says:
- The list has changed by a quarter since 2015
- It is projected to change by over 40% in the next three years
Besides that, we took into account characteristics that HR managers want to see in a good candidate. Bearing that in mind, let’s see 15 skills that matter to recruiters. These include both hard and soft skills with real-life examples.
- Leadership
Leadership is the ability to create a vision, inspire others to buy into that vision, and guide the organization towards achieving that vision. A good leader must be able to think strategically, be decisive, and motivate others.
Some examples of this skill include team leadership, management, leadership development, emotional intelligence, personal development, and strategic leadership.
- Communication
Communication is information exchange, but it is complicated in reality. Effective communication in business requires perfect timing and accuracy. That’s a surefire way to secure performance improvement and boost your workforce.
Individuals who add communication to their LinkedIn skills section are good listeners. They take into account details that affect how information is interpreted. This skill covers everything from interpersonal skills and written communication to cross-cultural communication skills.
- Problem-solving skills
Problem-solving skills represent the ability to identify a problem and find a solution. It usually means breaking the problem down into smaller parts, looking for patterns, brainstorming possible solutions, and testing possible solutions.
If you want to add this skill to your LinkedIn profile, you can choose from options like creative problem-solving, analytical skills, root cause problem-solving, and so on.
- Management
Management is the ability to motivate and coordinate people to achieve a common goal. It's about getting the best out of people by setting a good 30-60-90-day plan, determining targets, providing direction, and helping them reach goals.
A good manager knows how to resolve conflicts, communicate effectively, and delegate tasks. If you’re good at it, LinkedIn allows you to add skills like account management, project management, team management, CRM, interpersonal skills, and many more.
- Time-management skills
Time management is the process of planning and organizing time in order to achieve the goals of your company. It involves setting priorities, creating a schedule, and sticking to it. This trait includes subcategories like organization skills, timeline management, and team management.
- Strategy
Strategy is one of the most desirable traits you can add to your LinkedIn skills section. It is the power to see and understand the big picture. That way, you are able to make decisions that will lead to achieving long-term objectives.
The strategy goes a long way on LinkedIn, as you can choose between skills like IT strategy, digital strategy, business strategy, research, and even public relations.
- Sales
Anyone trying to succeed in business should master the art of sales, which is why it's one of the most important LinkedIn skills. Salespeople can persuade customers to purchase products or services, which results in increased profits for the company.
If sales skills are your thing, feel free to add new skills like direct sales, market research, retail sales, or sales presentations. It means a lot in a world of LinkedIn skills assessment GitHub.
- Business development skills
Business development professionals are able to recognise and evaluate business opportunities, create business proposals, and negotiate and close deals with clients. In addition, they establish connections with clients and partners, contributing to client care long-term.
If you are looking for people with business development skills, you should know their subsections. These are the likes of small business development, business processes, planning, and business development consultancy.
- Marketing
Marketing skills are highly desirable among hiring managers and head of HR. These skills represent many different things, but they are mostly about creating and executing a strategy that generates awareness. A good marketer:
- Understands the target audience
- Identifies the right channels to reach customers
- Creates compelling content that motivates users to take action
Many HR managers look for experienced marketers, and LinkedIn helps them by providing a wide range of skills to choose from. Some of them include digital marketing, social media marketing, product marketing, B2B, and content creation.
- Finance
No company can ever function without finance experts, so it’s natural to see this skill on our list. Finance skills can be anything, from bookkeeping to investing. It can mean knowing how to manage money, make financial strategies, and understand financial trends and analytics.
That includes having a good understanding of personal finance, investment concepts, risk management, and more. When it comes to LinkedIn, you can add skills related to corporate finance, project finance, accounting and even trade finance.
- Analytical skills
Although they may seem a bit unclear, analytical skills are crucial for all types of projects or businesses. They represent the ability to analyze data and use it to draw a logical conclusion. Analytical skills also allow you to see the big picture and spot patterns that others might miss.
They are essential in any profession where critical thinking is important, such as science, mathematics, business, or management. In this case, LinkedIn comes up with three categories—analytical skills, research, and problem-solving skills.
- Flexibility
Flexibility is a great skill for business because it allows you to adapt to change. In a rapidly-changing world, individuals who can quickly adapt to new circumstances are more likely to succeed than those that don't. Flexibility makes you nimble and agile.
LinkedIn recognizes this fact, so it offers skills like flexibility training, cognitive flexibility, or being easily adaptable.
- Social media marketing
Do you know that nearly two-thirds of marketers are building social media communities? That’s because Facebook, Instagram, and similar networks are genuine success drivers in modern business. Therefore, it’s always good to list key skills like social media marketing.
LinkedIn sees it as one of the important skills, giving users the option to add features like paid social media advertising, social media strategy, and social media management.
- Blockchain
It seems like blockchain is taking the world by storm, which is why so many recruiters pay attention to it. Blockchain skills mean understanding the basics of this technology and the cryptography that underpins it.
It also means users can develop smart contracts and decentralized applications, to name just a few. That’s why skills like blockchain architecture, smart contracts, Ethereum, and blockchain analysis are so important for LinkedIn recruitment.
- Programming
Our list would not be complete without programming. The field itself is extremely versatile, covering all sorts of languages. That’s also why LinkedIn lists 20 different skills in this niche.
Some of them are object-oriented programming, Python, application programming, CNC, Go, and even game programming.
How to use LinkedIn skills to recruit the best candidates?
All of you heads of HR and business owners who read this must be interested in how to find the best candidates using LinkedIn skills.
We’ve got that covered, too! There are two simple ways to do it effectively:
Use LinkedIn search to look for specific skills
The first option is pretty straightforward—just go to your LinkedIn homepage and use its native search engine. Type the skills you’re looking for in the search bar, and the platform will show you a full list of professionals who match your requirements.
LinkedIn's search algorithm with special filters that properly rank individuals with similar skills is the best thing. That way, it’s easier for you to discover the finest job candidates on this network. Besides that, you can use multiple filters to narrow down your search.
Look for people with verified skills
Do you remember we mentioned LinkedIn skill assessments? They serve a good purpose of highlighting individuals who deserve the skills stated on their profiles. In other words, you should search for professionals with skill badges who proved to be great at what they do.
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Conclusion
LinkedIn skills are one of the best ways for HR teams to overcome business challenges and pinpoint ideal candidates for job openings. The skills are easy to filter, helping you quickly discover high-quality candidates.
And if you pair this type of candidate research with a powerful HRM system like Effy, you can take the whole process to the next level. Effy is a customizable platform that assists you in every aspect of HR, including candidate sourcing, onboarding, and automation.
What more could you ask for? Sign up for free and unleash the full potential of your HR processes!
FAQ
What skills do recruiters look for on LinkedIn?
Popular skills vary from industry to industry. However, most recruiters look for LinkedIn skills like leadership, collaboration, flexibility, and problem-solving skills. Of course, the list goes on and includes a wide range of other characteristics, such as:
- Soft skills
- Hard skills
- Creativity
- Communication skills
These are some of the most popular skills on LinkedIn that recruiters search for.
How do you get LinkedIn skills?
You get LinkedIn skills simply by adding them to your LinkedIn profile. If you don’t have skills listed already, just go to your profile and add skills in the “Core” section. After that, all it takes is to find and check the skills you want to appear on your LinkedIn profile.
How do I choose my top skills on LinkedIn?
Your top skills on LinkedIn are your unique strengths. Think about the things you do well naturally - the activities or tasks that come quickly to you and make you feel energetic and happy. These are likely your top skills.
Besides that, you should also pay attention to what kinds of jobs HR managers are asking for on LinkedIn (and other job boards). Which skills do those jobs require? If you possess them, add those skills to your LinkedIn profile.
How many skills should you list on LinkedIn?
You should list at least five or more skills on LinkedIn to make your profile discoverable. LinkedIn allows users to add up to 50 skills, but we do not recommend adding so many.
On the contrary, it is best to be honest and consider only the ones that truly reflect your professional expertise. After all, developing so many different skills is not easy — especially if you are still in the early stages of your career.
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