LinkedIn: Part Deux

Jeremy Zawodny and Ken Norton put in their two cents on Linked In.

Ken uses it in much the same way that I do:

LinkedIn is becoming people search: I noticed something interesting today. I was introduced to somebody new for a job opening at JotSpot. When I wanted to learn more about them, I went to LinkedIn and searched for them. In the past, I would have used Google to search for somebody, but LinkedIn gives me much more context - where they've worked, what they've done, and - most importantly - how I might know them (and who I know that knows them).

And Jeremy found one of the problems that I've noticed:

I, too, have used LinkedIn to find people a few times. When it works, it works pretty well. But in my limited experience, it only solves half the problem. LinkedIn works well for finding someone when you already know their name. But if you're looking for someone in your network of connections who can help with a woodworking project or has a special skill, it's a different story.

Trying to find the right query to bring up the right contacts can be frustrating, but the search results are also limited by how much the participants want to share about themselves. Especially with folks they don't know. These are acceptable limitations because they show a respect for privacy and for individual preferences.

Not so fun for those searching for something in particular and not finding it.