Optimizing my LinkedIn profile with ChatGPT so recruiters will find me - Part I

Today I read a post on LinkedIn about how most people aren't getting found on LinkedIn because they aren't engaging with the app enough and they aren't optimizing their profile to account for the current way that recruiters are using the app to find talent. Job seekers are now required to thread a very fine needle of using all the crucial keywords while maintaining a specific professional, yet entirely human, tone. It's never been good enough to be good enough, but now you have to be better than good enough with the exact right keywords and in the exact right tone.

I engage with the app regularly through posts and comments but I rarely get legitimate recruiters reaching out to me. Maybe companies aren't in need of my skillset. Maybe recruiters don't like my posts and comments. Or, maybe my profile isn't optimized to get their attention. So, I'm going to take the free expert advice on LinkedIn and do an experiment to see how changing my LinkedIn might attract recruiters.

Here's what I've done to optimize my LinkedIn with ChatGPT

I asked ChatGPT to write me a prompt I could use to optimize my LinkedIn profile using my resume as input. Here's the prompt:

I’m uploading my resume. Please use it to write a LinkedIn profile optimized for recruiter search visibility for roles in program management, data analysis, and learning & development within large global organizations or the tech industry.

The profile should include:

A headline packed with high-traffic, recruiter-searched keywords (e.g., Program Management, HR Analytics, Learning & Development, Employee Experience, Process Optimization, Stakeholder Management, Data Visualization, Change Management).

• An About section that naturally integrates those keywords throughout, while clearly highlighting my achievements, leadership style, data-driven approach, and cross-functional collaboration.

• Keyword-rich Experience section summaries that focus on measurable results, scope, tools, and business impact.

• A Skills list aligned with LinkedIn’s most searched and endorsed terms for my target roles.

• Identification of the top five most strategic skills I should prioritize in my LinkedIn profile to maximize recruiter search visibility and accurately represent my expertise.

• Optional: a concise personal tagline that fits the tone of a modern, senior-level LinkedIn profile.

The writing should sound authentic and professional — not like a keyword dump — but should clearly boost search visibility for recruiters sourcing candidates in program management, data analysis, HR operations, learning and development, and talent optimization.

So, I took the output and put it into my LinkedIn profile. I updated my top five most strategic skills and I created a custom banner in Canva that used the custom tagline. ChatGPT recommended I bundle my entire 13 year career into one entry. I guess this is because it was at the same company. I have it broken out into separate roles to show my progression and broad experience so I'm hesitant to group it as one experience but, heck, we're experimenting here right? Let's see how it goes.

I also notice that LinkedIn has some real limitations when it comes to skill mapping. Several of my key skills aren't options. I made sure to add those in my About section but it seems like a gap especially since my missing skills are pretty common in corporate HR; talent retention, learning and development, HR analytics. Seems like those should be available skills in LinkedIn. Perhaps they need to work on updating their skills mapping?

What now?

I'll give the new profile one month and see how many recruiters, if any, reach out to me organically and I'll report the results in a follow up blog. If it results in meaningful contact, great. We'll all have a way to get better recruiter visibility. I'll shout it from the rooftops for free. If not, maybe I'll try a different tack to find what works. At this point, I am skeptical that all these hoops the "experts" recommend are more a dog-and-pony show to build their audience and less meaningful tactics for getting recruiter attention.

I'm already thinking I'll try a new prompt where I include a few target job posts, to the mix along with my resume, and see if that dials things in closer to what recruiters might be looking for. Let's see how this first trial goes.

Stay tuned for the update in part II!