I agree with @ThomPete. The value I get from it is:
- Ideal for work colleagues especially from previous work. I keep my Facebook to IRL friends and Twitter is fully open but linked in is that nice middle ground for colleagues.
- Weak connections - I subscribe to the RSS feed of updates, filtered out new connections and when someone joins a new firm or gets a new title, I just send them an email with a congratulations. Like Facebook news, an update can prompt a catch-up that I would not have thought of before
- Groups - groups are a lot more focused and active than Facebook. I have had good responses and engagement to blog posts and participated in some good discussions in niche areas like NFC security or security architecture, security in agile development
- Recruitment - as Thom says I have had recruiters contact me based on Linked in. Most people are hesitant to provide a written reference but on linked in I have got quite a number of recommendations which are basically the same thing.
- 2nd and 3nd contacts at prospective clients / firms - if you are considering joining a new company you can see who in your network knows someone that works there.
I think they will continue to do well and could be one of these IPO's that provide a lot of value to early investors.
- Ideal for work colleagues especially from previous work. I keep my Facebook to IRL friends and Twitter is fully open but linked in is that nice middle ground for colleagues.
- Weak connections - I subscribe to the RSS feed of updates, filtered out new connections and when someone joins a new firm or gets a new title, I just send them an email with a congratulations. Like Facebook news, an update can prompt a catch-up that I would not have thought of before
- Groups - groups are a lot more focused and active than Facebook. I have had good responses and engagement to blog posts and participated in some good discussions in niche areas like NFC security or security architecture, security in agile development
- Recruitment - as Thom says I have had recruiters contact me based on Linked in. Most people are hesitant to provide a written reference but on linked in I have got quite a number of recommendations which are basically the same thing.
- 2nd and 3nd contacts at prospective clients / firms - if you are considering joining a new company you can see who in your network knows someone that works there.
I think they will continue to do well and could be one of these IPO's that provide a lot of value to early investors.