It is no secret that LinkedIn is a mandatory requirement for freelancers and job seekers looking for work online. It is the place to go. It’s where companies can directly hire job applicants and new talents can directly apply to potential companies. The company was recently acquired for $26.2 billion by Microsoft, about less than 2 years after LinkedIn acquired Online Learning site Lynda for $1.5 billion.
Everybody who’s somebody is on LinkedIn
A general overview of who’s using the social media networking site includes 40 million students and recent college graduates among 467 million members from more than 200 countries and territories.
People are establishing themselves as professionals and digital media influencers by producing content on their expertise, exposing their interests and sharing their valuable information with their networks.
Eventually, recruiters and head hunters are waiting in line to hire top talents that they discover by way of connections. The platform’s gamified and revamped dashboard gives way for its users to download a pdf of their profile as a resume. The company is now trying to get influencers to teach in bite-size courses that will take up only a reasonable chunk of their productive time, linked to their LinkedIn profile.
Individual learning and organizational training: does Lynda ring a bell?
An inside look at what it's like having the most sought-after skills in the world: https://t.co/k2z5VSrmaI
— LinkedIn Learning (@LI_Learning) February 7, 2017
Before anything else, LinkedIn had acquired Lynda.com for $1.5 billion in 2015 and immediately launched Learning Paths, where courses are bundled up in packages for learners to upgrade certain skill sets or simply to prepare for job roles.
This educational trend has long been in the menu, as we’re seeing many online learning courses now come within a learning path for certain specialization or vocational skills.
Both Lynda and linkedin learning paid programs offer a one-month free trial and then bill monthly for a certain fixed amount. The pilot program for LinkedIn Learning included Bertelsmann, Box, Ellie Mae, NBCUniversal and Viacom.
While LinkedIn is a tool loved by recruiters and job seekers, the individual learning path offered by LinkedIn Learning is not yet the world’s favorite.
Should you go ahead and dive in?
LinkedIn Learning is linked to your LinkedIn profile for people in your network to view. The good news is, if you’re passionate about certain topics and write long-form or insightful content about your topics of interest, LinkedIn will give you an influencer badge.
People can apply to become an instructor on LinkedIn, but the influencer path is by invitation only.
Terence Morley, NBCUniversal director of talent development said on LinkedIn’s Learning Blog, “People wouldn’t be coming back unless the content and recommendations were good.” The fact that the program is linked to a user’s profile will fit the experience into a person’s curriculum vitae; otherwise, like many other online learning courses and certifications, they get squeezed out of the bullet list.
