Breathe
By Laura Coronado Contreras.
Why is it that if LinkedIn claims to offer 20 million jobs, we can't find any for ourselves? More than a treasure hunt, finding an answer to the multiplicity of applications submitted seems to be a lottery prize. Or worse, a full-time job of your own. More and more frequently we hear that "it is very difficult to highlight my profile", "I change my skills to adapt to the vacancies, but nothing", "I'm still waiting", "hopefully this one will work", "no one from the big companies will answer me". Is it a real problem or is it us?
With more than 1.15 billion active users, LinkedIn has been the quintessential professional network for millennials, digital natives and even older generations. There has been no better platform to connect with current or former colleagues, fellow students, customers or suppliers, industry leaders and experts, and especially to find potential employers. Thus, #opentowork or "open for employment" is one of the most recurring tags in the profiles.
Unfortunately, some users and companies that tag themselves or posts about their vacancies with #hiring or "hiring" are not actually doing so. This does nothing but detract from a tool that, for two decades, has yielded great results. Some doctrinaires have even started calling this phenomenon as "phantom jobs", that is, "vacancies that are never filled". And because of this, we see job opportunities in attractive areas constantly circulating. The characteristics of this "act of illusion" is that they are presented as great opportunities for growth, they establish very specific requirements and request high competencies. At the same time, they promise benefits that seem dreamlike. However, they are designed to appear or, in other words, they are made to give the feeling of growth, solidity and success to clients and competitors, leaving aside ethics and, obviously, disregarding the time and frustration of those who apply.
Robert G. Ingersoll noted that "illusion is the only universal lie that never loses its reputation for truthfulness" and in this case it is true. On the one hand, the platform, unlike other networks, is not designed to "denounce" or give opinions on profiles. Nor is it designed to rate the performance of recruiters or human talent areas. Large companies, and those who want to pretend to be one, know this and think that they comply with "formalities" such as the design of certain positions for women or people with disabilities and that no one will realize that they were never real.
And even more seriously, before thinking about whether the vacancy might be a fake, we ourselves feel guilty for "not passing the filter". We feel that perhaps there were better applications, they detected our weaknesses, our profile was not so good and so on and so forth. Imposter syndrome perhaps?
According to INEGI data, the participation of women in economic life in our country has been "stable" in recent years (https://www.inegi.org.mx/contenidos/saladeprensa/aproposito/2023/EAP_8M2023.pdf). In 2008, we represented 39.9% of the economically active population and in 2023, 40.4%. This figure reflects that our inclusion in the Mexican labor market is significantly low if we consider that 51.1% of Mexicans are women (https://es.statista.com/estadisticas/1296242/mexico-poblacion-economicamente-activa-por-genero/#:~:text=En%20el%20tercer%20trimestre%20de,alrededor%20de%2036%2C2%20millonesWhy have we not been able to grow in more than fifteen years?
Undoubtedly, this situation is not only due to these corporate illusionists, but they reflect the lack of commitment to change the working conditions of women. Now, there is one more obstacle for those who do not find an easy job path and, unfortunately, practices that have existed for years are being replicated. For example, rumors have circulated about companies using recruitment fairs for promotion or collecting personal data to use for commercial purposes.
LinkedIn offers many advantages as a collaborative network, with a variety of free and friendly options for its members. It even has more users than other networks such as X (Twitter) (https://www.primeweb.com.mx/redes-sociales-para-empresas). However, we now need to be a little more discerning when looking at contracting options. For example, if the offer has been open for more than 30 days or if the only publications of the profile or the company are about open positions.
So the next time we apply and don't get a response, we shouldn't worry so much. It may not be us, but the vacancy and some illusionist on the loose.
*Laura Coronado Contreras is an expert in Digital Culture. Author of "Familias enredadas: cultura digital para papás, novatos y todos los que quieran aprender del sano uso de las redes sociales". Member Level I of the National System of Researchers of CONAHCYT.
The opinions expressed are the responsibility of the authors and are absolutely independent of the position and editorial line of the company. Opinion 51.
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