How do I use LinkedIn’s Open to Work feature thoughtfully?

​LinkedIn’s Open to Work feature can help recruiters and your broader network understand the kinds of opportunities you are prepared to explore.

For professionals navigating a career transition, returning to the workforce, considering consulting or contract work, or moving towards board and advisory appointments, it can be a useful signal. But it is only one part of a considered LinkedIn strategy.

Your profile still needs to make the case for the work you want next.

This guide explains how to activate Open to Work, choose the right visibility setting and use the feature with appropriate care.

What does Open to Work do?

When you activate Open to Work, you can indicate the kinds of roles you are interested in, your preferred locations, workplace arrangements and availability.

LinkedIn uses this information to help your profile appear when recruiters search for people with relevant experience and career interests.

You can choose whether to share this information with:

• Recruiters only, through LinkedIn Recruiter
• All LinkedIn members, including your wider network.

Choosing the public option adds the green #OpenToWork frame to your profile photo.

Both settings can be useful. The better choice depends on your circumstances, the level of discretion required and the kind of opportunity you are seeking.

Using Open to Work on desktop

1. Click the Me icon at the top of your LinkedIn homepage.
2. Select View Profile.
3. Click the Open to button in your introduction section.
4. Choose Finding a new job.
5. Add the job titles, locations, workplace types and availability that reflect your preferences.
6. Choose who can see that you are open to opportunities.
7. Click Add to profile.

You may also see a prompt near the top of your profile inviting you to tell recruiters that you are open to work.

Using Open to Work on mobile

1. Tap your profile photo.
2. Select View Profile.
3. Tap Open to in the introduction section near the top of your profile.
4. Choose Finding a new job.
5. Complete your preferences.
6. Select your visibility setting.
7. Tap Save.

LinkedIn’s options and labels can change from time to time, but the feature remains accessible from the introduction section of your profile.

Choosing “Recruiters only”

The Recruiters only setting allows LinkedIn Recruiter users to see that you are open to new opportunities, without adding the green frame to your public profile.

This can be a sensible option for people who are currently employed, particularly where a job search requires discretion.

It may also suit senior leaders, specialists and professionals in close-knit sectors where a public signal could create unnecessary speculation before they are ready to have broader conversations.

LinkedIn says it attempts to prevent recruiters at your current company, and related companies, from seeing your shared career interests. However, it does not guarantee complete privacy. Treat this as a useful layer of discretion, not an airtight wall.

Where confidentiality matters deeply, rely on a more deliberate approach: direct conversations with trusted contacts, carefully chosen recruiters and people who understand your work.

Choosing “All LinkedIn members”

Choosing All LinkedIn members makes your availability visible to anyone who visits your profile. It also adds the green #OpenToWork photo frame.

This may be appropriate when you are between roles, seeking contract or consulting work, returning to work, or comfortable letting your network know that you are open to conversations.

A public signal can be particularly useful because many hiring managers, business owners and not-for-profit leaders do not use LinkedIn Recruiter. They may be hiring directly, through referrals or through their own professional networks.

That said, the green frame is optional. Visibility can also be created through a well-written profile, thoughtful activity, selective outreach and conversations with the people who know your work.

Open to Work for board, committee and advisory roles

LinkedIn’s Open to Work feature may be relevant for people seeking board, committee, advisory or volunteer appointments, depending on the options available in their location and account settings.

For a board pathway, the setting should be treated as a supporting signal rather than the central strategy.

A prospective board member’s profile should make it easy for others to understand:

• the governance, commercial or sector perspective they bring
• the scale and complexity of their leadership experience
• their approach to risk, stakeholders and decision-making
• the contribution they are equipped to make beyond an executive role.

The feature may help someone find you. Your profile needs to help them understand why they should speak with you.

Before you activate Open to Work

Open to Work attracts attention. Before turning it on, make sure your profile is ready to meet that attention.

Consider these questions:

• Does your headline clearly express your professional direction and value?
• Does your About section reflect the work you want to be known for now?
• Does your current or most recent role show the scope, outcomes and leadership involved?
• Are your skills aligned with the opportunities you are seeking?
• Does your profile use language that recruiters, hiring managers or prospective clients might search for?
• Is your profile photo current, clear and appropriate for the professional context you are entering?

A feature cannot compensate for a profile that is unclear, outdated or undersells your contribution.

A final word on executive visibility

There is no single right way to signal that you are open to work.

For some people, a public declaration creates useful momentum. For others, a quieter approach is wiser. The important thing is that the setting matches your circumstances and that your LinkedIn profile is ready to carry the conversation forward.

Open to Work can open a door.

Your profile, relationships and professional reputation are what help you walk through it.

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