Hiring Assistant | Join the Talent Community to ask Recruiter or LinkedIn Learning questions, find answers, discover best practices, and share product ideas.

Getting started

Learn how to use Hiring Assistant

Choose the path that best describes you. If both apply, start with the Admin path first.

🔍

I am a Recruiter using Hiring Assistant

Source, review, and engage candidates with HA

⚙

I am an Admin for Hiring Assistant

Set up, enable, and manage Hiring Assistant for your team

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See Hiring Assistant in action

Watch LinkedIn leaders demonstrate Hiring Assistant live

🌐 Learning paths also available in: 🇫🇷 Français 🇩🇪 Deutsch

Recruiter learning path

Detailed user workflow for Hiring Assistant

Follow these steps to source, review, and engage candidates using Hiring Assistant.

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User Quick Start Guide

Download the PDF

📅

Live Hiring Assistant Workshop

Start a project or job

Write qualifications

Review & give feedback

Send an InMail

Review applicants

Take the assessment

Step 1 of 6

Start a Project or Job

There are two ways to start using Hiring Assistant that will set you up for success:

1) Add Hiring Assistant to a Project

Start a new project or add Hiring Assistant to an existing one with no disruption.
To create a new project using Hiring Assistant, click the Hiring Assistant icon next to your profile picture in Recruiter, then select Start hiring for a new role.
Describe your ideal candidate by providing preferred qualifications, workplace location, a job description, an active LinkedIn job post, or any other relevant details. (Learn more about effective qualifications in the next step.)

📺 Learn How to Add to a Project ❓ Help Article

2) Add Hiring Assistant to a Job

Once a new job is posted, Hiring Assistant will create a project with qualifications based on the job post and will notify you when applicants are ready for review. You can update the qualifications and hiring plan in the Hiring Assistant activity section of the project's Overview page.
Note: When posting a job, Hiring Assistant is automatically added to the project but can be disabled by clicking Remove from project.
You will learn more about reviewing applicants with Hiring Assistant in the section below.

📺 Learn How to Add to Your Jobs Workflow ❓ Help Article

Step 2 of 6

How to write effective qualifications

Use the CREATE framework to structure your prompt:

Context — Set the context for the role

Request — Make a specific request about the candidate you need

Examples — Include examples of what a good candidate looks like

Adjustment — Note that adjustment is expected; refine any time

Tone — Write conversationally, as if briefing a junior sourcer

Extras — Add location, work type, or any must-have exclusions

Reference the qualifications best practices library to guide your writing.
Consider using an AI tool with your job description to draft a strong starting set of qualifications quickly.
For contract roles: Hiring Assistant is especially effective at identifying contract workers because it interprets intent signals rather than relying solely on self-reported labels. Look for short or repeated engagements, project-based language, and open-to-work preferences. Try this qualification: "Has recent experience working as a contractor, consultant, or freelance professional, including multiple short-term engagements across different companies or client projects within the past 2 years."

Pro tip: Write to Hiring Assistant like you would to a junior sourcer. Be direct on what qualifications you do want vs. what to exclude.

📘 Qualifications tip sheet 📺 Watch video tutorials 🥇 Share best practices 🤖 Guide: Using AI to write qualifications

Step 3 of 6

Review & Provide Feedback on Candidates

This step is crucial to ensuring that Hiring Assistant is serving you the best talent according to your job requirements.

When Hiring Assistant evaluates or reevaluates candidates in your pipeline, it will provide a summary for you in the activity log of your project.
Click the summary in the Activity log to review the candidates and let Hiring Assistant know if they are or are not a good fit.
You can also chat with Hiring Assistant in the Activity log to update your project qualifications, source more candidates, or initiate candidate reevaluations.

📺 Access the On-Demand Training ❓ Help Article

Step 4 of 6

Send an InMail

Use AI-Assisted Messaging or AI-Touch Ups for efficient, personalized outreach.

Hiring Assistant can help you message up to 25 candidates at once.
Create and add custom content to an AI-Assisted message from the Draft Settings menu at the bottom of a message.
Optional: Add automated prescreening next to Save time with automated prescreening. Click Add to add it for a single candidate or click Add for all to add it when sending a bulk message.

📺 Access the On-Demand Training ❓ Help Article for InMails ❓ Help Article for Automated Prescreening

Step 5 of 6

Review Job Applicants with Hiring Assistant

Surface best-fit applicants using AI-powered filters and recommendations.

When Hiring Assistant finishes evaluating applicants, it will notify you.
Let AI highlight top candidates based on your qualifications.
Click the evaluation summary in the Activity log to review the applicants. You can also chat with Hiring Assistant in the Activity log to initiate applicant evaluations or other actions.

Tip: Reject applicants that don't fit or highlight text on an applicant's profile to provide feedback to Hiring Assistant. Hiring Assistant will learn from your actions to source new candidates that fit your needs.

📺 Access the On-Demand Training ❓ Help Article

Step 6 of 6

Take the Hiring Assistant Assessment

Show what you've learned and earn a certificate.

Demonstrate your proficiency using Hiring Assistant.
Receive a shareable certificate of completion.
Establish credibility as a Hiring Assistant power user!

📝 Take the Assessment

Admin learning path

Detailed Admin workflow for Hiring Assistant

Follow these four steps to activate and manage Hiring Assistant for your organization.

⇓

Admin Quick Start Guide

Download the PDF

🎥

Admin Essentials Webinar

Assign seats

Equip your team

Understand usage data

Integrate with ATS

Step 1 of 4

Assign Seats to Your Team

Learn how to enable Hiring Assistant on your existing Recruiter seats.

Note: Hiring Assistant is not automatically enabled. Please follow the steps in the guide below to activate Hiring Assistant for your Recruiter users.
Recruiter administrators can assign and manage Hiring Assistant licenses via the Admin Center.
You can add users individually or in small groups using their email addresses.

Tip: Hiring Assistant is most useful for recruiters handling 3 or more roles that have clearly defined skills.

📘 View Seat Assignment Guide 🎥 Watch 2 Minute "How To" Video ❓ Help Article

Step 2 of 4

Equip Your Team

Provide onboarding resources and toolkits to build confidence and accelerate productivity. Supporting different learning styles helps ensure consistent adoption across your organization.

Boost recruiter confidence and productivity.
Support different learning styles.
Ensure consistent adoption across the team.

📦 Send Users the Quick Start Guide 📗 Send Users to the Recruiter Learning Path

Step 3 of 4

Understand Usage Data

Leverage the Hiring Assistant report to understand usage and adoption data to drive engagement. Share wins with stakeholders and use insights to continuously refine your approach.

Identify enablement opportunities quickly.
Share wins with stakeholders.
Continuously work to improve adoption — Remember that Hiring Assistant is only as good as the input it's receiving from your team!

📺 Learn How to Interpret the Hiring Assistant Report ❓ Help Article

Step 4 of 4

Integrate with Your ATS

Connect Hiring Assistant seamlessly with other LinkedIn Talent Solutions tools to maximize efficiency.

Connect with Recruiter System Connect (RSC), Job Wrapping, and Apply Connect.
View LinkedIn candidate activity directly in your ATS and reduce duplicate work.

Tip: See the Integrations tab for full details, videos, and help articles for each integration.

Go to Integrations tab

Overview

See Hiring Assistant in action

Watch LinkedIn leaders demonstrate Hiring Assistant — LinkedIn's most powerful solution for recruiting.

▶

See Hiring Assistant in action: first look & expert insights

Recorded webinar · 45 min

Watch the recording ↗

Reference library

Qualifications best practices

Browse general guidance, suggested modifiers, examples by qualification type, and role-specific best practices.

Resources: Ask a question Download tip sheet Register: Qualifications Clinic Guide: Using AI to write qualifications Share & earn a badge

Do this	Avoid this
✓Use specific years, tools, titles, and outcomes. Write each qualification like an instruction to a sourcer.	✗Vague traits like "strong communicator" or "solid technical background".
✓Use "currently working in" or "in the past 2 years", paired with a year range and seniority level.	✗Open-ended phrasing like "has experience in" with no timeframe or seniority signal.
✓Keep to 4–6 focused qualifications that reflect true requirements for the role.	✗Long lists of skills and boolean keywords that dilute the signal.
✓Use precise exclusions such as not managing a team or not focused solely on front-end.	✗Broad or ambiguous exclusions like "not junior" that can eliminate qualified candidates.
✓Include implicit criteria such as company pedigree, promotion history, tenure signals, or employer type.	✗Only using criteria that appear in the job description.
✓Iterate. Refine based on candidates you see. Tighten if too broad, loosen if too narrow.	✗Treating qualifications as set-and-forget.
✓Always calibrate with Hiring Assistant. Review at least 3 candidate profiles during intake, provide feedback, and adjust qualifications if profiles are not relevant.	✗Skipping calibration and expecting perfect results from the first set of qualifications.
✓Pay attention to qualification summaries on each profile to confirm Hiring Assistant understands what you want it to evaluate.	✗Ignoring qualification summaries and missing signals that Hiring Assistant is off track.

Use the CREATE framework to structure your qualifications prompt. Write to Hiring Assistant like you would to a junior sourcer — be direct about what you want and what to exclude. Read the full guide ↗

Context — Set the context for the role and what you're looking for

Request — Make a specific request about the type of candidate you need

Examples — Include examples of what a good candidate looks like

Adjustment — Note that adjustment is expected; you can refine qualifications at any time

Tone — Write in a conversational tone, as if briefing a junior sourcer

Extras — Add any extras like location, work type, or must-have exclusions

Pro tip: Consider using an AI tool with your job description to draft a strong starting set of qualifications quickly, then refine using the CREATE framework.

Layer these recommended modifiers onto any qualification to add precision and strength.

Time and recency

Currently working as a job title · Must have X–Y years of current experience · Within the last X months or years

Tenure and duration

At least X years · Demonstrated continuous career experience · Progressive career experience in function

Seniority and level

Senior · Lead · Principal · Manager-level · Director-level · Individual contributor · Entry-level

Scope and ownership

End-to-end · Owns · Leads · Drives · Accountable for · Hands-on or direct experience

Volume and scale

High-volume · Enterprise-scale · Global · Multi-region · Fortune 500 · SMB

Skill specificity

Expert in · Proficient with · Certified in · Demonstrated experience with

Priority

Must have · Required · Non-negotiable · Preferred · Nice-to-have

Core experience

Years, recency, level

Tools and skills

Tech stack, platforms

Role scope

IC vs. manager, contract

Business impact

Outcomes, behaviors

Company and industry

Type, size, sector

Education and background

Degrees, pedigree

Work environment

Growth stage, tech stack

Location

Geo, commute, timezone

Core experience and seniority

Use present or recent-tense phrasing. Recency improves match quality.
Use a year range such as 5–8 years rather than a hard floor to avoid over-filtering.
Pair years of experience with a title or function so Hiring Assistant knows what counts.

Good

5–8 years of recent experience as a Senior Financial Analyst supporting budgeting, forecasting, and variance analysis.

Currently working as an IT Business Analyst, partnering with stakeholders on requirements, process mapping, and UAT.

Avoid

Has experience in finance or IT.

Tools and technical skills

Name specific tools, languages, or platforms rather than broad categories.
Indicate how the tool was used to signal depth. For example: developing reports in Power BI.
Use or to offer equivalent alternatives. Limit to 2–3 tools per qualification.

Good

Currently using advanced Excel such as pivot tables and lookups and systems such as NetSuite, Oracle, or Workday Financials.

3–5 years of experience developing or supporting applications using SQL and Power BI or Tableau for reporting and analytics.

Avoid

Strong technical skills.

Role scope and delivery model

Specify IC vs. manager or full-time vs. contract so Hiring Assistant is not surfacing candidates at the wrong level.
Use exclusion language thoughtfully. Not managing a team is more precise than not a manager.

Good

Individual contributor responsible for end-to-end ownership of deliverables in finance or IT projects.

Recent experience working in contract, contract-to-hire, or project-based roles.

Avoid

Responsible for various finance or IT tasks.

Business impact

Focus on observable behaviors and outcomes rather than personal traits like strong communicator.
Use action-oriented phrasing such as presented insights to, collaborated with, or supported decisions around.

Good

Demonstrated experience presenting financial insights to non-finance stakeholders and supporting data-driven decisions.

Regularly collaborates with cross-functional teams to support projects, reporting, or system implementations.

Avoid

Strong communication and presentation skills.

Company type and industry

Specify industry, company type, or ownership structure rather than leaving it open-ended.
Name sectors explicitly such as financial services or B2B SaaS. Include regulatory signals when they matter.

Good

Must currently work for a publicly traded company in the United States, or a private-equity-backed firm.

Currently supporting clients in the financial services industry (specifically banking, payments, or insurance).

Avoid

Works in a corporate environment.

Education and company background

Specify companies by name, size, or sector. Chase, Wells Fargo, or Citi beats large banking institution.
For education, be specific about field of study. Pair degree requirements with or equivalent experience.

Good

Has recently worked for large banking institutions such as Chase, Wells Fargo, Citi, or Bank of America.

Bachelor degree in Accounting, Finance, Information Systems, or a related field.

Avoid

Works for a financial services company.

Work environment and growth stage

Specify company size or growth stage when the operating environment matters to the role.
Call out the technology environment when it signals relevant skills or familiarity.

Good

Currently working for a startup or growth-stage company (Series B–D), or a mid-market company (500–5,000 employees).

Experience supporting cloud-first or cloud-native technology environments, or delivering SaaS-based applications in a B2B context.

Avoid

Has worked at a tech company.

Location

Be specific about geography, commute radius, or time zone alignment when it is a genuine requirement.

Good

Must be located within 30 miles of your target location, or within a commutable distance.

Avoid

Local candidates preferred.

Engineering

Emerging talent

Interns, new grads

Sales and CS

Marketing and comms

Product

General and admin

Finance, legal, biz ops

Leadership

Director level and above

Engineering

Lead with language, years, and recency. Specify backend vs. frontend

5–8 years developing in backend systems using Java or Scala. Currently building distributed or cloud-native architectures.

For ML or AI roles, distinguish between research and production

4–8 years of post-grad experience in machine learning engineering; must have a PhD or equivalent in CS or applied math. Experience deploying ML models in production; not solely focused on research or data science.

Use explicit exclusions to filter for the specific type of engineer you need

3–5 years developing in front-end frameworks like React or Angular; not a full-stack or backend role.

Emerging talent

Anchor to graduation timeline and degree program

Currently pursuing a BS or MS in Computer Science or related field, graduating between Dec 2025 and June 2026.

Look for applied experience signals

Completed internship or significant project involving Python or Java. Actively contributing to open-source or university-level engineering projects.

Include collaboration signals when cross-functional work matters from day one

Demonstrated ability to collaborate on group projects or cross-functional teams.

Sales and customer success

Specify the sales motion and deal type — not just years in sales

3–5 years in B2B SaaS sales, consistently meeting or exceeding quota.

Use promotion history or account size as performance signals

Experience managing Enterprise or Agency clients with $1M+ annual spend. Proven record of promotion within sales organization such as AE1 to AE2 within 2 years.

Include geo or language requirements early if they are genuine constraints

Located in APAC region; fluent in English and Cantonese or Mandarin preferred.

Marketing and communications

Distinguish between demand gen, brand, content, and comms

5–8 years developing and executing multi-channel demand campaigns across digital, social, and email; not a brand or content-only role.

Specify the tools the candidate must have worked with

Experience using marketing automation tools such as Marketo or HubSpot to run and measure demand programs.

For senior comms roles, include company scale or ARR signals

8–10 years managing media relations and executive communications at global companies with $100M+ ARR.

Product

Look for ownership and delivery signals — launched, shipped — not just defined or worked on

5–7 years in product management; launched customer-facing features with measurable adoption in a B2B context.

Specify the stage and type of company

Worked in high-growth B2B SaaS or marketplace environments; not a large enterprise or government context.

Include cross-functional and analytical signals

Experience defining product vision, roadmap, and requirements with engineering and design. Comfortable using data to prioritize and measure outcomes.

General and administrative

For finance roles, distinguish between strategic FP&A, accounting, and operational finance

5–7 years of experience in strategic FP&A within technology companies; not a controller or accounting-focused role.

For legal roles, specify bar membership and type of work early

JD and active bar membership in one jurisdiction; experience drafting and negotiating SaaS and commercial contracts.

Name the systems or tools the candidate should have used

Experience building financial models and forecasting; supporting executive decision-making.

Leadership

Specify team size, scope, and whether the role is a player-coach or pure people manager

10+ years in sales leadership, including 5+ years managing SMB or mid-market AE teams of 8 or more.

Include company stage and scale signals

Experience at B2B SaaS companies with $200M+ ARR; not solely early-stage or pre-revenue experience.

Use outcome-based language rather than just managed a team

Experience driving double-digit revenue growth and scaling teams across multiple regions.

Visit the Hiring Assistant learning path for a detailed prompting workflow.

Integrations

Connect Hiring Assistant with your tech stack

Streamline workflows by connecting Hiring Assistant with your ATS and other LinkedIn Talent Solutions tools.

🔗Recruiter System Connect (RSC)

Streamline workflows between LinkedIn Recruiter and your Applicant Tracking System (ATS). With RSC, you can view LinkedIn candidate activity directly in your ATS, keep candidate data up to date, and reduce duplicate work.

Watch On-Demand Video Read Help Center Article

🔗Recruiter System Connect Plus (RSC+)

Unify applicant management and evaluation by connecting LinkedIn hiring projects to ATS requisitions. Centralize applicants from LinkedIn and your ATS to power smarter Hiring Assistant evaluations, using up-to-date data from both LinkedIn and your ATS.

*Unlock our most advanced integration to-date by activating Recruiter System Connect for qualifying ATSs. Requires Hiring Assistant license.

Watch On-Demand Video Read Help Center Article

💼Job Wrapping

Automatically publish jobs from your ATS to LinkedIn with Job Wrapping. Save time, ensure accuracy, and increase visibility of your open roles without needing manual postings.

Watch On-Demand Video Read Help Center Article

👥Apply Connect

With Apply Connect, candidate applications from LinkedIn go directly into your ATS, enriched with LinkedIn profile data. This helps recruiters review applications faster and with more context.

Watch On-Demand Video Read Help Center Article

Have a question about Hiring Assistant integrations? Post your question in the Community →

Feeling stuck?

Frequently asked questions

Common questions about getting started and getting the most from Hiring Assistant.

Can I add Hiring Assistant to an existing project?

Yes — go to Project Settings → Workflow Settings → Add Hiring Assistant. Make sure you're the project owner first. HA is designed to enhance existing projects, not disrupt them.

Why are no candidates appearing after I added Hiring Assistant?

You need to define your qualifications first. Without them, HA doesn't know who to look for. After setting qualifications, HA works in the background — within about 20 minutes you'll see qualified candidates in your first pipeline stage.

Will Hiring Assistant source people who have already applied or received InMails?

HA automatically excludes candidates with InMail history from the last 3 months. If your project is linked to a job post, it also excludes anyone who has already applied or started an application.

Do I need to provide feedback on every candidate?

No. High-quality feedback on a subset of candidates is more valuable than reviewing everyone. You don't need to repeat the same feedback — focus on candidates where you have a clear signal to share.

Still have questions? Visit the Help Center ↗ Ask in the Community → Register for live Q&A →

Success stories

See how other organizations have found success using Hiring Assistant

Explore wins at a glance — then dive deeper into the full story.