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Show HN: Jobs by Referral: Find jobs in your LinkedIn network

174 points by nicksergeant 1y ago

I have some friends who were laid off and are on the job hunt. We were all quite surprised to learn that LinkedIn does not have a "view jobs only at companies where I have connections", so I built https://jobsbyreferral.com/ https://jobsbyreferral.com/ It's powered by https://rapidapi.com/letscrape-6bRBa3QguO5/api/jsearch https://rapidapi.com/letscrape-6bRBa3QguO5/api/jsearch, which is a little pricey, so I'm trying to decide whether to put more effort into the project (I'd have to charge _something_ to offset the costs).

floutist44 1y ago
This feature already exists and has existed for many years. In the new “AI search” they are testing, just type “in my network” at the end of your search query or something similar and you’ll get the same set of companies being filtered.
- nicksergeant 1y ago
  The new AI search restricts results to a specific location - you can't search for "remote", for example. So "frontend in my network" returns 5 results, whereas the old Classic Search with the "In My Network" toggle returns 392 results. FWIW, I didn't know the current search was a new "AI search" and that the "classic search" still provides this functionality, when I built this :)
gergely 1y ago
But it is there: If you search for jobs and expose "All filters" there is a filter called "In your network" which filters down exactly to this.
- nicksergeant 1y ago
  Really?! I still cannot find this in the mobile app or desktop :lolsob:
  - kjkjadksj 1y ago
    Use the old search
    - citizenpaul 1y ago
      Whats the old search URL?
      - kjkjadksj 1y ago
        Not sure but if it asks you to go back to the old search, click that button. Then in the additional flags menu you will find this in your network toggle.
  - 98codes 1y ago
    It's there -- go to the jobs tab, answer the first time questions if they come up, and when you get the job list, click All Filters, and scroll the filter list down (admittedly, pretty far down); there's an "In your network" toggle.
    - nicksergeant 1y ago
      Ah, wild! Yes I see it now! That is really quite buried. Edit: seems like this is only the "Classic Search", and presumably may disappear once "AI search" is no longer optional?
    - citizenpaul 1y ago
      I still can't find this. The job list is "infinite scroll" for me so there is no bottom. I don't see the word filter anywhere. Is there a URL?
      - iLoveOncall 1y ago
        You need to switch back to classic search to see those filters (on mobile at least).
  - 1y ago
- giancarlostoro 1y ago
  Do you pay for LinkedIn Premium or something?
  - zamadatix 1y ago
    I do not and the filter is available in the job search page for me as well.
dijit 1y ago
I really want the inverse of this. I even wrote a version of it, but like many side projects; I lost motivation after leaving the original company I was working at (where I was integrating with things). I really want a way of recommending people you've worked with previously; should they happen to apply to your current workplace. I've worked with some absolute stars and would gladly work with them again. My original design (that I even got working) had two ways of "recommending" people, essentially you had either: select people from your linkedin network or add an email address/phone number and name you know them by. Then after selecting a person you're asked how closely you worked with them; becuase sometimes it's a nice person but you can't speak to competence: sometimes, it's someone you were really in the trenches with and they had your back. I also design the opposite of this, where you would "un"-recommend people, or essentially downflag their application. The thing is, my system wasn't fully integrated in the the HR management system, so it would add a comment if someone applied with the correct details but recruiters didn't have access to the database of recommended people- it also had an issue where someone could impersonate someone else by pasting the same linkedin link - though then they might need to know who might be recommended. Anyway, nothing foolproof, just making it easier for people with a good reputation to be integrated into the company easier.
- willsmith72 1y ago
  i totally agree on the problem, ex-colleages can be one of the best datasources for predicting the quality of a hire but how is your solution better/different to a referral, other than the un-recommendations? (which i like the idea of but am weary of ethically)
  - dijit 1y ago
    Mostly due to it's automated nature. I wouldn't go out of my way to tell our internal recruiters about every person I might enjoy working with again; additionally I don't necessarily think they'd care to chase someone down - especially so if there's not a currently open position. I'm also normally not directly plugged in to HR's candidate management system as an IC, unless someone is escalated; at which point then I might give a referral. The value of such a solution is that people can just quietly plug away recommendations when they first join and forget about them until that person happens to apply later on, at which point their notice is not just noise.. it becomes a signal on an emerging opportunity. One that might not have otherwise been there. Bonus; if recommendations are tagged with the user who made them, HR could reach out for additional context on the candidate.
hackernewds 1y ago
Perfect feature that LinkedIn should've developed themselves. Thank you for this!
- pmdr 1y ago
  LinkedIn doesn't want you working, 'cause working people don't really have time to waste on LinkedIn (unless that's their job). LinkedIn wants you on their app with a racing heartbeat every time you get a notification that you hope will lead to job.
  - HenryBemis 1y ago
    Every social media company/app wants us know to live by their notifications. This is why you shouldn't have any such app installed. I stopped using CNN and BBC apps almost immediately after I installed them on my 'then' smartphone on day1. I prefer the non-intrusive Firefox with its adblockers than the constant harassment of some random even that is not interesting and definitely not relevant to my life. LinkedIn is the meaning at useless unless looking for work, and even then 20mins in your PC will do just fine.
1970-01-01 1y ago
Caveat: I know people that don't use LinkedIn, but will "keep a profile" for reputational reasons.
- radarsat1 1y ago
  You mean you know.. most people?
- Aurornis 1y ago
  Keeping a profile is how the majority of people use LinkedIn. All of the timeline discussion stuff is a small minority of their users. You can completely ignore it, as most do.
shados 1y ago
It really shows how AI is going to change the entire industry. Let's imagine tomorrow a Product Manager at LinkedIn wants to introduce this as an official functionality? They're going to have to run it by management or their pod (or find the PM in charge of that area if its not them), finish existing project, wait for resources to be ready, have legal/marketing/compliance involved, get it developed, go through all the other red tape, etc. I don't know exactly how LinkedIn works internally, but I'm sure some of this is accurate. So maybe, MAYBE they'll have it in a couple of months? But someone can build it in a few hours, even if they're not super good at this stuff. It changes everything about how we think about products and SaaS software.
- floutist44 1y ago
  This feature already exists and has existed for like 10 years (I know because I built the original implementation of it)
- nicksergeant 1y ago
  This is exactly where I think we're heading as well. This project took about 2 hours.
  - 98codes 1y ago
    Primarily because LinkedIn has to bother with complying with their privacy policies and other T&Cs, and your site has none of that. Why should I take all of my data and give it to you, a rando on the internet? Is it being stored? Will it be shared? Sold? Maybe, as there's nothing that says you won't. Looks neat, but strong pass because of the above.
    - nicksergeant 1y ago
      Those are totally fair points but what I agreed with here was that people will create _personal_ software to solve a particular itch for themselves, which is what I did here for my friends. I just decided to throw it on HN as I have some API credits remaining :)
    - 1y ago
Fuzzy1000 1y ago
The next best thing would be to have an overlay that allows you to pinpoint where and how you made a connection
thih9 1y ago
What happens with the personal data that gets uploaded? Is the payload stored or used for any other purposes? Is there a privacy policy?
- nicksergeant 1y ago
  Hi! I answered this in a few comments but: The app performs its functions entirely client-side except for the job search to JSearch, which only requires the company name. > What you choose to upload to JobsByReferral.com is entirely up to you - you don't need to upload the entire ZIP. You can upload the Connections.csv-formatted file after you review it. You could also obfuscate person names if you'd like, before uploading. > We also do nothing with your data. You can verify the app does not send your data to any backend endpoints _except_ for company name (so that we can find jobs at that company). Edit: we've added some privacy details here: https://jobsbyreferral.com/privacy https://jobsbyreferral.com/privacy
toyg 1y ago
The feature is interesting and I'm sure you're in good faith, but you're effectively doing LinkedIn-scraping, just outsourced to your users. Why not use the official API? (The GDPR implications of this service are also significant. Being in the US does not exempt you from observing that if any of your records are from European users.)
- nicksergeant 1y ago
  LinkedIn's API is pretty locked down to partners, which you must apply for. There's also no documented API to retrieve connections. The approach we've taken here is that you upload data that you're comfortable uploading. You don't have to upload your entire LinkedIn ZIP archive -- you can just upload the Connections.csv file (which you can review before you upload).
- shados 1y ago
  Assuming they don't have an EU presence of some sort, EU law doesn't apply to them. Now if they want to open up shop in the EU, or use a payment processor to charge money that has EU presence, things change.
  - toyg 1y ago
    > Assuming they don't have an EU presence of some sort, EU law doesn't apply to them. That's not correct. If they handle EU people's data, they are responsible for it and can still be fined. Obviously this cannot be enforced if they never visit and have no assets in the EU.
    - shados 1y ago
      Its correct purely because of jurisdiction. EU laws don't apply for people with no presence in the EU, unless there was some kind of treaty where one country agrees to enforce another's. That's just how laws, any law, works. The EU can "fine" all they want but it would be entirely symbolic. That's like if US restaurants had to enforce EU food safety laws when on US soil because a EU citizen is eating there. Fortunatelly, unlike US laws, GDPR, by virtue of being EU law, is actually readable by normal human beings, so its fairly straightforward: https://gdpr.eu/article-3-requirements-of-handling-personal-data-of-subjects-in-the-union/ https://gdpr.eu/article-3-requirements-of-handling-personal-...
JoeDohn 1y ago
[flagged]
- nicksergeant 1y ago
  Honest question: for what? The data you export from LinkedIn is yours. From their "Download my data" section: > Download my data > Your LinkedIn data belongs to you, and you can download an archive any time or view the rich media you have uploaded. What you choose to upload to JobsByReferral.com is entirely up to you - you don't need to upload the entire ZIP. You can upload the Connections.csv-formatted file after you review it. You could also obfuscate person names if you'd like, before uploading. We also do nothing with your data. You can verify the app does not send your data to any backend endpoints _except_ for company name (so that we can find jobs at that company).
  - JoeDohn 1y ago
    I am not calling for it nor wishing for it, but they will argue the 'data usage bypass' that leads to a loss for them (instead 'clicking'/'viewing' jobs on sh*t linkedin website, users are using JobsByReferral). But I guess they won't come to you right away, if you get some traction than you bet they will (even if from legal point of view it's not a clear path for a win)
    - nicksergeant 1y ago
      Anyone can threaten legal action for anything, so you're not wrong, but JSearch also returns LinkedIn jobs so the traffic is headed right back to them anyway.
- deleted 1y ago
  [deleted]
bsoles 1y ago
I've read the instructions steps as: 1. Download your entire LinkedIn data. 2. Give us your entire LinkedIn data. The "larger" data they are asking for includes "... connections, verifications, contacts, account history, and information we infer about you based on your profile and activity ..."
- deleted 1y ago
  [deleted]
- nicksergeant 1y ago
  We've added some privacy details here: https://jobsbyreferral.com/privacy https://jobsbyreferral.com/privacy. You absolutely do not need to upload all of your data. Just a CSV in the format we need (which is now updated on the homepage as well).
orliesaurus 1y ago
Remember Blind? This is like Blind+++
b8 1y ago
There's sites where you can pay for referrals or ask for them for free on Blind though. Most people accept randos on LinkedIn, so unsure how many refer you. The only people who've referred me on Linkedin are my previous co-workers.
- Aurornis 1y ago
  Referral processes now ask how you know the person and why you’re referring them. Referring randos to be nice isn’t a thing any more at any company that has been paying attention.
  - b8 1y ago
    And people who do it for money will copy and paste whatever they want in there. I had strong friend referrals and got rejected anyway at Tesla and Amazon.
- AznHisoka 1y ago
  More people have done this over the years that some companies have started ignoring them. Because they’re just as much noise as regular applicants

174 points by nicksergeant 1y ago

floutist44 1y ago

This feature already exists and has existed for many years. In the new “AI search” they are testing, just type “in my network” at the end of your search query or something similar and you’ll get the same set of companies being filtered.

nicksergeant 1y ago
The new AI search restricts results to a specific location - you can't search for "remote", for example. So "frontend in my network" returns 5 results, whereas the old Classic Search with the "In My Network" toggle returns 392 results. FWIW, I didn't know the current search was a new "AI search" and that the "classic search" still provides this functionality, when I built this :)

gergely 1y ago

But it is there: If you search for jobs and expose "All filters" there is a filter called "In your network" which filters down exactly to this.

nicksergeant 1y ago
Really?! I still cannot find this in the mobile app or desktop :lolsob:
- kjkjadksj 1y ago
  Use the old search
  - citizenpaul 1y ago
    Whats the old search URL?
    - kjkjadksj 1y ago
      Not sure but if it asks you to go back to the old search, click that button. Then in the additional flags menu you will find this in your network toggle.
- 98codes 1y ago
  It's there -- go to the jobs tab, answer the first time questions if they come up, and when you get the job list, click All Filters, and scroll the filter list down (admittedly, pretty far down); there's an "In your network" toggle.
  - nicksergeant 1y ago
    Ah, wild! Yes I see it now! That is really quite buried. Edit: seems like this is only the "Classic Search", and presumably may disappear once "AI search" is no longer optional?
  - citizenpaul 1y ago
    I still can't find this. The job list is "infinite scroll" for me so there is no bottom. I don't see the word filter anywhere. Is there a URL?
    - iLoveOncall 1y ago
      You need to switch back to classic search to see those filters (on mobile at least).
- 1y ago
giancarlostoro 1y ago
Do you pay for LinkedIn Premium or something?
- zamadatix 1y ago
  I do not and the filter is available in the job search page for me as well.

dijit 1y ago

I really want the inverse of this. I even wrote a version of it, but like many side projects; I lost motivation after leaving the original company I was working at (where I was integrating with things). I really want a way of recommending people you've worked with previously; should they happen to apply to your current workplace. I've worked with some absolute stars and would gladly work with them again. My original design (that I even got working) had two ways of "recommending" people, essentially you had either: select people from your linkedin network or add an email address/phone number and name you know them by. Then after selecting a person you're asked how closely you worked with them; becuase sometimes it's a nice person but you can't speak to competence: sometimes, it's someone you were really in the trenches with and they had your back. I also design the opposite of this, where you would "un"-recommend people, or essentially downflag their application. The thing is, my system wasn't fully integrated in the the HR management system, so it would add a comment if someone applied with the correct details but recruiters didn't have access to the database of recommended people- it also had an issue where someone could impersonate someone else by pasting the same linkedin link - though then they might need to know who might be recommended. Anyway, nothing foolproof, just making it easier for people with a good reputation to be integrated into the company easier.

willsmith72 1y ago
i totally agree on the problem, ex-colleages can be one of the best datasources for predicting the quality of a hire but how is your solution better/different to a referral, other than the un-recommendations? (which i like the idea of but am weary of ethically)
- dijit 1y ago
  Mostly due to it's automated nature. I wouldn't go out of my way to tell our internal recruiters about every person I might enjoy working with again; additionally I don't necessarily think they'd care to chase someone down - especially so if there's not a currently open position. I'm also normally not directly plugged in to HR's candidate management system as an IC, unless someone is escalated; at which point then I might give a referral. The value of such a solution is that people can just quietly plug away recommendations when they first join and forget about them until that person happens to apply later on, at which point their notice is not just noise.. it becomes a signal on an emerging opportunity. One that might not have otherwise been there. Bonus; if recommendations are tagged with the user who made them, HR could reach out for additional context on the candidate.

hackernewds 1y ago

Perfect feature that LinkedIn should've developed themselves. Thank you for this!

pmdr 1y ago
LinkedIn doesn't want you working, 'cause working people don't really have time to waste on LinkedIn (unless that's their job). LinkedIn wants you on their app with a racing heartbeat every time you get a notification that you hope will lead to job.
- HenryBemis 1y ago
  Every social media company/app wants us know to live by their notifications. This is why you shouldn't have any such app installed. I stopped using CNN and BBC apps almost immediately after I installed them on my 'then' smartphone on day1. I prefer the non-intrusive Firefox with its adblockers than the constant harassment of some random even that is not interesting and definitely not relevant to my life. LinkedIn is the meaning at useless unless looking for work, and even then 20mins in your PC will do just fine.

1970-01-01 1y ago

Caveat: I know people that don't use LinkedIn, but will "keep a profile" for reputational reasons.

radarsat1 1y ago
You mean you know.. most people?
Aurornis 1y ago
Keeping a profile is how the majority of people use LinkedIn. All of the timeline discussion stuff is a small minority of their users. You can completely ignore it, as most do.

shados 1y ago

It really shows how AI is going to change the entire industry. Let's imagine tomorrow a Product Manager at LinkedIn wants to introduce this as an official functionality? They're going to have to run it by management or their pod (or find the PM in charge of that area if its not them), finish existing project, wait for resources to be ready, have legal/marketing/compliance involved, get it developed, go through all the other red tape, etc. I don't know exactly how LinkedIn works internally, but I'm sure some of this is accurate. So maybe, MAYBE they'll have it in a couple of months? But someone can build it in a few hours, even if they're not super good at this stuff. It changes everything about how we think about products and SaaS software.

floutist44 1y ago
This feature already exists and has existed for like 10 years (I know because I built the original implementation of it)
nicksergeant 1y ago
This is exactly where I think we're heading as well. This project took about 2 hours.
- 98codes 1y ago
  Primarily because LinkedIn has to bother with complying with their privacy policies and other T&Cs, and your site has none of that. Why should I take all of my data and give it to you, a rando on the internet? Is it being stored? Will it be shared? Sold? Maybe, as there's nothing that says you won't. Looks neat, but strong pass because of the above.
  - nicksergeant 1y ago
    Those are totally fair points but what I agreed with here was that people will create _personal_ software to solve a particular itch for themselves, which is what I did here for my friends. I just decided to throw it on HN as I have some API credits remaining :)
  - 1y ago

Fuzzy1000 1y ago

The next best thing would be to have an overlay that allows you to pinpoint where and how you made a connection

thih9 1y ago

What happens with the personal data that gets uploaded? Is the payload stored or used for any other purposes? Is there a privacy policy?

nicksergeant 1y ago
Hi! I answered this in a few comments but: The app performs its functions entirely client-side except for the job search to JSearch, which only requires the company name. > What you choose to upload to JobsByReferral.com is entirely up to you - you don't need to upload the entire ZIP. You can upload the Connections.csv-formatted file after you review it. You could also obfuscate person names if you'd like, before uploading. > We also do nothing with your data. You can verify the app does not send your data to any backend endpoints _except_ for company name (so that we can find jobs at that company). Edit: we've added some privacy details here: https://jobsbyreferral.com/privacy https://jobsbyreferral.com/privacy

toyg 1y ago

The feature is interesting and I'm sure you're in good faith, but you're effectively doing LinkedIn-scraping, just outsourced to your users. Why not use the official API? (The GDPR implications of this service are also significant. Being in the US does not exempt you from observing that if any of your records are from European users.)

nicksergeant 1y ago
LinkedIn's API is pretty locked down to partners, which you must apply for. There's also no documented API to retrieve connections. The approach we've taken here is that you upload data that you're comfortable uploading. You don't have to upload your entire LinkedIn ZIP archive -- you can just upload the Connections.csv file (which you can review before you upload).
shados 1y ago
Assuming they don't have an EU presence of some sort, EU law doesn't apply to them. Now if they want to open up shop in the EU, or use a payment processor to charge money that has EU presence, things change.
- toyg 1y ago
  > Assuming they don't have an EU presence of some sort, EU law doesn't apply to them. That's not correct. If they handle EU people's data, they are responsible for it and can still be fined. Obviously this cannot be enforced if they never visit and have no assets in the EU.
  - shados 1y ago
    Its correct purely because of jurisdiction. EU laws don't apply for people with no presence in the EU, unless there was some kind of treaty where one country agrees to enforce another's. That's just how laws, any law, works. The EU can "fine" all they want but it would be entirely symbolic. That's like if US restaurants had to enforce EU food safety laws when on US soil because a EU citizen is eating there. Fortunatelly, unlike US laws, GDPR, by virtue of being EU law, is actually readable by normal human beings, so its fairly straightforward: https://gdpr.eu/article-3-requirements-of-handling-personal-data-of-subjects-in-the-union/ https://gdpr.eu/article-3-requirements-of-handling-personal-...

JoeDohn 1y ago

[flagged]

nicksergeant 1y ago
Honest question: for what? The data you export from LinkedIn is yours. From their "Download my data" section: > Download my data > Your LinkedIn data belongs to you, and you can download an archive any time or view the rich media you have uploaded. What you choose to upload to JobsByReferral.com is entirely up to you - you don't need to upload the entire ZIP. You can upload the Connections.csv-formatted file after you review it. You could also obfuscate person names if you'd like, before uploading. We also do nothing with your data. You can verify the app does not send your data to any backend endpoints _except_ for company name (so that we can find jobs at that company).
- JoeDohn 1y ago
  I am not calling for it nor wishing for it, but they will argue the 'data usage bypass' that leads to a loss for them (instead 'clicking'/'viewing' jobs on sh*t linkedin website, users are using JobsByReferral). But I guess they won't come to you right away, if you get some traction than you bet they will (even if from legal point of view it's not a clear path for a win)
  - nicksergeant 1y ago
    Anyone can threaten legal action for anything, so you're not wrong, but JSearch also returns LinkedIn jobs so the traffic is headed right back to them anyway.
deleted 1y ago
[deleted]

bsoles 1y ago

I've read the instructions steps as: 1. Download your entire LinkedIn data. 2. Give us your entire LinkedIn data. The "larger" data they are asking for includes "... connections, verifications, contacts, account history, and information we infer about you based on your profile and activity ..."

deleted 1y ago
[deleted]
nicksergeant 1y ago
We've added some privacy details here: https://jobsbyreferral.com/privacy https://jobsbyreferral.com/privacy. You absolutely do not need to upload all of your data. Just a CSV in the format we need (which is now updated on the homepage as well).

orliesaurus 1y ago

Remember Blind? This is like Blind+++

b8 1y ago

There's sites where you can pay for referrals or ask for them for free on Blind though. Most people accept randos on LinkedIn, so unsure how many refer you. The only people who've referred me on Linkedin are my previous co-workers.

Aurornis 1y ago
Referral processes now ask how you know the person and why you’re referring them. Referring randos to be nice isn’t a thing any more at any company that has been paying attention.
- b8 1y ago
  And people who do it for money will copy and paste whatever they want in there. I had strong friend referrals and got rejected anyway at Tesla and Amazon.
AznHisoka 1y ago
More people have done this over the years that some companies have started ignoring them. Because they’re just as much noise as regular applicants