Groups
Overview
Connect, Communicate, and Collaborate
LinkedIn Groups is your destination to find and join communities of professionals based on common interest, experience, affiliation, and goals. Stay in touch with organizations, schools, and companies that you are and were a part of, network with professionals with similar interests and goals, and collaborate in a professional community online.
LinkedIn Groups allows group organizations to extend their brand’s reach and strengthen the brand with existing users by providing additional value through LinkedIn’s features.
Are you a group owner or interested in starting your own group? Click here to learn more.
Groups Directory
The Groups Directory allows you to easily find the right group. Click on the “Category” dropdown to sort by different group types (Alumni, Corporate, Non-Profit, Corporate, etc). Once you have found a group you are interested in joining, click on the “Join Group” link to request to join the group. Clicking the Share button lets you invite your connections to join the group as well.
Your membership may be subject to review by a group manager. For instance, college and corporate groups may require a valid e-mail associated with the account. If you have any questions about joining a group, you can send a message to the group owner listed on the group information page.
My Groups
Once you have joined a group, it will appear on your left side navigation bar under “Groups”. Click on the Groups link to view all of your groups. This page gives you a quick overview of all of your groups, and allows you to access the homepages for each of your groups.
Your Group homepage gives you an overview of the activity in your group and allows you to take part in a private discussion. You can also click on the “Group Profile” link to view information about the group such as the owner, managers, website, and other information.
Discussions
LinkedIn Groups are now the best place to communicate with your group or organization online. Click on the “Discussions” tab on your Group to get started and view recent discussions.
This is a great way to keep in touch with organizations you are a part of, such as corporate and college alumni groups, non-profit organizations, trade groups, conferences, and industry-specific groups. You can discuss issues that are of interest to the entire group in this vibrant and professional atmosphere.
On the Discussions tab, you can also use the navigation links on the right side to sort discussions by most recent, popular topics, and those that you’ve participated in.
Members
Your group’s Members page allows you to view all the members in your group. To get started, click on the “Members” tab in your group and enter in your search terms in the “Search Group” box. You can search by name, company, and other keywords such as specific areas of expertise. This is a great way to find experts and utilize talent from within your network.
Following
Following is an easy way to track contributions from your network and share your own activity across groups. Like on Twitter, following certain individuals lets you explore their best contributions across the groups you share on LinkedIn.
To get started, simply click on “Follow” next to any name in your group. You’ll then be able to view contributions from that user on the Following tab in your Groups home page. To see who’s following you, scroll down to the People Following Me section.
See what your connections are saying in your groups!
Settings
The “Settings” tab allows you change your contact and privacy settings for each Group. You can elect to display the group logo on your profile, change your privacy settings for network updates, and also decide how you want group members to be able to communicate with you.
Another important feature is the “Digest Email” option which allows you to receive updates by e-mail from your group. You can receive a summary of the recent discussions and other important messages from the group.
If you would like to change the order that your groups are displayed in, click on the “User Groups” link on the left-side navigation and scroll down to the “Change display order link”. This page allows you to change what groups are displayed on your navigation and groups homepage.