Uploading your CV to LinkedIn feels convenient.
It is also one of the most common strategic mistakes professionals make.
Once It’s There, It’s No Longer Yours
When your CV is uploaded, it becomes:
- downloadable,
- reusable,
- and effectively free commercial material.
Recruiters, agencies, and third parties can extract it, repurpose it, and use it to:
- open client conversations,
- demonstrate candidate reach,
- and grow their own business.
All using your intellectual property.
LinkedIn Is Not a CV Platform
LinkedIn is a people platform, not a document repository.
That is why profiles are written in:
- first person,
- conversational tone,
- and narrative structure.
A CV is a controlled asset.
A LinkedIn profile is a visibility tool.
They serve different purposes and should never be identical.
The 30–50% Rule
A strategically written LinkedIn profile uses no more than 30–50% of the content that sits in a full CV.
Why?
Because when a hiring manager receives your CV, it must still deliver:
- additional depth,
- process clarity,
- and measurable value.
If everything is already on LinkedIn, the CV adds nothing new.
Value Is Created Through Progression
Hiring confidence is built through progression of information:
- LinkedIn creates interest and relevance.
- The CV delivers structure, evidence and delivery detail.
- The interview confirms judgement and execution capability.
Collapse that sequence, and you reduce impact at every stage.
Strategic Reality
When your LinkedIn profile gives away 100% of your CV:
- the reader learns nothing new when the CV arrives,
- the recruiter controls the narrative, not you,
- and your leverage in the process drops.
Less on LinkedIn does not mean less visibility.
It means better information control.
Final Thought
Your CV is a commercial asset.
Your LinkedIn profile is a positioning tool.
Treat them differently, or accept that others will monetise your experience before you do.
