Someone changed jobs
A job-change suggestion is a short window to say something real, not a one-click congrats everyone else is sending.
A job change is one of the few moments where reaching out doesn't need an excuse. The news is the excuse. Here's how to use it well instead of letting it become another one-click "Congrats" that means nothing.
Why it matters
Everyone in someone's network gets the same LinkedIn notification when they change jobs, and most people either ignore it or send the identical one-line congratulations that arrives fifty times over. What actually lands is different: something specific about the move, or something you remember about them that has nothing to do with their new title. It costs you two more minutes and it's the whole difference.
How it works
When you've connected LinkedIn, a job change on one of your contacts shows up as a suggestion on your dashboard. It sits there until you act on it or dismiss it, so there's no rush to reply the instant it appears. A short, specific note sent within a few days beats an instant generic one. Coming back around the one-year mark with a "congrats on making it a year" lands even better, because almost nobody does that.
How to do it
- Connect LinkedIn so job changes actually surface as suggestions in the first place — Connect your LinkedIn account.
- When the suggestion appears, open their contact profile and check what you actually know about them, not just the new title and company.
- Get help writing something specific instead of a generic line — Outreach ideas, or ask Whiz to draft it grounded in what you know about them.
- Send it within a few days. Mention the actual company, the actual role, or what you remember about why this move makes sense for them.
- Update their profile with the new company and title so your records don't quietly go stale — contact profile.
- Decide whether the relationship itself should change. Does this move put them in a different sphere, an investor now, a potential client, a useful expert? Does your cadence with them need to change?
What good looks like
A specific note went out within days, not a form-letter congrats. Their profile reflects the new role. You made an actual decision about whether this changes anything about how you stay in touch with them, instead of letting it pass unnoticed.
If you fell off
A suggestion that's been sitting on your dashboard for two weeks feels too stale to act on now. It isn't. The whole idea behind this playbook is that timing doesn't have to be instant to be genuine. Send it anyway, and own the delay lightly: "just saw this, congrats." A late specific note beats a well-timed generic one every time. The only version of this that actually fails is the one you never send.