Case Study: Hosting the Thought Leadership Panel at the NPAWorldwide Recruitment Conference

Last week I had the pleasure of moderating the Thought Leadership on LinkedIn panel at the NPAworldwide Recruitment Conference at the MCG, here in Melbourne. Our panel featured four remarkable professionals who have effectively harnessed the power of LinkedIn for their professional branding and organisational growth.

From left to right:

• Ian Hamilton, Carroll Consulting Group
• Sebastian Westbury-Price, Norwest Recruitment - Western Sydney Recruitment Specialists
• Sharon Henderson, Legal People
• Alex Correa, Alex Correa Executive

Defining Thought Leadership

To ground the discussion, I shared a definition of thought leadership on LinkedIn.

Positioning yourself as a go-to authority in your field by consistently sharing insights, sparking discussions, and adding value to your audience’s professional lives.

We then explored three key themes about the panellist's approach to their LinkedIn presence and discussed how they engage with their LinkedIn connections, both as subject matter experts in their industry and as community members.

Content Planning for LinkedIn

We learnt about each panelist's process for capturing LinkedIn post ideas, whether it be notes made after a morning walk, or reflections from what had been happening that particular week.

Each panelist shared how they decide what to post, shedding light on their unique approaches to crafting meaningful content, highlighting how consistency in regularly posting a mix of content from either the profile or company page ensures industry-relevant conversations focused on clients and candidates, helping build brand awareness.

Some panellists adopted a 6 weekly content cycle and others had pre-determined days they posted, deciding on the day what they would post. All panelists had some key parameters around making sure what they post was relevant for their audience, while occasionally providing more personal insights into the team or the way they did things.

What’s Working Well

There was general agreement that people love to see photos of other people, and this gets great engagement. And maybe, the occasional food shot is okay!

The panelists delved into their successes, providing actionable advice to help those keen to elevate their LinkedIn presence. These suggestions will help their fellow NPAworldwide members adopt a suitable approach based on their preferences for using a mix of content features, including images, LinkedIn polls, articles and PDF documents.

Key actions for attendees were to consider how they can:

• Provide engaging content that resonates with industry peers and clients.
• Join relevant conversations with helpful / valued adding comments.
• Re-post relevant updates from their company pages.
• Be authentic and inject relevant storytelling as key drivers of engagement.
• Be consistent with posting schedules and interactive connection strategies.

Getting Started on LinkedIn

The advice for recruiters new to LinkedIn was practical and encouraging.

• Review your LinkedIn Profile and check it is relevant for your ideal audience.
• Prioritise optimising profile sections like the background image, headline and About section.
• Experiment with different content formats to discover what works best.
• Think about your audience and how you can provide value with tips and insights.
• Follow relevant authoritative sources on LinkedIn as a way to build confidence about joining the conversation.

Reflections and Takeaways

This panel was a testament to the diversity of approaches that can work on LinkedIn when underpinned by authenticity and a clear strategy. Each panelist's contribution showcased that there’s no one-size-fits-all method, but there are common threads: consistency, audience focus, and meaningful engagement.

For recruiters and professionals considering a more active presence on LinkedIn, the message was clear: be consistent and lead with value.

I’m grateful to the openness and insights of the panel guests, and to Andrew Thoseby , Kristen Davie and the NPAworldwide team for the opportunity to facilitate this thought leadership panel.

I look forward to seeing how attendees apply these lessons to their own LinkedIn journeys.

Thought Leadership Resources

Take your LinkedIn presence to the next level with these complimentary thought leadership resources from Think Bespoke 's knowledge base.