Rock Your LinkedIn Profile: Power Hour Highlights from WIFI

On April 29, 2025, the Women In the Floor Covering Industry (WIFI) community gathered for an energizing and informative Power Hour: “Rock Your LinkedIn Profile.” The virtual session was hosted by Whitney LeGate, senior vice president of commercial product for Mannington and WIFI board member, and featured returning guest speaker Katherine Murphy, principal customer success manager at LinkedIn Learning.

Murphy, who works closely with enterprise clients to help them leverage LinkedIn for workforce development, led attendees through a hands-on session about building a strong digital presence and telling a compelling professional story. Whether attendees were new graduates or seasoned professionals, Murphy offered actionable tips on how to make LinkedIn profiles stand out.

“It’s your profile that can really help you to get recognized and to open the door to new opportunities—whatever that looks like for you. It gives you credibility, the ability to showcase your brand, and it tells your story,” said Murphy.

Building a Profile That Tells Your Story
Murphy guided attendees through several essential sections of the profile, encouraging them to evaluate their own presence as she presented real examples.

Profile photo and presentation
Murphy called the profile photo “your virtual handshake,” adding that members with a photo typically receive 21 times more profile views. She emphasized the importance of making the image approachable and representative, and reminded attendees that LinkedIn includes built-in photo filters if a light retouch is helpful.

Headline and About section
Murphy urged participants to go beyond just listing their job title in the headline, recommending instead that they use language that reflects how they want to be seen in the industry. The About section, she noted, should be written like an elevator pitch and rich in detail. “This gives you a really great opportunity to highlight your unique talents and really how you want to contribute to the broader workforce,” she said.

Experience and storytelling
When it comes to past roles, Murphy suggested emphasizing the impact made rather than simply listing duties. She acknowledged that many attendees may come from nonlinear paths and said that every experience counts—including jobs in other industries or time spent on personal or family matters.“ Just because you had a career break doesn’t mean those skills cannot be transferred to the job that you’re looking for,” she said.

In response to a participant who asked whether to include restaurant work during college, Murphy was quick to validate its relevance. “There are so many amazing qualities and skills that you learn and develop working in the hospitality space that are 100 percent transferable to corporate work environments,” she said. “The ability to multitask, to manage multiple things at once, that sense of urgency—absolutely include that.”

Showcase Your Work with Featured Content
Murphy encouraged attendees to use the “Featured” section of their profile to bring their stories to life through visuals and content. “The Featured section allows you to pin those articles and those posts … so that it speaks to you and how you round out your story,” she said. This section, she explained, can be used to share authored posts, company videos, links to external work or industry contributions. She also highlighted the option to upload documents or presentations directly to profiles.

Skills, Recommendations and Search Visibility
Another underused feature, Murphy said, is the Skills section. She encouraged participants to add at least five skills and to prioritize those aligned with their current or aspirational roles. She also made a case for thoughtful recommendations. “Recommendations are a great way for you to build out your professional credibility,” she said. “Request a recommendation from maybe a colleague, a manager, someone that you've worked with in the past.” When asked how far back to go in listing experience, Murphy said it depends on the story the user wants to tell. “Your resume should really be 10 to 15 years … but your LinkedIn profile is different. That’s your brand,” she said. “If you want to go back to the very beginning to tell your full story, that could be hugely inspiring to somebody else.”

Posting and Participation
Murphy wrapped up by encouraging regular participation on the platform—liking, commenting, sharing updates or writing short articles. “This is your brand. This is your page. This is going to be your voice,” she said. “Everyone’s going to know that you're the one that's speaking to this, so share your authentic voice.” She noted that rich media like images or videos can help posts stand out, and that simply reacting to others’ content is also a valuable way to stay visible and engaged.

A Digital Tool Worth Revisiting
As the session came to a close, LeGate reflected on the power of maintaining a current and intentional presence. “Sometimes you make [a LinkedIn profile] and then don’t ever look at it for five more years,” she said. “So it’s nice to kind of get a quick reminder that maybe go take a peek at it every once in a while.”

Whether you're looking to make a career pivot, grow your network or simply document your contributions, the tools are there. As Murphy reminded attendees, “you are in full control of your story.”

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