If you find LinkedIn not very designer-friendly, new network Hiive may be just the thing for you.
Right from the start you can tell that this isn't LinkedIn. Hooray!
We all know the importance of maintaining a social media presence, right? You'll have your Twitter and Facebook, of course, and maybe a presence on Dribble or Behance, but sooner or later you'll end up having to make a LinkedIn account. And while being part of a grown-up professional network has its benefits, you can't help feeling that LinkedIn would rather you put on a nice suit and got yourself a proper job. Man, it's boring; all that 'Congratulate so-and-so on their work anniversary!', and the awful design.
Now, though, there's a new professional network aimed squarely at creatives. Hiive, which has been in beta for a while and already picked up around 6,000 members, has just officially launched in London, and it's packed with tools to help you in your career.
First and foremost it's about the job opportunities. Hiive's Vacancies area is where you can look for your next job, with listings from leading employers across the UK; for its launch Hiive has announced over 100 new job placements. The Vacancies area is also where you can find the right people to join your company; Hiive will even track applications for you.
Creating your profile and importing work from your other social accounts is easy
To ensure that you're noticed, Hiive's Talents area is where you can build your profile, showcase your skills and connect with industry peers. It's easy to pull in your existing profile content from other sites, so you can quickly import your employment history from LinkedIn and your showreel from Vimeo or YouTube, or grab eye-catching imagery from your Flickr and Dribbble accounts.
Hiive's Talent section is a great-way to find like-minded people
If creative collaboration's your thing, Hiive Swarms have been built to facilitate just that. Simply, they're a means of grouping together users for a variety of purpose, whether you want to discuss industry issues, share cool content or organise an event or project.
Caitlin Moran was among the speakers at Hiive's launch event in London
And if you're looking to improve your skills or learn new ones, Hiive has plenty for you. Its Courses area lists over 11,000 online, part- and full-time courses across the creative disciplines, while its Knowledge and Q&A sections are there to help you find things out; either browse a repository of essential industry resources, or post a question and vote on the answers you receive.
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It's free to sign up for your own profile; head over to Hiive and get started.
Words: Jim McCauley
Jim McCauley is a writer, editor and occasional podcaster, and is available for children's parties.
