Facebook is testing a new feature that allows users to add professional skills in Profiles.
Is Facebook now eyeing the professional networking segment? In a move that is considered to be aimed at competing with the likes of LinkedIn, Facebook has quietly rolled out a discoverable “professional skills” option to its user profiles.
Spotted by a blog called Sociobits.org, the new feature appears as an option in user profile’s About section, under the Work and Education. The new feature allows users to automatically add links to pages suggestions, based on the skills user has provided.
After clicking one of the linked professional skills, users are directed to a new page that features existing friends with similar interests. The page also shows related pages, groups and list of friends they may know with interest in that professional skill. Tagging profile with professional skills is likely to make it easier for employers searching for a particular job.
Confirming the new feature, a Facebook spokesperson tells The Next Web: “We are currently testing a new option where you can add your professional skills to the work and education section of your timeline.”
It’s LinkedIn had this feature since 2011. The professional networking website also allows users to add a section that emphasizes on languages, certifications, patents etc. Facebook has been gradually foraying into the online recruitment and job search market. Back in November 2012, Facebook launched a new job-board application, a product of the Social Jobs Partnership.