LinkedIn Titles: Should They Be Snappy?

• Administrative Assistant is the new title for Secretary.
• Sales Associate is the new title for Clerk.
• Assistant Executive Vice President of Canine Scatological Resource Distribution is the new title for Pooper Scooper.

Lots of companies are rewarding their employees with titles, rather than money. Along with title inflation for everyone, this trend means your official job description may be an inflated mouthful. If you put that title on a resume or on LinkedIn, you risk confusing your readership (people with the power to hire you). If you don't put that title on a resume or LinkedIn, you're lying.

There may eventually evolve a better way. But for now, unless you're writing a resume you expect to be scanned by an ATS (computerized applicant tracking system--which may be looking for keywords), take some liberties.

Don't go overboard--the first two of these links take a rather scornful view of titles like Retail Jedi and Accounting Ninja. (They're worth a good laugh, and maybe some inspiration, though.) The final link, from LinkedIn's own blog, has some more serious advice for how to approach your titles and headlines creatively.

• http://theundercoverrecruiter.com/top-10-crazy-linkedin-job-titles/
• http://www.imediaconnection.com/content/32359.asp
• https://www.linkedin.com/today/post/article/20140611214034-7483005-please-change-your-linkedin-headline-now-here-s-why-and-how